Groundbreaking New Employment Law Comes Into Effect

A new Employment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, which aims to address the challenges of increased casualisation of work and to strengthen the regulation of precarious employment, has come into effect today, Monday, 04 March.

Hailing the Act as one of the most significant pieces of employment legislation in a generation, Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection, Regina Doherty, T.D., said: "From today, this new law will profoundly improve the security and predictability of working hours for employees on insecure contracts. This law is rooted in a foundation of extensive consultation and, as a result, this is a balanced and fair measure for both employees and employers which is designed to work effectively in practice. In a changing world, this reform ensures that the available legal protections will match the conditions experienced by a modern workforce and make a real difference in the lives of thousands of workers."

The Employment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act provides that:

• Employers shall give employees core terms of employment within 5 days of starting work

• Zero hours contracts will be restricted

• There will be minimum payments for people called into work but sent home without work

• A "band of hours" system will be introduced where an employee's contract does not reflect actual hours worked

• There are strong anti-penalisation provisions for employees who invoke their rights under this legislation

• National Minimum Wage rates for younger people and trainees have been simplified.

The Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection ran an informative advertising campaign about the legislation for the last two weeks or so across print, radio, digital and social media advertising to inform employers and employees about their rights and obligations under the law.