If there are any specific topics you would like covered in this publication, please forward your suggestions to Adare Human Resources Management:
info@adarehrm.ie.
- Employment Case Law – each month we review a number of interesting employment law cases and consider their implications for organisations. This month we look at Key Considerations under the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997. Read more >>>
- Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) Decisions – each month we look at and review the decisions from the WRC. This provides a valuable insight into the types of discrimination cases before the WRC and the decisions that are issued. Read more >>>
- What to Keep an Eye Out For – what is new, changing, potentially changing or what you may have missed. Read more >>>
This year St. Patrick’s Day, 17th March 2019, fell on a Sunday. As this is a day that many organisations do not work, queries came in, inquiring of us if the public holiday would go directly to the following Monday.
The answer was no, not necessarily, however many organisations would have observed the following Monday as the public holiday as that is when the Bank holiday falls (i.e. the banks close on this day).
Although, it is at the discretion of the organisation to decide what benefit they provide Employees in respect of a public holiday and indeed what day they observe as a day off for the purposes of the holiday (if any).
Employers can provide any of the following as benefits in respect of the public holiday:
- A paid day off on that day,
- A paid day off within a month of that day,
- An additional day of annual leave,
- An additional day’s pay.
Full time Employee’s will automatically be entitled to one of the benefits outlined above in respect of the public holiday.
Part-time Employee’s will need to have worked at least 40 hours in the 5 weeks preceding the public holiday in order to qualify for a public holiday benefit. If part-time Employees have worked 40 hours in the 5 weeks preceding the public and are not required to work on the public holiday, they are entitled to receive one-fifth of their average weekly wage. If their average weekly wage varies from week to week, it is recommended that you seek an average from the previous 13 weeks worked.
For the purposes of the above, an additional day’s pay is determined as the previous day worked to the public holiday. However, this does not always equate to double time.
For queries relating to public holidays or the Organisation of Working Time Act, contact the team at Adare Human Resource Management – info@adarehrm.ie / 01 5613594.