This week's 5 Key Updates Busy People Need to Know: 🏃

1. Annual Review Session of the Week: AI Revolution - HR’s On-going Earthquake 🔥
2. 1,000 days of ChatGPT: How has work really changed? 🤖
3. Gen-Z are ditching WFH for the office. Turns out home can get lonely! 🧑‍💼
4. Parents speak up: childcare is still hitting our work-life balance 👶
5. Leavism alert: 1 in 5 are sneaking laptops on holiday 🏖️

And in other news........employment lawyer by day and electropop star by night Fiona Sharkey (aka Sharkett) has just dropped her new single Shy on Spotify. Read more about her passion here.🎶✨

**If you have any difficulties accessing the article or resetting your password (if you haven’t already done so in 2025) please email hub@legal-island.com and we’ll be in touch with you as soon as possible.**

1. Annual Review Session of the Week: AI Revolution - HR’s On-going Earthquake
2. Case Law Reviews
3. AI and Employment Law
4. Gen-Z workers are now applying for more office jobs, as they are too lonely working from home
5. Big increase in International Protection applicants working - CSO
6. Majority of parents say childcare issues affect work – survey
7. Pay
8. Pensions
9. Just In Case You Missed It....
10. HR Developments
11. Employment News in the Media
12. Health and Safety Developments
13. Friends of Legal Island
14. Free Webinars This Month 

It’s almost here! Legal Island’s Annual Review of Employment Law, our flagship event of the year takes place on 27th November, live at the Aviva Stadium (and online for those who prefer to tune in from afar).

This is the go-to event for HR professionals who want to stay ahead of the curve, get practical insights from leading experts, and connect with peers who are shaping the future of work.

Each week between now and the big day, we’ll shine a spotlight on the must-see sessions in this year’s packed programme.

Don’t miss out.  Check out the full line-up and secure your spot today. More details here.

Our very own Chairman, Barry Philips will be starting the day with his key note session on the AI shake-up in the world of work: 

AI Revolution: HR’s On-going Earthquake

AI is not just another IT upgrade. It will fundamentally change how we upskill our employees and indeed how work gets done. It represents probably the most important workplace development since the Industrial Revolution. But how should HR professionals respond? What is hype, and what essential messages may we be missing in the overwhelm of the many AI reports and bulletins issued daily?

In this Keynote session, our Chairman, Barry Phillips, cuts through the noise to provide clear guidance on how HR professionals can assist or lead in the implementation and optimisation of AI in the workplace. Areas covered include:

• Augmenting workforce skills using GenAI: ChatGPT or Copilot or something else? Why the choice will shape your workplace for years to come
  
  
• Using AI to drive new levels of efficiency: Where to start? How to identify processes for automation or AI
  Five things the successful early adopters are doing
  
  
• Optimising GenAI whilst keeping data safe and secure: The vital rule of ABC.
  
  
• “Shadow use” of AI by employees and what to do about it
  
  
• Digital coaching – we share the results of our own Legal Island pilot
  
  
• Five GenAI tools already re-shaping the HR function

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Christopher Gurren v Future Pigs Limited ADJ-00047772

Summary: The complainant was found entitled to statutory redundancy as the business had ceased before new leaseholders took over, meaning no transfer of undertakings occurred.

Practical Guidance for Employers: 

• Employers should recognise that the end of a lease / cessation of trading does not automatically shield them from redundancy liabilities. If a business ceases entirely before another operator begins, employees will usually be entitled to redundancy payments. Employers must plan in advance and ensure that staff are given clear communication about entitlements.
  
  
• Employers must comply with the European Communities (Protection of Employees on Transfer of Undertakings) Regulations 2003. This means consulting employees, ensuring continuity of terms and conditions, and clarifying whether roles will remain substantially the same. Failure to recognise or communicate a transfer undermines the validity of any defence(s).
  
