While there was certainly no shortage of developments on the employment law front in 2022, there is no doubt that 2023 is due to bring further significant reform on the employment law front. Developments include significant new laws in force from 1 January 2023 in areas such as whistleblowing and sick pay, as well as new legislation on the horizon with regard to rights such as requesting remote and flexible working and new statutory leave entitlements.
In this briefing we take a look at the main upcoming employment law developments.
Whistleblowing
The Protected Disclosures (Amendment) Act 2022 came into force on 1 January 2023. It transposes the EU Whistleblowing Directive into Irish law and contains several important changes that all employers need to be aware of and comply with.
Key changes include (i) a wider definition of "worker", which now includes shareholders, job applicants and board members; (ii) a new definition of "penalisation" and (iii) a reversal of the burden of proof in penalisation claims, so that it rests on the employer to show that any alleged penalisation of a worker was not prompted by the making of a report.
As of 1 January 2023, public sector employers, private sector employers with 250+ employees and employers who fall within the scope of certain EU laws in areas such as financial services, must have formal reporting channels and procedures in place for workers to make protected disclosures. From 17 December 2023, the threshold will fall to...
Images of the Whitegate fuel protests earlier this month were altered to make it appear gardaí were violent towards protesters. The AI-doctored images were shared widely online, including by inter...