20 October 2022
By Mary Bermingham
mary@TheCork.ie
The WRC was previously based in a shared office building on the Marina – now its closer to town in the Elysian
The Minister for Business, Employment and Retail, Damien English TD today officially opened the new Cork Southern Region office of the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC).
The Minister for Business, Employment and Retail, Damien English TD today officially opened the new Cork Southern Region office of the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) with Director General Liam Kelly and Chairperson of the Board Dr. David Begg.
Photography: Ger Mac
Speaking at the event, Minister English said,
“The Workplace Relations Commission plays a vital role in delivering fair and compliant workplaces and the non-discriminatory delivery of services for our people across the country. I am proud of the work carried out by the WRC and I am delighted that this new office can offer the full range of services to the people from across the Southern Region. I know that the WRC is keen to ensure accessibility of its services and the location of this office in Cork city centre certainly makes services more within reach for those who may have had to travel long distances or engage remotely.”
The WRC has five regional offices, Carlow, Cork, Dublin, Ennis and Sligo and its mission is to deliver a quality customer service throughout Ireland, which is speedy, user-friendly, independent, effective, impartial and cost-effective. The WRC provides various means of dispute resolution, redress and effective enforcement, and improves workplace relations, all of which are delivered fee free.
The Director General, Liam Kelly said,
“I am delighted that we have a centrally located and accessible office in Cork city. It is the final piece of the jigsaw in establishing a fully functioning office in each region – where our users can experience the same range and quality of service as they would receive in any of our offices”
The Chairperson of the Board, Dr David Begg (a former general secretary of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions) said,
“In a small open economy the quality of its institutions can be a source of stability and comparative advantage. As a key labour market institution, the WRC is constantly seeking to improve our services and this new Cork office will help to make the WRC more conveniently accessible to our stakeholders in the Region.”
Background to WRC
The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) was established on 1 October 2015. By the end of September, 2022 the WRC has seen:
- Almost 50,000 calls dealt with by the Information and Customer Service Unit
- Approx 5,050 complaint applications received for Adjudication which encompasses over 10,000 individual complaints
- Over 3,060 Adjudication in-person and virtual hearings held.
- Almost 2,800 inspections carried out
- €977,000 recovered in unpaid wages and entitlements.
- Almost 800 conciliation and facilitation meetings to date with resolution rates at conciliation at over 80%
- Mediation Services has engaged with parties in almost 2000 cases
- Over 563,000 visits to the WRC website
- Various outreach programmes developed using social media and the website to raise awareness around employment rights generally and in specific sectors.