  
• Accurate record-keeping and communication are crucial. Employers should avoid contradictory positions about redundancy or transfer and provide employees with written confirmation of the basis on which employment ends. Clear communication protects against disputes, reduces the risk of claims, and ensures compliance with statutory obligations.
  

Read the full Review here: Christopher Gurren v Future Pigs Limited [2025]

A Job Applicant v A Human Rights Organisation ADJ-00057446

Summary:  Claim of disability and race discrimination in a recruitment process was dismissed for lack of evidence establishing a prima facie case.

Practical Guidance for Employers: 

Employers should:

• Ensure that recruitment processes are transparent, fair, and consistently documented. Clear communication of job criteria helps avoid later disputes about why certain candidates were not shortlisted. Using structured processes demonstrates that decisions are based on merit, not protected characteristics.
  
  
• Handle requests for reasonable accommodation carefully. Employers should train HR staff and recruitment partners to understand equality obligations, and to record accommodation requests accurately. Even where a request seems unclear / premature, it should be acknowledged and addressed in good faith. 
  
  
• Maintain a respectful environment during interactions. Seemingly casual comments or questions, particularly about personal characteristics (e.g. disability or nationality), can be misinterpreted. By keeping conversations professional, job-focused, and documented.

Read the full Review here: A Job Applicant v A Human Rights Organisation [2025]

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These case reviews were written by Patrick Barrett BL.

Patrick's legal education is robust, beginning with a BCL Law Degree from University College Cork (2012-2016), followed by an LL.M in Business Law from the same institution (2016-2017), and culminating in a Barrister-at-Law Degree from The Honorable Society of King’s Inns in Dublin (2019-2021). He has extensive experience on the South-West Circuit, handling Civil, Family, and Criminal Law cases, as well as advising the Citizen Advice Service.  He has worked as an employment consultant, dealing with workplace investigations and bankruptcy procedures.

Remember: Our Irish case law reviews are now held in our case law section on our fully-searchable employment law hub website.

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EU Artificial Intelligence (AI) Act

The Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment has published an overview of the EU AI Act in this handy summary with key dates and contacts. More here.

1,000 days of ChatGPT: How has work changed?

1,000 days ago, ChatGPT launched and put artificial intelligence in everyone’s hands – no coding or expertise needed. In response, tech giants like Google declared a “code red” and economists at Goldman Sachs predicted a wave of mass unemployment. Today, we’re living the white-collar equivalent of the industrial revolution; however, the scale of transformation defies historical comparison. City AM looks at the implications here.

Harper vs. SiriusXM: The Growing Legal Risk of AI in Hiring

The US case of Harper vs. SiriusXM shows AI bias in hiring is already a legal risk. Both vendors and employers must show their work, or face the courts. Warden AI outlines the risks to employers here.

The New ChatGPT5 Reviewed (Part III)

In the final part of the Review Barry Phillips argues that in talking about what disappoints us about ChatGPT5 we’re missing the point.

You can also access the episode here. 

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Remote working may be the norm for Gen-Z employees, but a new survey suggests it has left the group feeling lonely. New research has found that almost 40pc of people aged between 16 and 24 feel lonely or socially isolated because of the nature of their work, reports the Irish Independent.

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There has been a big increase in the number of International Protection applicants entering the labour force according to a new study from the Central Statistics Office (CSO). This is a social welfare benefit only available to International Protection applicants who live in, or are waiting to move into, accommodation provided by the International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS). More from RTÉ.

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Over 70% of parents say childcare accessibility has impacted their ability to work, according to new research from hiring platform Indeed. The survey of 1,000 parents in Ireland shows that almost a quarter of respondents have cut their hours at some point to cover childcare gaps, with women twice as likely as men to have reduced their hours. 
RTÉ has more on this story.

