Atypical Workers

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Part-time workers

A part-time employee may not be treated less favourably than a comparator full-time employee in relation to conditions of employment. Employee protection legislation applies to part-time employees in the same manner as full-time employees. Qualifying conditions except hours thresholds apply to part-time employees, in the same manner as full-time employees.

A part-time employee may be treated less favourably than a comparable full-time employee where the treatment can be justified on objective grounds. A part-time employee may be treated less favourably than a comparable full-time employee in relation to pension schemes arrangements where his normal working hours are less than 20% of the normal working hours of a comparable full-time employee.

As with much of the legislation, it applies to employees, certain trainees, persons employed through an agency and persons holding offices within the public services which are not technically employment but are similar in substance.

In the case of agency workers the person liable to pay the wages whether the agency or client is obliged to comply. An agency worker is one who contracts with another carrying on the business of employment agent to perform personally worker services for a third person whether or not that third person is a party to the contract.

A part-time agency worker may compare himself to a comparable agency worker. A part-time employee who is not an agency worker cannot compare himself to an agency worker.

Differences in treatment may be justified on objective grounds. They must not be based on considerations of the status of the employee as a part-time worker. Any less favourable treatment applicable must be for the purpose of achieving a legitimate objective of the employer and that treatment must be necessary for that purpose.

A part-time employee is one whose normal hours of work are less than the normal hours of work of a comparable employee. A comparable employee is a full-time employee who meets the following conditions

  • each is employed by the same or an associated employer and one of the three further conditions mentioned below are met
  • or the full-time employee is specified in a collective agreement you can parable employee in relation to a part-time employee or
  • the full-time employee is employed in the same industry or sector of employment as the part-term employee and one of the below-mentioned conditions are met

The relevant conditions referred to above are

  • both employees perform the same work under the same or similar conditions or each is interchangeable with the other
  • the work performed is the  same or of similar nature to that performed by the other and any differences between the work or the conditions under which it is performed by each either are of small importance in relation to the work as a whole or occur with such irregularity as not to be significant and
  • the work performed by the part-time employee is equal to or greater in value to the work performed by the other employee having regard to such matters as skill physical or mental requirements responsibility and working condition

Complaints under the legislation may be made to the Workplace Relations Commission.

Fixed-term workers

A fixed term employee is a person who has entered a contract of employment by which the end of the contract is determined by objective conditions such as a specified date the completion of the task or the occurrence of an event. It does not include employees in initial training or apprenticeship and certain integration and full occasional retraining programs.

A fixed term worker cannot be treated in a less favourable manner than a comparable permanent employee in relation to his or her conditions of employment. The same employment protection legislation( other than unfair dismissal rights subject to conditions) applies to a fixed term employee as applies to a permanent employee. Qualifying conditions apply in the same manner.

Where a fixed term employee is employed by his or her employer or associated employer under several continuous fixed-term contracts, the total duration shall not exceed four years as a fixed term employee. After this, when the contract is renewed again it is deemed to be a contract of indefinite duration unless the employer has objective grounds for renewing the contract again on  a fixed term basis

A fixed term employee may be treated in a less favourable manner than a comparable permanent employee where such treatment can be justified on objective grounds.

A fixed term employee may be treated less favourably than a comparable permanent employee in relation to any pension scheme or arrangement where his normal working hours are less than 20% of the normal working hours of the comparable permanent employee.

The legislation applies to an employee working under a contract of employment, traineeship and persons holding certain offices such as members of the civil service and officers of various state agencies.

The Act does not apply to

  • agency workers placed by an employment agency
  • members of the Defence Force
  • trainee nurses and
  • gardai

An objective ground for less favourable treatment must be based on considerations other than the status of the employee as a fixed term employee and must be for the purpose of achieving a legitimate objective of the employer which treatment must be necessary for that purpose. Where the fixed term employee is treated in a less favourable manner than a comparable permanent employee the treatment may be justified on objective grounds if the terms of the fixed term employees contract taken as a whole are at least as favourable as the terms of the comparable permanent employee’s contract of employment.

