Employment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2018
What is this act about?
This law updates various employment acts to improve employee protections, particularly regarding information provided at the start of employment, minimum payments, and working hours. It aims to ensure employees receive clear terms of employment promptly and introduces new rules for contract hours.
Who it applies to: Employers, who must provide specific employment terms to their employees; Employees, who are entitled to receive clear information about their employment and certain protections.
Deadlines:
- Employers must provide a written statement of certain employment terms to employees no later than 5 days after employment starts.
At a glance
- Country
- Ireland
- Area of law
- Labour law
- Articles
- 19
- Source
- irishstatutebook.ie
- Text retrieved
- Explanation updated
What does this act regulate?
- The information employers must give to employees about their terms of employment.
- Minimum payments due to employees in certain situations.
- The prohibition of contracts that specify zero working hours in some cases.
- The introduction of "banded contract hours" for employees.
Who does this act apply to?
- Employers, who must provide specific employment terms to their employees.
- Employees, who are entitled to receive clear information about their employment and certain protections.
What are the key points?
- Employers must provide a written statement of certain employment terms to employees no later than 5 days after employment starts.
- This statement must include the employer's and employee's full names and addresses, the expected duration of temporary or fixed-term contracts, the rate or method of calculating pay, and the expected number of hours worked per normal day and week.
- An employer who fails to provide this statement within one month, without reasonable cause, is guilty of an offence.
- Providing false or misleading information in this statement is also an offence.
Legal guide
Labour law
Legal text
Legal text
Employment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2018 Skip to content Disclaimer Feedback Helpdesk Gaeilge Léim go dtí an t-ábhar Séanadh Aiseolas Deasc chabhrach English Gaeilge English Produced by the Office of the Attorney General Táirgthe ag Oifig an Ard-Aighne Home Legislation Acts of the Oireachtas Statutory Instruments Pre-1922 Legislation Constitution External Resources Bills (Houses of the Oireachtas) Iris Oifigiúil / Official Gazette Revised Acts (LRC) Classified List of Legislation (LRC) Translations (acts.ie) Translations (Houses of the Oireachtas) Government Publications for Sale EU Law (EUR-Lex) FAQ Disclaimer Feedback Helpdesk Search Baile Reachtaíocht Achtanna an Oireachtais Ionstraimí Reachtúla Reachtaíocht Réamh-1922 Bunreacht Acmhainní Seachtracha Billí (Tithe an Oireachtais) Iris Oifigiúil Achtanna Athbhreithnithe (CAD) (An Coimisiún um Athchóiriú an Dlí) Liosta Rangaithe Reachtaíochta Aistriúcháin (achtanna.ie) Aistriúcháin (Tithe an Oireachtais) Foilseacháin Rialtais ar Díol Dlí AE (EUR-Lex) CCanna (Ceisteanna Coitianta) Séanadh Aiseolas Deasc chabhrach Cuardach TitleTeideal Year(s) or rangeBliain nó blianta nó raon TypeCineál All Legislation Acts Statutory Instruments Advanced SearchCuardach Casta HomeBaile ActsAchtanna 2018 Employment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2018 Employment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2018 Permanent Page URL View by SectionAmharc de réir Ailt View Full ActAmharc ar an Acht Iomlán Bill History Stair Bille Commencement, Amendments, SIs made under the Act Tosach Feidhme, Leasuithe, IRí arna ndéanamh faoin Acht Open PDFOscail PDF Print Full ActPriontáil an tAcht Iomlán Number 38 of 2018 EMPLOYMENT (MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS) ACT 2018 CONTENTS
PART 1
Preliminary and General
Section 1
Section 2
Section 3
PART 2
Amendment of Unfair Dismissals Act 1977
Section 4
PART 3
Amendment of Act of 1994
Section 5
Section 6
Section 7
Section 8
Section 9
Section 10
Section 11
Section 12
PART 4
Amendment of Act of 1997
Section 13
Section 14
Section 15
Section 16
Section 17
PART 5
Amendment of National Minimum Wage Act 2000
Section 18
PART 6
Amendment of Workplace Relations Act 2015
Section 19
PART 1
Preliminary and General Short title and commencement 1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Employment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2018.
Interpretation 2. In this Act— “Act of 1994” means the Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994 ; “Act of 1997” means the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 ; “Minister” means the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection.
Repeals 3. The following are repealed: (a) paragraphs (a), (b), (f) and (g) of section 3(1) of the Act of 1994, and (b) section 16 of the National Minimum Wage Act 2000 .
