About the Labour Relations Agency

The Labour Relations Agency (the Agency) was established in 1976 with responsibility for promoting the improvement of employment relations in Northern Ireland.  It is independent and publicly funded.

The Labour Relations Agency provides free, impartial and confidential services to employers, employer bodies, employees and workers in Northern Ireland, as well as Trade Unions, HR and legal professionals.

It is our vision to be widely recognised as Northern Ireland’s leading authority in promoting productive working relationships for the benefit of individuals and organisations and to support the creation of a thriving and inclusive economy.

Our purpose is to improve employment relations, promote best employment practice and resolve workplace disputes through the delivery of high quality, impartial and independent services.

To achieve our vision and purpose, our values are to be progressive, ethical, exemplary and responsive. These values underpin all that we do.

Our role is to improve employment relations in Northern Ireland and our core business is the delivery of responsive advisory and dispute resolution services.

The Labour Relations Agency fully supports the elimination of all forms of discrimination in employment.

The vision and objectives of the Labour Relations Agency are determined by a Board consisting of a Chair and nine members who are appointed by the Department for the Economy (DfE). Staff are direct employees of the Agency.  They receive continuous training and development on changes in employment legislation and employment relations practice and procedures.

Information relating to how we are organised

The Labour Relations Agency produces a wide range of statistics in the course of its service delivery.  We believe that a lot of the information we hold may be of interest to a range of individuals, including researchers and students, and groups including trade unions and employer organisations.  

So when releasing statistics we choose those which we think are of wide interest.