Monday 18th June saw a guest piece in the Irish Times on Fixed Term Workers Legislation, by prominent Employment Law author Mary Redmond. In the Article Ms Redmond discusses the problems with the Fixed Term Workers legislation and the liability for an employer to potentially pay redundancy payments upon expiration of a fixed term contract.
In an extract Ms Redmond states "employees have successfully sought redundancy payments, including ex gratia payments, on termination of their FTCs, citing the right to equal treatment with full-time comparators within their own place of work or in the same industry or sector. This relatively recent line of authority not only attacks the intentions of the parties to FTCs but is also, I believe, wrong in law." You can read all of the article by clicking here, but the article echoes the thoughts of many in the employment law sector, for what has been a relatively new issue for many employers. With the recent uptake in Fixed Term contracts for fiscal reasons, or by way of navigating the Croke Park Agreement, Employers are now coming to grips with the fact that fixed term workers do have the same rights with regards to redundancy payments as permanent employees. The article is worth a read for any employer who does employ fixed term workers, and by voicing opinion on this it may be a step towards amendment to the legislation.
