The WRC told the department it had no 'foresight this significantly important action plan was being published'. Photograph: Eamonn Farrell/rollingnews.ieThe Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) and the Labour Court – two key State agencies involved in dealing with industrial relations – expressed strong concern about a lack of engagement before the Government launched its new plan on collective bargaining rights. The Labour Court said unions and employer representatives had been given a draft of the plan some time earlier and given notice about the announcement. The WRC told the department it had not had “any foresight into the fact that this significantly important action plan was being published”. The approach suggested the department did not see the Labour Court as a stakeholder in the industrial relations environment, she said.

Source: The Irish Times January 11, 2026 09:02 UTC