S.I. No. 155/1997 - Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Control Provisions) Regulations, 1997

S.I. No. 155 of 1997.

SOCIAL WELFARE (MISCELLANEOUS CONTROL PROVISIONS) REGULATIONS, 1997

The Minister for Social Welfare, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by sections 4, 215, 215A (inserted by section 14 of the Social Welfare (No. 2) Act, 1993 (No. 32 of 1993)) and 221 of the Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act, 1993 (No. 27 of 1993), hereby makes the following Regulations:

PART I Preliminary

1 Citation

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Control Provisions) Regulations, 1997.

2 Definitions

2. In these Regulations:

"certificate of cessation of employment" means a certificate issued by an employer to an employee in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 2 of regulation 22 or paragraph 6 (a) of regulation 25 of the Income Tax (Employment) Regulations, 1960 ( S.I. No. 28 of 1960 );

"inspector" means an inspector appointed under section 212 of the Principal Act;

"meat processing operations" means meat processing operations including

(i) the slaughter of cattle, sheep and pigs,

(ii) the division (including cutting and boning), sorting, packaging (including vacuum packaging) or branding of, or the application of any similar process to, the carcasses or any part of the carcasses, of slaughtered cattle, sheep or pigs,

(iii) the application of methods of preservation (including cold storage) to the carcasses or any part of the carcasses, of slaughtered cattle, sheep or pigs, or

(iv) the loading or unloading of the carcasses, or any part of the carcasses, of slaughtered cattle, sheep or pigs at any establishment where any of the operations referred to at paragraphs (i), (ii) and (iii) are carried on;

"specified industry" -

( a ) insofar as it relates to an employer means—

(i) the construction industry, including the building, alteration, decoration, repair or demolition of any building or structure,

(ii) contract cleaning,

(iii) forestry work, excluding work carried out by permanent employees of the Department of Energy or Coillte Teoranta,

(iv) meat processing operations,

(v) the security industry,

(vi) the road haulage industry, consisting only of such industries whose principal business is the haulage or carriage of goods, merchandise or commodities by road, excluding work carried out by Iarnród Éireann,

(vii) private road transport for passengers by omnibus or coach,

(viii) the catering industry including hotels, restaurants and other premises of a similar nature where food is sold for consumption on the premises, and

(ix) licensed bar trade,

( b ) insofar as it relates to a subcontractor or an employer or any other person who engages a subcontractor, means

(i) the construction industry, including the building, alteration, decoration, repair or demolition of any building or structure,

(ii) forestry work,

(iii) meat processing operations,

(iv) the road haulage industry including the haulage or carriage of goods, merchandise or commodities by road,

(v) private road transport for passengers by omnibus or coach, and

(vi) the catering industry including hotels, restaurants and other premises of a similar nature where food is sold for consumption on the premises,

 and

( d ) for the purposes of Part IV of these Regulations, means the construction industry including the building, alteration, decoration, repair or demolition of any building or structure;

"subcontractor" means a person engaged under a contract for service to perform a service;

"the Principal Act" means the Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act, 1993 .

3 Commencement

3. These Regulations shall come into operation on the 1st day of April, 1997.

4 Interpretation

4. In these Regulations, save where the context otherwise requires

( a ) a reference to a Part, Chapter or section is to a Part, Chapter or section of the Principal Act,

( b ) a reference to an article is to an article of these Regulations,

( c ) a reference to a sub-article is to a sub-article of the article in which the reference occurs, and

( d ) a reference to a paragraph is to a paragraph of the sub-article or article in which the reference occurs.

5 Revocations

5. The Regulations specified in column (1) of the Schedule to these Regulations are hereby revoked to the extent specified in column (2) of the said Schedule.