PART 2
Amendment of Unfair Dismissals Act 1977 Amendment of Unfair Dismissals Act 1977 4. Section 8 (amended by the Workplace Relations Act 2015 ) of the Unfair Dismissals Act 1977 is amended, by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (12): “(13) (a) An adjudication officer may, by giving notice in that behalf in writing to any person, require such person to attend at such time and place as is specified in the notice to give evidence in proceedings under this section or to produce to the adjudication officer any documents in his or her possession, custody or control that relate to any matter to which those proceedings relate. (b) A person to whom a notice under paragraph (a) is given shall be entitled to the same immunities and privileges as those to which he or she would be entitled if he or she were a witness in proceedings before the High Court. (c) A person to whom a notice under paragraph (a) has been given who— (i) fails or refuses to comply with the notice, or (ii) refuses to give evidence in proceedings to which the notice relates or fails or refuses to produce any document to which the notice relates, shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable, on summary conviction, to a class E fine.”.
PART 3
Amendment of Act of 1994 Amendment of section 1 of Act of 1994 5. Section 1(1) of the Act of 1994 is amended by the insertion of the following definition: “ ‘Commission’ means the Workplace Relations Commission;”.
Amendment of section 2 of Act of 1994 6. Section 2 of the Act of 1994 is amended by the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (1): “(1) This Act, other than section 3(1A), shall not apply to employment in which the employee has been in the continuous service of the employer for less than 1 month.”.
Amendment of section 3 of Act of 1994 7. Section 3 of the Act of 1994 is amended— (a) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (1): “(1A) Without prejudice to subsection (1), an employer shall, not later than 5 days after the commencement of an employee’s employment with the employer, give or cause to be given to the employee a statement in writing containing the following particulars of the terms of the employee’s employment, that is to say: (a) the full names of the employer and the employee; (b) the address of the employer in the State or, where appropriate, the address of the principal place of the relevant business of the employer in the State or the registered office (within the meaning of the Companies Act 2014 ); (c) in the case of a temporary contract of employment, the expected duration thereof or, if the contract of employment is for a fixed term, the date on which the contract expires; (d) the rate or method of calculation of the employee’s remuneration and the pay reference period for the purposes of the National Minimum Wage Act 2000 ; (e) the number of hours which the employer reasonably expects the employee to work— (i) per normal working day, and (ii) per normal working week.”, (b) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (1A): “(1B) Where a statement under subsection (1A) contains an error or omission, the statement shall be regarded as complying with the provisions of that subsection if it is shown that the error or omission was made by way of a clerical mistake or was otherwise made accidentally and in good faith.”, (c) by the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (2): “(2) Each statement referred to in subsection (1) and (1A) shall be given to an employee notwithstanding that the employee’s employment ends before the end of the period within which the statement is required to be given.”, (d) in subsection (3), by the substitution of “paragraph (d) of subsection (1A) or paragraphs” for “paragraphs (g),”, (e) in subsection (4), by the substitution of “subsection (1) or (1A)” for “subsection (1)”, (f) in subsection (5), by the substitution of “a statement furnished under this section” for “the said statement”, and (g) in subsection (6)(a), by the substitution of “subsection (1) or (1A)” for “subsection (1)”.
Amendment of section 4 of Act of 1994 8. Section 4(1) of the Act of 1994 is amended by the substitution of “containing the particulars specified in subsections (1) and (1A) of section 3” for “under section 3”.
Amendment of section 6 of Act of 1994 9. Section 6(1) of the Act of 1994 is amended by the substitution of “containing the particulars specified in subsections (1) and (1A) of section 3” for “under section 3”.
Offences 10. The Act of 1994 is amended by the insertion of the following section after section 6A: “6B.(1) An employer who, without reasonable cause, fails to provide an employee with a statement required by section 3(1A), within one month of the date of the commencement of that employee’s employment, shall be guilty of an offence.
Protection against penalisation 11. The Act of 1994 is amended by the insertion of the following section after section 6B: “6C. (1) An employer shall not penalise or threaten penalisation of an employee for— (a) invoking any right conferred on him or her by this Act, (b) having in good faith opposed by lawful means an act that is unlawful under this Act, (c) giving evidence in any proceedings under this Act, or (d) giving notice of his or her intention to do any of the things referred to in the preceding paragraphs.
