Former trade union official Louise O’Donnell has been appointed Labour Court chairwoman, succeeding Kevin Foley, who held the position of chairman for almost a decade.
Ms O’Donnell is a veteran of the world of industrial relations and was previously involved with the trade union Impact, which is now part of Fórsa, and was elected to its central executive before joining its staff.
She worked with its Dublin local authority branches, but over her 20 years with the union she rose to become its national head of health and welfare when she was appointed to the Labour Court in 2015. The union represented 30,000 workers in her sector.
She has been its deputy chairwoman since, hearing many high-profile cases, working on caseload management and its dispute resolution service. She qualified as a barrister in 2020.
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Her appointment comes after an open competition run by the Public Appointments Service.
Announcing the appointment on Thursday, Minister for Employment Peter Burke said he looked “forward to supporting her and the Labour Court in their valuable work”.
She becomes the 11th chairperson of the court since its establishment in 1946, but only the second woman after another former trade union official, Evelyn Owens, who held the position between 1994 and 1998.
The court is considered a key part of the State’s industrial relations mechanism. In 2023, it dealt with 1,141 appeals or referrals and scheduled 1,513 hearings. It has an annual budget of about €4 million.