PART II Notification of Employment

6 Employees in respect of whom notification of employment is not required

6. Notification by an employer, to whom article 7(1) applies, of commencement of employment in accordance with these Regulations shall be required in the case of a person who commences such employment save where

( a ) the employee is a person in respect of whom article 52 of the Social Welfare (Consolidated Contributions and Insurability) Regulations, 1996 ( S.I. No. 312 of 1996 ) applies, or

( b ) the employer receives from the employee a certificate of cessation of employment (commonly known as Form P45) completed by the former employer showing that in the week before the commencement of the relevant employment, the employee was employed by the former employer and had been so employed for a minimum period of six weeks and that employment contributions had been deducted in respect of such employment.

7 Notification of commencement of employment

7. (1) An employer engaged in a specified industry shall be required to notify the Minister of the commencement of employment of each employee in accordance with the provisions of these Regulations except where the Minister has notified the employer that the provisions of this article shall not apply in respect of persons employed by him in specified employments.

(2) An employer or any other person who engages a subcontractor to perform a service in a specified industry shall notify the Minister of the date of commencement of any such employment.

(3) A subcontractor engaged to perform a service in a specified industry shall notify the Minister of the date of commencement of employment of any person engaged to perform that service either with him or on his behalf whether under a contract for service or under any other arrangements made or to be made by him.

8 Form of notification

8. (1) Every notification under article 7 shall be made in the form for the time being approved by the Minister or in such other manner as the Minister may accept as sufficient in the circumstances.

(2) Every form of notification shall

( a ) be signed by or on behalf of the employer, any other person or subcontractor required to make such notification,

( b ) contain the particulars indicated in that form, and

( c ) be sent within 14 days from the commencement of the relevant employment to the Social Welfare local office or to such other place appointed by the Minister as a local employment office nearest to the place of business of the employer, any other person, or subcontractor required to make such notification.

9 Retention of receipt of notification of commencement of employment

9. An employer, any other person or subcontractor who by virtue of article 7 is required to notify the Minister of the commencement of employment shall retain the receipt issued to him in respect of such notification for a period of two years from the date of notification and shall produce the receipt at such time as an inspector may require.

10 Extension of requirement to notify commencement of employment

10. (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of article 7, the Minister may require

( a ) any employer who is not engaged in a specified industry, or

( b ) any employer or any other person who engages a subcontractor in an industry not specified in these Regulations, or

( c ) any subcontractor engaged to perform a service in an industry not specified in these Regulations,

to submit notifications of commencement of employment to him in accordance with these regulations.

(2) Where the Minister requires notification of commencement of employment in accordance with sub-article (1) he shall

( a ) inform the employer, other person or subcontractor accordingly in writing,

( b ) specify the period in respect of which such notifications are to commence, and

( c ) specify the office of the Department of Social Welfare to which such notifications are to be sent.

11 Exemptions

11. (1) Notwithstanding these Regulations, the Minister may exempt any employer, person or subcontractor in any specified industry from the provisions of these Regulations.

(2) The Minister may, at any time, revoke an exemption granted under the provisions of sub-article (1).

(3) Where an exemption is revoked in accordance with sub-article (2), the Minister shall inform the employer, person or subcontractor accordingly in writing and specify the period in respect of which notification of commencement of employment is to commence.

Part III Provision of Information

12 Definitions

12. For the purposes of this Part

"academic year" means a period in which a course of instruction or part of a cycle of education takes place in a calendar year or a period in which a course of instruction or part of a cycle of education commences in one calendar year and finishes in the next following calendar year;

"centre of education" means a place, other than a school or a place providing university or other third level education, where adult or continuing education or vocational education or training are provided;

"dependent person" has the meaning assigned in section 1 of the Act of 1990;

"institution of education" means a school or centre of education funded by the Department of Education;

"institution of higher education" means

( a ) a university,

( b ) a college of a university,

( c ) any institution which the Minister for Education has designated in regulations made pursuant to section I of the Higher Education Authority Act, 1971 (No. 22 of 1971) as an institution of higher education for the purposes of that Act,

( d ) any institution to which the National Council for Education Awards Act, 1979 (No. 30 of 1979) applies,

