Irish HR and Employment Law Developments

Legal Island's Comparative Employment Law Table has been updated and expanded to include recent Republic of Ireland developments (of which there are many).
Ciara Fulton of Lewis Silkin joins Legal Island's Rolanda Markey to take a deep dive into the Table and discuss new ways of working and family-related rights in GB, NI and Ireland including:

1. Ireland is tackling work-life balance and remote working head on – what does this mean for employers in Ireland? GB doesn’t need to implement EU Directives following Brexit but has already promised to match the new rights for carers in the Work-life Balance Directive. How will NI be affected considering its unique position post-Brexit? Will NI follow GB, Ireland or set its own course?
2. Flexible working rights in GB are to be extended – who, why, what and when? And what about the right to request flexible working in Ireland and NI?
3. Parental bereavement leave in NI – What does this mean for NI organisations and what will the consultation on extending the Regulations bring? What are the similarities and differences between GB, NI and Ireland on this important topic?

Legal Island’s webinars and podcasts are sponsored by MCS Group, MCS help people find careers that match their skill sets perfectly, as well as supporting employers to build high performing businesses by connecting them with the most talented candidates in the market. If you are interested in finding out how MCS can help you, head to www.mcsgroup.jobs.

Caroline Reidy, Managing Director of the HR Suite, and Julie Holmes from Legal Island, delve into the latest HR trends and developments specifically tailored for the Irish landscape.

Are you ready to enhance your skills and tackle workplace investigations with confidence? In this webinar you'll gain insights into managing investigations in line with best practice. Discover how to streamline your approach and ensure fairness and compliance every step of the way. Learn first-hand from seasoned experts about the common pitfalls and how to avoid them. Don't risk costly mistakes – arm yourself with the knowledge and strategies to ensure your investigations are conducted seamlessly and effectively.

Q2 has marked a new chapter in life and work, with several steps forward. Coronavirus restrictions began easing, and the vaccination programme speeded up, just after a new official code of practice came into place on the right to disconnect from work.

Around the same time, the Tánaiste also invited submissions on putting the right to seek remote working into law.

In this context, Legal Island discuss what the next phase holds for employers, with a focus on work-life balance, particularly in relation to working families.

Over the previous year, the pandemic had fundamentally transformed our work-life dynamic, further blurring the lines between work and family. The Department of Enterprise and Employment described both new public policy initiatives as part of Leo Varadkar’s plan “to create more flexible family-friendly working arrangements, including working from home and working more flexible hours”.

• Learn what Ireland’s leading employers are doing now, and next, to engage their workforces and enable work-life balance in a new hybrid working world
• Focus in on how to help working parents and carers meet the novel challenges ahead as we move towards the summer, and then the Autumn.
• Identify the lessons worth keeping from how working parents and carers coped with periodic lockdowns, and the school-free world. What can employers continue to do to provide practical support with care.

In this podcast, Legal Island is joined by Oliver Daniels, Client Services Manager and Oliver Black, Commercial Director, Bright Horizons to consider what it means to be a family-friendly employer in Ireland in – and after - the ‘Time of Covid’ and in a new world of work-life balance.

Duncan Inverarity, Head of A&L Goodbody's Employment Law Group, discusses the background to, and implications of the recent Court of Appeal decision in the case of Donal O’Donovan v Over-C Technology Limited and Over-C Limited [2021] IECA 37 for probationary clauses and practice.
DISCLAIMER:

The information in this podcast is provided as part of Legal Island's Irish Employment Law Hub. We regret we are not able to respond to requests for specific legal or HR queries and recommend that professional advice is obtained before relying on information supplied anywhere within this podcast.

Emer Murphy and Andrew Desmond from A&L Goodbody LLP and Julie Holmes from Legal Island, discuss practical advice to ensure GDPR compliance in your workplace. From data protection intricacies to implementing effective safeguards, our expert-led webinar will empower you with the knowledge needed to protect sensitive data.

In this webinar, Emer, Andrew and Julie will discuss:

• How advances in technology can create positive and negative issues for businesses
• Key lessons and recommended actions for employers to prevent confidential information being compromised
• How employers can implement robust policies and training for all staff