Drawing up Terms of Employment
Contracts of Employment
The development of comprehensive employment contracts not only ensures that employees get a fair deal, but also protects your company from future lawsuits. A contract of employment should cover everything from the job title to the company’s grievance procedure – so that that both the employer and the employee know exactly where they stand.
Contracts of employment should set out the position in relation to the following:
1. Job Title
2. Place of Employment
3. Date of Commencement of Employment
4. Length of Employment
5. Salary and all Benefits
6. Holidays
7. Sickness Procedure
8. Hours of Work
9. To whom the Employee will Report
10. Maternity Procedures
11. Discipline
12. Grievance Procedures
13. Termination
Nature of Position/Job Title
From the outset, it is important that employees know the job that is going to be required of them. In most cases, a detailed job specification should be attached to the contract. Employees cannot be moved from one job position to another without their consent, or unless this is in their job description.
Place of Employment
An employee should be advised of the place of work. It is reasonable for employers to move employees around a particular site or premises. However, as with changes in job description, care should be taken in relation to any attempts to relocate employees at a distance from the original employment.
Date of Commencement
As many rights under employment legislation may depend on length of service, it is important to specify the exact date of commencement of employment.
Duration of Employment
Employers may agree with the employee at the start of a new job whether it is to be for a fixed period of time or open-ended.
Salary and Benefits
The contract should set out the annual salary, or the hourly rate of pay. The amount should be expressed gross. Any other agreed deductions (such as trade union membership fees) should also be specified. Details of all benefits such as VHI or BUPA, provision of car, and any bonus or commission arrangements, should also be set out in detail.
Holidays
Employees who meet the qualifying criteria in relation to time worked are allowed 20 paid working days leave for a period of 12 months work. In addition to annual holidays, there are 9 public holidays in Ireland (New Year's Day, St. Patrick's Day, Easter Monday, the first Monday in May, the first Monday in June, the first Monday in August, the last Monday in October, Christmas Day and St. Stephen's Day). In respect of public holidays, an employee must be given either a paid day off on that day, a paid day off within a month of the day, an extra day's annual leave, or an extra day's pay, all of which are at the option of the employer.
Sickness
The contract should set out the procedures in relation to absence due to illness. Employers are not obliged to pay employees during such absence. However, because of PRSI, employees are entitled to certain Social Welfare benefits. Many employers continue to pay employees during short absences grounded on illness. It is usual to provide a medical certificate from a doctor for absences of more than 2 days, and to require the employee in respect of absences of more than two days to apply for the appropriate Social Welfare benefit, and to pay that benefit to the employer who will continue to pay the employee in full during the absence.
Hours of Work
The European Community “Working Time” directive has been brought into Irish law and provides regulations for the minimum breaks per day and the maximum hours worked per day, week and month. There are other regulations concerning both night work and working on Sundays.
The employer can’t ask the employee to contract out of these minimum requirements in their Contract of Employment.
Maternity
Female employees are entitled by law to 26 weeks' paid leave in respect of maternity. (This may be extended, at the employee's discretion, by a further period of 16 weeks' unpaid leave.) During maternity leave, the employer is not obliged to pay the employee, but, in practice, many employers top up the allowance that they receive from the Social Welfare so that the employee receives full pay. During absence on such leave, the employment is preserved, and the employee cannot be dismissed.
Where working conditions may pose risk to the pregnant employee the employer is obliged to conduct a risk assessment. If as a result it is felt the employee's health may be at risk she is eligible to a period of paid “Health & Safety” leave.
Parental Leave
An employee who is the natural or adoptive parent of a child is entitled to leave from his/her employment, for a period of 14 working weeks, to enable him/her to take care of the child. The entitlement generally applies only to employees who have one years’ continuous employment with the employer and applies only in respect of children under 5 years of age.
Employees are also entitled to parental leave, with pay, from employment for urgent family reasons where sickness or accident makes the immediate presence of the employee indispensable. The leave is restricted to 3 days in any period of 12 consecutive months or 5 days in any period of 36 consecutive months.
Grievance Procedures
It is strongly recommended to have in place grievance procedures to deal with issues of concern for employees that arise during the course of employment. Generally speaking, the object is to provide a mechanism for ensuring that such issues do not disrupt the working environment. The procedures should identify a person to whom an employee may bring a complaint, and if that does not succeed in resolving the issue, there should be a further stage provided with a view to achieving a resolution. It is recommended that employers have specific policies and procedures for dealing with bullying and sexual harassment.
