The Employment Rights (Northern Ireland) Order 1996

Enforcement of order and compensation

151.—(1) An industrial tribunal shall make an award of compensation, to be paid by the employer to the employee, if—

(a) an order under Article 147 is made and the complainant is reinstated or re-engaged, but

(b) the terms of the order are not fully complied with.

(2) Subject to Article 158, the amount of the compensation shall be such as the tribunal thinks fit having regard to the loss sustained by the complainant in consequence of the failure to comply fully with the terms of the order.

(3) Subject to paragraphs (1) and (2), if an order under Article 147 is made but the complainant is not reinstated or re-engaged in accordance with the order, the tribunal shall make—

(a) an award of compensation for unfair dismissal (calculated in accordance with Articles 152 to 162), and

(b) except where this sub-paragraph does not apply, an additional award of compensation of the appropriate amount,

to be paid by the employer to the employee.

(4) Paragraph (3)(b) does not apply where—

(a) the employer satisfies the tribunal that it was not practicable to comply with the order, or

(b) the reason (or, if more than one, the principal reason)—

(i) in a redundancy case, for selecting the employee for dismissal, or

(ii) otherwise, for the dismissal,

is one of those specified in Article 132(1)(a) and (b), 133(1), 134 or 136(1).

(5) In paragraph (3)(b) “the appropriate amount” means—

(a) where the dismissal is of a description referred to in paragraph (6), not less than twenty-six nor more than fifty-two weeks' pay, and

(b) in any other case, not less than thirteen nor more than twenty-six weeks' pay.

(6) The descriptions of dismissal in respect of which an employer may incur a higher additional award in accordance with paragraph (5)(a) are—

(a) a dismissal which is an act of discrimination within the meaning of the [1976 NI 15.] Sex Discrimination (Northern Ireland) Order 1976 which is unlawful by virtue of that Order, and

(b) a dismissal which is an act of discrimination within the meaning of the [1976 c. 25.] Fair Employment (Northern Ireland) Act 1976 which is unlawful by virtue of Part III of that Act.

(7) Where in any case an employer has engaged a permanent replacement for a dismissed employee, the tribunal shall not take that fact into account in determining for the purposes of paragraph (4)(a) whether it was practicable to comply with the order for reinstatement or re-engagement unless the employer shows that it was not practicable for him to arrange for the dismissed employee’s work to be done without engaging a permanent replacement.

(8) Where in any case an industrial tribunal finds that the complainant has unreasonably prevented an order under Article 147 from being complied with, in making an award of compensation for unfair dismissal (in accordance with Articles 152 to 162) it shall take that conduct into account as a failure on the part of the complainant to mitigate his loss.