National Minimum Wage Increase
New Order or Decree
By: Lisa Collins, Associate and Niall Pelly, Partner
The national minimum wage has increased from EUR 12.70 to EUR 13.50 per hour effective January 1, 2025.
Gender Pay Gap Reporting Portal
New Regulation or Official Guidance
By: Lisa Collins, Associate and Niall Pelly, Partner
The Minister for Children, Disability and Equality announced that a new gender pay reporting portal will be launched in Autumn
Once launched, companies will be required to publish gender pay gap reports and statistics on the portal. Updated regulations are forecast to be published in May 2025, which will set the reporting threshold at organizations with 50 or more employees. These regulations are also intended to push back the reporting deadline for 2025 from December to November, giving organizations five months from the chosen snapshot date in June to submit the reports
Updates to the Code of Practice on Determining Employment Status
New Regulation or Official Guidance
By: Lisa Collins, Associate and Niall Pelly, Partner
Following the 2023 judgement of the Supreme Court in The Revenue Commissioners v. Karshan (midlands) Ltd/ T/A Domino’s Pizza [2023] IESC 24, the Government reviewed and updated the “Code of Practice on Determining Employment Status” (the Code). This update was carried out by an interdepartmental group comprised of the Department of Social Protection, the Office of the Revenue Commissioners, and the Workplace Relations Commission.
The Code clarified the criteria for determining employment status (i.e., whether workers are employees or independent contractors) from a tax perspective, in relation to social insurance contributions and employment rights protections.
EU Artificial Intelligence Act – First Provisions Come into Force
Legal Compliance
By: Lisa Collins, Associate and Niall Pelly, Partner
In 2024, the European Parliament approved the EU AI Act, which became the world’s first comprehensive set of rules for artificial intelligence. This Act went into effect in August 2024, with the majority of its provisions applicable effective August 2026. This Regulation will be applicable and binding on all EU member states without the need for additional domestic legislation.
The Act sets out a list of prohibited AI practices which pose an “unacceptable risk” to individual safety, or systems that are intrusive or discriminatory. This ban went into effect on February 2, 2025. Employers should carefully consider whether their systems employ any of the prohibited uses of AI as part of their recruitment or employment practices, and if so, ensure that these practices are not continued after February 2.
The Act will have extra-territorial scope, and international companies that are not EU-based may still find themselves subject to the Act
