The Employment Protection (Continuity of Employment) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006
These Regulations amend the Employment Protection (Continuity of Employment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1996 (the “principal Regulations”), which preserve an employee’s continuity of employment where he is dismissed and subsequently reinstated or re-employed. The principal Regulations apply where the reinstatement or re-employment is a consequence of a type of action taken which is specified in the Regulations, such as making a claim in accordance with a dismissal procedures agreement. These Regulations add to the types of action, specified in the principal Regulations, the making of an agreement to submit a dispute to arbitration in accordance with a scheme under Article 84A of the Industrial Relations (Northern Ireland) Order 1992 (the “1992 Order”). Article 84A was inserted into the 1992 Order by Article 8 of the Employment Rights (Dispute Resolution) (Northern Ireland) Order 1998 (S.I. 1998/1265 (N.I. 8)) and provides for the Labour Relations Agency to prepare a scheme for arbitration in the case of disputes involving claims which could be the subject of industrial tribunal proceedings, including in particular disputes arising out of the provisions of the Employment Rights (Northern Ireland) Order 1996 relating to unfair dismissal.