35.—(1) In this section

“code of practice” means, in relation to a section of this Act, a code that provides practical guidance as to the steps that may be taken for the purposes of complying with the section;

“the Commission” means the Labour Relations Commission.

(2) The Commission may and, at the request of the Minister, shall, prepare a code of practice for the purposes of any section of this Act (other than section 6 (2)) or, in the case of a request by the Minister, a section of this Act (other than section 6 (2)) specified in the request.

(3) The Commission, after consultation with the National Authority for Occupational Safety and Health, shall prepare a code of practice for the purposes of section 6 (2).

(4) In preparing a code of practice referred to in subsection (2) or (3), the Commission shall invite such organisations representative of employers, such organisations representative of employees, and such other bodies, as the Commission considers appropriate to make submissions, whether orally or in writing, to it in relation to the proposed code of practice and shall have regard to any such submissions made to it, in response to the invitation, by such organisations or bodies.

(5) The Commission shall submit a copy of a code of practice prepared by it under this section to the Minister who may—

(a) by order declare the code (which shall be scheduled to the order) to be a code of practice, or

(b) make such modifications to the code as he or she considers appropriate and declare the code as so modified (which shall be scheduled to the order) to be a code of practice,

for the purposes of the section or sections concerned of this Act.

(6) The Minister may, at the request of the Commission or of his or her own volition after consultation with the Commission, by order—

(a) amend or revoke a code of practice, the subject of an order under subsection (5) or this subsection (and the code of practice shall, in case it is amended by the order, be scheduled, in its amended form, to the order),

and

(b) declare, accordingly, the code of practice, as appropriate—

(i) to be no longer a code of practice,

or

(ii) in its form as amended by the order, to be a code of practice,

for the purposes of the section or sections concerned of this Act,

and

(c) revoke, as the case may be, the order concerned under subsection (5) or the previous order concerned under this subsection.

(7) A failure by a person to observe a code of practice under this section shall not of itself render that person liable to any civil or criminal proceedings.

(8) In any proceedings under this Act before a court, the Labour Court or a rights commissioner, a code of practice for the time being declared under subsection (5) or (6) to be a code of practice for the purposes of one or more sections of this Act shall be admissible in evidence and any provision of the code which appears to the court, the Labour Court or rights commissioner, as the case may be, to be relevant to any question arising in the proceedings shall be taken into account by it, him or her in determining that question.