PENSIONS: AUTO-ENROLMENT
A further step towards the introduction of auto-enrolment in Ireland has been achieved. The Automatic Enrolment Retirement Savings System Act 2024 completed its passage through the Oireachtas and the legislation was signed into law by the President of Ireland on 9 July 2024. The Act provides that it will come into operation when commenced by orders passed by the Minister for Social Protection. The Minister has stated that auto-enrolment will "become a reality" in 2025, though the exact timing of the commencement of the Act is not yet known. The Act provides for employees aged between 23 and 60, who earn in excess of €20,000 per year and who are not already enrolled in an occupational pension scheme, to be automatically enrolled into the new AE system.
Employers should begin preparing for auto-enrolment. The first step is to undertake a gap analysis of your workforce to see who is covered by a pension arrangement and who is not. Employers will then need to decide whether: (i) they wish to ensure that all employees are included in their occupational pension scheme; or (ii) they want the auto-enrolment system to apply to all employees; or (iii) they want to operate both systems in tandem for different cohorts of employees. Depending on the decision reached, there may be several steps to be taken to prepare for auto-enrolment, including reviewing contracts of employment and relevant employment policies, as well as potentially amending existing pension arrangements. For more, see here.
SUPREME COURT OVERTURNS DECISION ORDERING REENGAGEMENT
The Supreme Court, in An Bord Banistíochta, Gaelscoil Moshíológ v The Labour Court and Aodhagán Ó Súird and The Department Of Education, overruled a decision of the High Court (along with the Workplace Relations Commission and the Labour Court before it) that a dismissed principal be reengaged by the school. Instead, the Court found that reengagement is an exceptional remedy, which requires a clear and balanced explanation outlining why the relief of reengagement or reinstatement should be granted on the facts of any particular case.
The Court stated: "No proper consideration was given to the exceptional nature of the remedy, the practicability of such reengagement, or the impact upon the school or on the principal who had been appointed. Any decision on the exceptional remedy of reinstatement or, as here, reengagement in the original position, requires that it be reasoned and justified by reference to the circumstances of the case."
CHANGES TO MATERNITY PROTECTION AND LIMITS ON USE OF NDAS
The Government approved the publication of the General Scheme of the Maternity Protection (Amendment) and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2024. The intent is to:
- amend the Maternity Protection Act 1994 to allow for a pause in maternity leave in the case of a very serious physical or mental illness for a period of up to 52 weeks. The need for the pause must be certified by a doctor or consultant,
- provide that members of the Oireachtas have an entitlement to 26 weeks maternity leave, and
- amend the Employment Equality Acts 1998-2021 to provide that an employer shall not enter into a non-disclosure agreement with an employee where the employee has made allegations of discrimination, harassment, sexual harassment or victimisation unless it has been requested by the employee. In order for a non-disclosure agreement to be enforceable, the employee must be provided with independent legal advice, at the expense of the employer.
WRC DISMISSES COMPLAINT RELATING TO REQUEST FOR REMOTE WORKING
The Workplace Relations Commission, in Alina Karabko v TikTok Technology Ltd, confirmed that, in a complaint relating to a request for remote working, its remit is strictly limited to assessing whether an employer considered a request in line with section 21 of the Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2023 and in accordance with the Code of Practice on the Right to Request Remote Working. An adjudication officer is not empowered to investigate the merits of a decision made by an employer where a request for remote work has been declined. The WRC confirmed that the employer in this case had complied with its obligations and dismissed the complaint.
This article contains a general summary of developments and is not a complete or definitive statement of the law. Specific legal advice should be obtained where appropriate.