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Chief executive of St John’s Hospital salary increased in breach of public pay scales

The salary of the chief executive of St John’s Hospital in Limerick was increased in breach of public pay scales, The Irish Times has learned. The August 1st incremental public pay scales say a chief executive of a hospital in the H2 category can earn between €99,829 and €106,866. However, The Irish Times understands St John’s increased its chief executive’s salary to somewhere within the scale of a H3 hospital, despite not falling into this category. In the H3 bracket, a chief executive can earn between €119,571 and €140,747. Read more here.

Cost of former CEO employment dispute at Children’s Health Ireland exceeds €160,000

Issued centred on clash between Government policy on term limits for chief executives in State sector and rights under employment law. More from the Irish Times.

RTÉ HR executive at centre of sweetheart deal scandal 

HR director Eimear Cusack will step down from her role at the national broadcaster next year. Ms Cusack was in the top five highest-paid staff in RTÉ on a salary of €275,000. She was a key figure in the exit-payments controversy that emerged in the wake of the Ryan Tubridy payments scandal two summers ago. Ms Cusack knew about a €450,000 sweetheart deal with former chief financial officer Breda O’Keeffe for six years but didn’t tell fellow executives. More from the Irish Independent.

Average weekly earnings up 5.3% to €1,015.43 in second quarter – CSO

The latest Central Statistics Office figures show that average earnings in the economy continue to increase in the second quarter of this year due to several factors. The CSO said preliminary estimates for April, May, and June show that average weekly earnings were €1,015.43, up 5.3% compared with €964.54 the same time last year, reports RTÉ.

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Firms urged to move staff onto workplace pensions ahead of December deadline

Businesses planning to move staff on to their existing pension schemes to avoid being captured by the incoming automatic enrolment system are being urged to take action well before the new State-run portal goes live in December. Department of Finance officials have confirmed that auto-enrolment (AE) instructions will be issued in early December, targeting an estimated 800,000 workers in the Republic that are not currently part of a workplace or private pension plan. However, any cases where pension contributions have been made through payroll in the 13 weeks prior to that date will be exempt from the AE regime, which is called My Future Fund, The Irish Times reports.

And…

Patricia King appointed to board of new auto-enrolment body

The Irish Congress of Trade Unions welcomes the appointment of Patricia King, former general secretary of Congress, to the board of the independent auto-enrolment authority. The National Automatic Enrolment Retirement Savings Authority (NAERSA) will run and manage the new quasi-mandatory pension savings system. Ms King was appointed to the NAERSA’s board by the Minister for Social Protection, Dara Calleary following an open competition. The auto-enrolment legislation requires that among the (no fewer than five and no more than eight) board members, one has “knowledge or experience in matters relating to the interests of employees”. Read more here. 

Are you ready for auto-enrolment in January 2026? To get yourself prepared, come along to our FREE webinar on this topic. Our expert speaker is Caroline Reidy, MD, HR Suite...more details below in Free Webinars This Month. You can register here.

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Recruitment paused after the job offer has been accepted - How do I handle it?

Think of the scenario, a business wishes to hire some new employees, it draws up a job specification, starts the recruitment process and successfully finds the suitable candidate. Then for whatever reason, albeit not one that permits either party to rescind the contract, the employer wishes to either delay the employee’s start date or to not hire the employee at all. The ultimate question here as an employer is “How do I handle it?”. Jennifer Cashman, Partner & Head of Employment, RDJ LLP and Conor Beck, Trainee Solicitor, RDJ LLP answer this month's burning question! Read it here. 

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Rise in leavism as one in five workers take laptops on holiday

An always-on working culture, enabled by technology and reinforced by poor leadership, is blurring the lines between work and rest says People Management. Learn more.

Too much too quickly

If you change too much too quickly you risk destabilising and confusing rather than sweeping all before you. It takes time for new ways to bed-in and people to adjust. HR Director looks at organisational change in the workplace. Read more here. 

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Secretaries and caretakers have warned that "a lot of jobs will go undone" in schools while they are on the picket line. An indefinite strike by more than 2,600 workers is under way. Their trade union - Fórsa - said the action is necessary because they are being denied access to a number of entitlements, including public sector pensions. Talks at the Workplace Relations Commission on Wednesday failed to resolve the dispute. RTÉ has the full story. 