( e ) any institution established under the Regional Technical Colleges, Act 1992 (No. 16 of 1992),

( f ) any institution incorporated under the Dublin Institute of Technology Act, 1992 (No. 15 of 1992), or

( g ) any institution which is not an institution for the purposes of subparagraphs (a) to (f) and to which the Higher Education Grants Acts 1968 (No. 24 of 1968) and 1978 (No. 26 of 1978) apply;

"nursing home" has the meaning assigned in section 2 of the Act of 1990;

"registered proprietor" has the meaning assigned in section I of the Act of 1990;

" school" means a school which provides post primary education to its students up to and including Leaving Certificate Examination of the Department of Education and which may also provide courses in adult, continuing or vocational education and training; and

"the Act of 1990" means the Health (Nursing Homes) Act, 1990 (No. 23 of 1990).

13 Provision of information institution of education or institution of higher education

13. (1) Every institution of education or institution of higher education shall, on request, provide the Minister with such of the following information as the Minister may request in respect of each person being of or over the age of 18 years of age who is registered as a student at such institution at the commencement of each academic year or who registers with the said institution after the commencement of the relevant academic year

( a ) name,

( b ) address,

( c ) date of birth,

( d ) nature of the course of study being pursued,

( e ) duration of the course of study being pursued,

( f ) details of attendance requirements at the institution of higher education during the course of the relevant academic year, and

( g ) details of any grants or payments made to such student by any body, authority, institution or fund.

(2) The information requested in sub-article (1) shall be submitted by the institution of education or institution of higher education in such format as is acceptable to the Minister.

(3) The information requested in sub-article (1) shall be sent, within 30 days of the receipt of a request for such information from the Minister, to such office of the Department of Social Welfare as may be specified by the Minister.

14 Provision of information nursing homes

14. (1) Every registered proprietor of a nursing home shall, on request, provide the Minister with such of the following information as the Minister may request in respect of each dependent person who, being entitled to or in receipt of or who makes application for any benefit or assistance under the Principal Act, is being maintained in such nursing home

( a ) name,

( b ) former home address,

( c ) date of birth, and

( d ) the number known as a revenue and social insurance number.

(2) The information requested in sub-article (1) shall be submitted by the registered proprietor in such format as is acceptable to the Minister and shall be sent, within 30 days of the receipt of a request for such information from the Minister, to such office of the Department of Social Welfare as may be specified by the Minister.

Part IV Maintenance of Records

15 Persons required to keep records

15. (1) Every employer engaged in a specified industry shall maintain a record of every person in his employment.

(2) Every person who engages a subcontractor to perform a service in a specified industry shall maintain a record of every subcontractor so engaged.

(3) Every subcontractor engaged to perform a service in a specified industry shall maintain a record of every person engaged to perform that service either with him or on his behalf whether under a contract for service or any other arrangements made or to be made by him.

16 Records to be maintained

16. Every record under article 15 shall

( a ) contain the following particulars in respect of the person to whom it relates

(i) name,

(ii) address,

(iii) the number known as a revenue and social insurance number, and

(iv) the date of commencement of the employment,

( b ) be recorded at the time of commencement of the relevant employment, and

( c ) be held readily accessible at the premises or place where the person to whom the record relates is employed for the duration of his employment.

SCHEDULE

Article 5

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Minister for Social Welfare

this 27th day of March, 1997

PROINSIAS DE ROSSA

Minister for Social Welfare

EXPLANATORY NOTE

These Regulations consolidate existing regulations relating to Control provisions and extend such provisions by adding the following Control measures

( a ) extension of the notification of commencement of employment requirement to the meat processing industry;

( b ) extension to "institutions of education" of the existing requirements applying to "institutions of higher education" to provide details of registered students to the Department so as to bring PLC students within the scope of this Control function; and

( c ) introduction of similar requirement on nursing homes to provide details of recipients of social welfare payments.

These Regulations will come into effect from 1 April, 1997.