Contracts and Dismissals
Written Employment Particulars
Contracts of employment do not have to be in writing. However, employees as well as workers must be provided with a written statement of particulars. All employees, regardless of the number of hours they work per week, are entitled to receive a written statement from their employer, within two months of starting work. The statement describes the main terms of the contract of employment. The statement must give details about the names of the employer and employee, the date when the employment began, the date on which the employee’s period of continuous employment began, job of work, holiday entitlement, sick pay, where and employee will be working and whether they might have to relocate, pension schemes, notice grievance, dismissal and disciplinary procedure and reference to any collective agreements, which affect the terms of employment. If, after the material date, there is a change in any of the employment particulars, the employer has to give to the employee a written statement containing particulars of the change.
The Workers (Predictable Terms and Conditions), coming into force in September 2024, gives workers and agency workers the right to request a predictable work pattern if they meet certain criteria regarding the minimum length of service (26 weeks) and if there is a current lack of predictability regarding their work pattern (working on zero hour contracts or fixed term contracts of less than 12 months). The worker must clearly indicate the purpose of request (to get more predictable work pattern) and they must have not requested for this more than once during the last one year.
Source: §1-4 of Employment Rights Act (ERA), 1996
Fixed Term Contracts
FTCs are regulated by the Fixed-term Employees (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) Regulations. Employees are on a fixed-term contract if they have an employment contract with the organisation they work for which ends on a particular date, or upon the completion of a specific task. There is no limitation on maximum number of successive FTCs. Fixed-term employee shall become a permanent employee after four years of continuous employment under one or successive fixed-term contracts. However, this statutory four-year limit does not apply if employment on a fixed-term contract can be justified on objective grounds, or if the period of four years has been lengthened under a collective or workplace agreement.
Source: Regulation 8 (2 & 5) of the Fixed-term Employees (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) Regulations
Probation Period
The ERA does not regulate the probationary period as such. However, it provides for a "qualifying period of employment" which is comparable to the probationary period insofar as employees are excluded from the protection against unfair dismissal during that period. Maximum probationary (trial) period is 24 months.
Source: §108 of the ERA amended by the Unfair Dismissal and Statement of Reasons for Dismissal (Variation of Qualifying Period) Order 2012
Regulations on Employment Security
- Employment Rights Act (ERA), 1996 last amended in 2012
- Working Time Regulations 1998 (as amended by 2007 Amendment Regulations)