Amendment of section 7 of Act of 1994 12. Section 7 of the Act of 1994 is amended— (a) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (1): “(1A) An employee shall not be entitled to present a complaint under Part 4 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015 in respect of a contravention of section 3(1A)— (a) unless the employee has been in the continuous service of the employer for more than 1 month, or (b) if the employer concerned has been prosecuted for an offence under this Act in relation to the same contravention.”, (b) in subsection (2)— (i) by substituting “section 3, 4, 5, 6 or 6C” for “section 3, 4, 5 or 6” in each place where it occurs, (ii) in paragraph (d), by the insertion of “in relation to a complaint of a contravention under section 3, 4, 5 or 6, and without prejudice to any order made under paragraph (e)” before “order the employer”, and (c) by the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (d): “(e) in relation to a complaint of a contravention under section 6C, and without prejudice to any order made under paragraph (d), order the employer to pay to the employee compensation of such amount (if any) as the adjudication officer considers just and equitable having regard to all of the circumstances, but not exceeding 4 weeks’ remuneration in respect of the employee’s employment calculated in accordance with regulations under section 17 of the Unfair Dismissals Act 1977 .”.
PART 4
Amendment of Act of 1997 Amendment of section 2 of Act of 1997 13. Section 2(1) of the Act of 1997 is amended by the insertion of the following definitions: “ ‘adjudication officer’ means an adjudication officer appointed under section 40 of the Workplace Relations Act 2015 ; ‘collective bargaining’ shall be construed in accordance with the Industrial Relations Acts 1946 to 2015.”.
Amendment of section 5 of Act of 1997 14. Section 5 of the Act of 1997 is amended by the substitution of “16, 17 or 18A” for “16 or 17”.
Amendment of section 18 of Act of 1997 15. The Act of 1997 is amended by the substitution of the following section for section 18: “Prohibition of zero hours working practices in certain circumstances and minimum payment in certain circumstances 18. (1) This section applies to an employee whose contract of employment operates to require the employee to make himself or herself available to work for the employer in a week— (a) a certain number of hours (‘the contract hours’), (b) as and when the employer requires him or her to do so, or (c) both a certain number of hours and otherwise as and when the employer requires him or her to do so, and the requirement is not one that is held to arise by virtue only of the fact, if such be the case, of the employer having engaged the employee to do work of a casual nature for him or her on occasions prior to that week (whether or not the number of those occasions or the circumstances otherwise touching the engagement of the employee are such as to give rise to a reasonable expectation on his or her part that he or she would be required by the employer to do work for the employer in that week).
Banded hours 16. The Act of 1997 is amended by the insertion of the following section after section 18: “18A.(1) Where an employee’s contract of employment or statement of terms of employment does not reflect the number of hours worked per week by an employee over a reference period, the employee shall be entitled to be placed in a band of weekly working hours specified in the Table to this section.
TABLE Bands of weekly working hours Band From To A 3 hours 6 hours B 6 hours 11 hours C 11 hours 16 hours D 16 hours 21 hours E 21 hours 26 hours F 26 hours 31 hours G 31 hours 36 hours H 36 hours and over ”.
Protection against penalisation 17. The Act of 1997 is amended by the substitution of the following section for section 26: “26. (1) An employer shall not penalise or threaten penalisation of an employee for— (a) invoking any right conferred on him or her by this Act, (b) having in good faith opposed by lawful means an act that is unlawful under this Act, (c) giving evidence in any proceedings under this Act, or (d) giving notice of his or her intention to do any of the things referred to in the preceding paragraphs.
PART 5
Amendment of National Minimum Wage Act 2000 Amendment of National Minimum Wage Act 2000 18. The National Minimum Wage Act 2000 is amended— (a) by the substitution of the following section for section 14: “14. Subject to sections 15, 17, 18 and 41, an employee shall be remunerated by his or her employer in respect of the employee’s working hours in any pay reference period, at an hourly rate of pay that on average is not less than the national minimum hourly rate of pay.”, (b) by the substitution of the following section for section 15: “Prescription of percentages of hourly rates of pay 15. (1) The Minister shall prescribe a percentage of the national minimum hourly rate of pay in relation to employees— (a) who have not attained the age of 18 years, (b) who are 18 years of age, and (c) who are 19 years of age.
PART 6
Amendment of Workplace Relations Act 2015 Amendment of Workplace Relations Act 2015 19. The Workplace Relations Act 2015 is amended— (a) in section 36(5) by the substitution of the following paragraphs for paragraph (b) and (c): “(b) subsection (4) of section 4 of the Payment of Wages Act 1991 , (c) section 23 of the National Minimum Wage Act 2000 , or (d) section 6B of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994 .”, and (b) in Part 1 of Schedule 5, by the substitution of “
Section 3
, 4 , 5 , 6 or 6C of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994 ” for “
Section 3
, 4 , 5 or 6 of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994 ”.
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