An employee is a comparable permanent employee relative to a fixed term employee if

  • the permanent employee and the fixed term employee are employed by the same or associated  employers and one of the below-mentioned conditions is met
  • the permanent employee is specified in collective agreement to be comparable
  • the employee is employed in the same industry or sector as the fixed term employee and one of the below conditions apply

The relevant conditions are

  • both employees perform the same work under the same or similar conditions or each is interchangeable with the other
  • the work performed by one of the employees is of the same or similar nature to that performed by the other and any differences are of small importance in relation to the work as a whole or occur with such irregularity as not to be significant
  • the work performed by the relevant fixed-term employee is equal or greater in value to that performed by the other employee having regard to such matters as skill physical or mental requirements responsibility and working conditions

A fixed term employee shall be informed in writing as soon as practicable of the objective condition which terminates the contract whether it is a specified date specified task or specified event.

Where an employer proposes to renew a fixed term contract, the employee shall be informed in writing not later than the date of renewal of the objective grounds for renewing the fixed term contract not offering a contract of indefinite duration.

An employer may not employ an employee on a series of fixed-term contracts for more than four years subject to the below circumstances. Once the fixed term contract employee complete has completed three years of continuous employment with the employer or an associated employer the employer may renew the contract for a fixed term of one more occasion only which may be no longer than a year. Where the employee is employed by his employer or an associated employer on two or more continuous fixed-term contracts the aggregate duration may not exceed four years.

Any term of an employment contract which seeks to limit the term of the employment contract of either of the above categories is void and ineffective and the contract shall be deemed to be a contract of indefinite duration.

The above provisions do not apply if there are objective grounds justifying the renewal of a contract of employment for a fixed term only.

Fixed term employees are to have the same opportunities as other employees to seek a permanent position with the employer. The employer is to inform them in relation to relevant vacancies which may occur within the business. This may be by way of a general announcement at a suitable place in the employer’s place of employment.

Access to training opportunity shall be provided as far as practicable.

An employer must consider employees representations in relation to fixed-term working within the business.

Complaints about a breach of legislation may be made to the Workplace Relations Commission.

Employment of children and young persons

The employment of children under 16 years is generally prohibited or highly restricted. A child over 14 years may be permitted to do light work during school holidays. It must not be harmful to health, development and schooling. He may be employed as part of approved work experience or education program. A child over 15 years may do such work up to 8 hours a week during school term.

A child under 16 may be employed in film theatre sports advertising activities under licence from the Minister for Jobs Enterprise and Innovation.

An employer employing a person under 16 years must obtain written permission from the child’s parents or guardian.

There are limits to the working hours of young persons who are defined as those aged 16 or 17 years. Night work is prohibited. Young persons may not work more than eight hours in any day or 40 hours in any week.

Employers of persons under the age of 18 must display a summary of the legislation at their place of business. It must give a summary of legislation to an employee within one month of commencement of employment.

The legislation is enforced by the Workplace Relations Commission. Complaints may be made by trade unions, guardians or the child concerned.

In the case of children over 14 years of age, they may be employed in light work that is non-industrial where there is no risk to the health and safety of the child and which is not harmful to his attendance at school. They must be allowed a 21-day break from work during summer.

They must be given a  30 minutes minute break after working for four hours. If working during the summer holidays 14 and 15-year-olds must get two days of every week of which shall be so far as practicable, consecutive.

In the case of 14-year-olds, the maximum hours per week outside school term is 35 hours in a seven-day week. The permitted hours of work are from 8 am to 8 pm.

In the case of a 15-year-old, the maximum hours per week during the school term is eight hours per week. It is 35 hours in a seven-day week outside terms. The permitted working hours are from 8 am to 8 pm. The maximum work experience per week is 40 hours and is eight hours per day.

Young persons maximum hours per week during school term is eight hours. The permitted hours of work is 6 am to 10 pm.

16 and 17-year-olds must receive a 20-minute break after working for more than 4.5 hour period. They must receive two days off in every seven which shall insofar as practicable be consecutive.

Complaints about a breach of the legislation may be made to the Workplace Relations Commission.