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High Court, in judicial review proceedings challenging the validity of secondary legislation enacted by Ministerial order (by way of a 'sectoral employment order' or 'SEO') setting minimum rates of remuneration, pension and sick pay for certain workers, declares the SEO unconstitutional and grants an order of certiorari setting aside the SEO, on the grounds that: (1) the court is satisfied that the Minister, in making the order recommended to it by the Labour Court, could not have been satisfied that the Labour Court itself complied with substantive procedural requirements laid down in legislation requiring it to compile a report with recommendations to the Minister (where the report failed to record the Court's rationale for its conclusions nor a fair and accurate summary of submissions made to it by interested parties); and (2) the principle legislation providing for the making of the SEO by the Minister fails to set out sufficient principles and policies to guide the Minister's broad discretion on the setting of minimum terms and conditions across an entire economic sector, thereby offending article 15.2.1 of the Constitution.
Judicial review - validity of sectoral employment order setting minimum rate of remuneration, pension and sick pay rates for electricians working in construction industry - industrial relations legislative framework - procedure leading to impugned order of Labour Court - submissions to Labour Court on adequacy of proposed order - Labour Court's report and recommendation - non-constitutional grounds of challenge - alleged deficiencies in Labour Court's procedural compliance as mandated in legislation prior to recommendations made to Minister - notification requirements - failure to record conclusions of Labour Court - failure to set our proper summary of submissions of interested parties - Labour Court required to carry out an 'examination' of relevant economic sector following consultation with interested parties - relevant 'economic sector' - Labour Court has jurisdiction to define economic sector being considered - whether function of fixing rate of pension contributions has been further delegated to a third party - overall thrust of judicial review challenge is that Labour Court failed to comply with legislative requirements underpinning its recommendations and report to Minister - pleading point based on Labour Court's reasoning does not take respondents by surprise - constitutional issues - judicial self-restraint - article 15.2.1 constitution - whether legislation contains sufficient principles and policies to guide Minister in making delegated legislation - no guidance provided in state as to how conflicting considerations of pay rates are to be weighed or reconciled - extent of policy choices left over to Minister - no guidance on determining 'economic sector' or class of workers - whether procedural safeguards in place sufficient to excuse deficiencies - Minister's role under parent legislation ambiguous - Minister erred in concluding Labour Court had complied with statutory requirements in the making of recommendations and report - report's failure to set out Labour Court's conclusions and a fair and accurate summary submissions of interested parties made to it - Minister acted ultra vires in purporting to make order - constitutional challenge to be exceptionally determined - insufficient principles and policies in parent legislation - sectoral employment order invalid - certiorari
Note: This is intended to be a fair and accurate report of a decision made public by a court of law. Any errors should be notified to the editor and will be dealt with accordingly.
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