Tip of the Week: Employers – New and proposed legislation keeps on coming - legislative developments to be mindful of:
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Irish employment law is well known for its extensive statutory regulation, and new changes are occurring all the time. Here are three key developments that employers should be aware of, both in terms of immediate obligations and potential future expansions to employee entitlements in the medium to longer term.
1. Gender Pay Gap Reporting Expansion
As an immediate development, the Gender Pay Gap reporting threshold has dropped from 150 to 50 employees. This brings a huge number of additional employers into the net. All employers with 50 or more employees must now publish their gender pay gap report by November, five months after a June snapshot date. With this deadline approaching quickly, employers should ensure they are prepared to comply, especially those reporting for the first time and who are new to this.
2. Proposed Statutory Leave for Pregnancy Loss
The Pregnancy Loss (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2025 proposes changes to paid leave for pregnancy loss. This leave, if introduced, would be distinct from existing entitlements like statutory sick leave. If enacted:
- Affected employees would be entitled to 5 days paid leave.
- The other parent would receive 2.5 days paid leave.
3. New Protected Ground: Socio-Economic Disadvantage
Finally, the Equality (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2025 proposes adding "socio-economic disadvantage" as a protected ground under the Employment Equality and Equal Status legislation. The definition includes factors such as education level, accent, and home address. The Bill is still at an early legislative stage, and its final scope remains uncertain. If ultimately introduced, this could arguably be a difficult ground to pin down and would certainly extensively widen the scope of potential employment equality claims against employers.
Blink and you miss something in employment law in Ireland but the employment team at Fieldfisher Ireland will continue to monitor these and other legislative developments.
The above is for general guidance only and is not intended as professional advice. Advice should always be taken before acting on any of the issues identified.
Please contact Paul Bruun-Nielsen, Barry Walsh or Greta Siskauskaite should you require specific legal advice on these areas or indeed any employment law issues.