The cabinet has approved the establishment of a formal structure for dialogue between employers and trade unions. The new Labour Employer Economic Forum (LEEF), which will discuss economic and social policies that affect employment and the workplace, will be seen as a response to union and employer concerns about the lack of such a forum in the post-partnership era.

IMPACT general secretary Shay Cody said the forum would assist the development of public policy on workplace-related issues. “In recent years we’ve had no forum for government, employers and unions to tease out issues like collective bargaining legislation or the collapse of pay-setting mechanisms. It hasn’t stopped us addressing these issues, but it has certainly made it more difficult and time-consuming,” he said.

Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Paschal Donohoe said the new forum would help develop shared understandings on issues like competitiveness, job creation, labour market supports and pension coverage. He said the  Workplace Relations Commission and Labour Court would continue to be the “key dispute settling industrial relations institutions within a voluntary system of industrial relations.”