Irish HR and Employment Law Developments

Disability remains the most cited reason for discrimination claims under the Employment Equality Act, according to the WRC’s most recent Annual Report. For employers and HR professionals, failing to manage accommodations or disability-related absences isn’t just tricky—it’s risky and expensive.
Join Sinead Morgan, Legal Director at DAC Beachcroft, for a practical 45-minute session where she breaks down recent WRC and Labour Court decisions and shares the key lessons HR teams wish they’d learned sooner. Discover actionable guidance on reasonable accommodations to keep your workplace inclusive, compliant, and far less stressful.

Research by Matrix Recruitment shows 88% of workers say bullying and harassment remains a serious problem in Irish workplaces. Handling allegations of bullying and harassment is one of the most testing parts of the HR role, particularly when emotions are high and everyone is watching what you do next. Mishandling complaints can escalate issues, harm morale, and even trigger a tribunal.
Dr Gerry McMahon – an acknowledged national expert in people management who has over 35 years’ experience as a workplace investigator (covering bullying, harassment, disciplinary, dismissal and grievance issues). Drawing on this extensive experience, Gerry explores real-world investigation scenarios, highlighting where organisations commonly go wrong and what good practice looks like in the eyes of the WRC. Gerry is also a highly experienced trainer, negotiator, facilitator, mediator, arbitrator and team builder, working across a wide range of employment sectors.
Hosted by Julie Holmes from Legal Island, she ensures you get the practical guidance you need. And you will leave with a clearer sense of what the WRC expects, and reassurance you do not have to be perfect, but what you and your organisation need to do to demonstrate you have been fair, consistent and thoughtful.

Winter is coming and so are the coughs, colds and caring emergencies. As HR professionals know all too well, this is the season when requests for time off multiply: “My child’s sick again”, “Mum’s had a fall”, “I need time for a doctor’s appointment”.
But which type of leave actually applies? Force majeure? Compassionate? Parental? Carer’s? It can feel like an alphabet soup of entitlements and one wrong move can leave an employer exposed.
Join Aoife Gallagher-Watson, Director, Employment Law, EY Law Ireland, Caroline Kelly, Personal and Executive Coach, TalentPro, and Laura McKee, Knowledge Partner, Legal Island for a lively, plain-speaking session that cuts through the confusion. Together they’ll help you:
1. Decode the differences between force majeure, compassionate and carer’s leave
2. Clarify employee rights on parental, parent’s, maternity, paternity and antenatal leave
3. Handle those tricky “life happens” conversations with confidence and fairness
Expect practical examples, expert insights, and a few light-bulb moments along the way.
It’s 45 minutes that could save you hours of head-scratching this winter.

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.

President Donald Trump issued executive orders rolling back DEI efforts across the US, which contributed to job cuts in the public sector and prompted some companies to reconsider their diversity policies. Major corporations - including Meta, McDonald's, and Bank of America - have adjusted their DEI strategies, scaling back public diversity targets and shifting towards ‘merit-based’ hiring practices.
If research found diverse teams are 70% more likely to capture new markets, why is opposition to DEI increasing?  Could this signal a shift for businesses in Ireland as well? With global organisations reassessing their commitments, HR leaders in Ireland face key questions:
•    Does a strong DEI strategy drive business results, or is it just an added expense?
•    How might changing global trends affect Irish workplace policies and expectations?
•    Should businesses double down on inclusion or take a more measured approach?
Julie Holmes from Legal Island and industry experts examine whether businesses should sustain, reshape, or scale back their DEI commitments in response to shifting global trends - and what this means for HR leaders in Ireland.