And more onthis story....

Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers has said his department cannot make any direct commitments in relation to measures being sought by school secretaries and caretakers. School secretaries and caretakers, who are members of the Fórsa trade union, began indefinite strike action today. The union said the move is necessary because the workers are being denied access to public sector pensions and other entitlements. Read more here. 

A woman whose claim for unpaid wages took almost two decades to conclude before the Greek courts suffered a violation of her rights, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has ruled. Nikoletta Vervele suffered a violation of Articles 6 § 1 (right to a fair trial) and 13 (right to an effective remedy) of the European Convention on Human Rights, the court unanimously held in a Chamber judgment handed down this week. The case concerned excessively lengthy civil proceedings which Ms Vervele brought in June 2001 against Ippokrateio General Hospital of Athens, where she had worked as a cleaner, for non-payment of salary. More from Irish Legal News. 

A German teacher who called in sick for 16 consecutive years has sued her employer after they asked to see some proof that she was ill. The teacher, whose identity has not been revealed because of German privacy laws, first went on sick leave in 2009 for undisclosed mental health issues. Over the next 16 years, the teacher repeatedly extended her leave of absence while receiving a full salary from the education authority of North Rhine-Westphalia, a west German state. More from the Irish Independent.

A circus collective backed by the Arts Council has been ordered to pay a former employee €12,000 in compensation for unfair dismissal following a conflict that culminated in him being led away from a festival by gardaí. Cormac Mohally was the artistic director of Circus Factory CLG. He alleged in a complaint to the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) that he had been subjected to unacceptable behaviour by his employer, including targeted harassment, incorrect investigation of unsubstantiated complaints, and public humiliation. More from the Irish Mirror.

SIPTU has expressed outrage at the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) over threatened redundancies at the sporting body, which have been announced without consultation with staff or any clear outline of the organisation’s future plans. Read more here. 

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Billions of workers suffering from heat stress, UN says

Governments and employers must act urgently to ease the harmful impacts of heat stress on billions of workers worldwide, according to United Nations' agencies. Both indoor and outdoor employees are increasingly suffering from heatstroke, dehydration, kidney dysfunction and neurological disorders, according to a report published by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). RTÉ has more on this story.

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Lawyer and musician says supportive colleagues make her passion possible

An employment lawyer who moonlights as an electropop musician has released her latest single.

Fiona Sharkey, a senior associate at McInnes Dunne Murphy LLP, performs under the project name Sharkett and just released her new single, Shy, on major streaming platforms including Spotify.

The new track follows the release of her debut EP, High Line, last year. It is available here.

Congratulations to Fiona from Legal Island!🎵

Irish Legal News has more.

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Auto-Enrolment 2025 - What HR Needs to Know and Do

📅 Thursday, 18 September 2025
⏰ 11:00 – 11:45 (45 mins)
💻 Online

REGISTER NOW 

Ireland’s new auto-enrolment scheme is going live, and for HR teams, that means real changes to contracts, payroll, and how you communicate with staff. Yet, as RTÉ recently reported, 1 in 4 organisations still haven’t begun preparing.

So, ask yourself: is your organisation ready? Or just hoping it all falls into place?

Whether you're well underway or just getting started, this short, focused webinar will help you:

• Understand your obligations and what’s changing
  
• Spot potential payroll and contract pitfalls
  
• Sense-check your approach with expert insight
  
• Hear how other employers are planning their response

Led by Caroline Reidy, MD of the HR Suite and one of Ireland’s most respected HR experts, the session will offer clear, practical guidance. Hosting the conversation is Julie Holmes from Legal Island, who’ll ask the questions that matter, including how to talk about pensions without everyone leaving the room.

You’ll leave with fresh insight, real-world examples, and the confidence to take the next step, whether you’re already well-positioned or still catching up.

Check out previous discussions:
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