This overview introduces the principal areas of employment law which affect businesses in Ireland. Statute law and decisions of the courts, the Workplace Relations Commission (“WRC”) and the Labour Court impact on all aspects of the relationship between employer and employee, from recruitment to termination of employment. Given that Ireland is one of the most highly regulated environments of employment law in Europe, it is imperative to take legal advice from the outset to avoid pitfalls in this area.
Employer Protection
Much of the employment legislation is aimed at providing protection for employees rather than employers. For employers, therefore, it is advisable to ensure that the contract of employment contains provisions to protect their interests. For example, matters such as non-disclosure of confidential information by employees, non-compete/non-solicitation clauses, and securing intellectual property rights should be considered. Also, an employer may have a particular requirement regarding the availability of employees for shift or weekend work or seasonal/project-based work which should be clearly set out in the employment contracts. These stipulations should be augmented by the employer’s relevant company policies, for example in relation to disciplinary, grievance, equality, harassment, bullying, flexible working, social media and e-mail/internet usage. The importance for employers to have well drawn up and active personnel policies cannot be overstated.
...
The U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday announced charges against 15 people, including six medical professionals, for allegedly participating in schemes that collectively submitted $2 billion i...