Teachers, as employees of the Board of Management, have certain statutory rights. These rights are conferred by legislation, notably The Unfair Dismissals Acts of 1977 to 1993, The Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Acts 1973 to 1991. The Industrial Relations Act, 1990, the Payment of Wages Act, 1991, the Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994, the Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997, Equal Status Act 2000, Protection of Employees (Part-Time Work) Act, 2001, Protection of Employees (Fixed Term Work) Act, 2003.

(See: Guide to Labour Law, Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, 2005)

3.3.1)                  Contracts

Boards of Management should have contract documents available to be offered to all new employees.

Such contracts fall into two distinct categories:

Fixed-term Contract

Given to a person who enters a contract of employment with an employer where the end of the contract is determined by an objective condition such as arriving at a specific date, or completing a specific task or the occurrence of a specific event.

e.g.

substitute for an employee who is on a career break.

part-time employment which arises from a job sharing arrangement with another employee.

substitute for an employee who is on maternity leave.

Substitution for an employee who is on sick leave

This objective condition(s) must be stated explicitly in the contract.

Contract of In-definite Duration (CID)

Given to an employee where the end of the contract is only determined by the employee attaining a specific age for retirement or who is made redundant due to surplus requirement of a school based on staffing entitlements or curricular/programme needs based on an official staffing allocation.

Since there is, currently, no redundancy scheme applicable to teachers, a CID is, in effect, a permanent contract. A redeployment scheme has been agreed which guarantees continuous employment for teachers in the event of school closure. It is expected that a cross-sectoral redeployment scheme will be agreed during the 2009/2010 school year which will provide for teachers who are over quota in their present positions.

Sample contracts for use in these circumstances are provided on the ACCS website at contracts

Terms of Employment

The Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994 obliges employers to give new employees a written statement containing the particulars listed below within two months of the commencement of employment. When an existing employee so requests, he or she must be given a written statement within two months of the request.

Particulars to be included in a written statement

• The names of the employer and employee.
• The address of the employer.
• The place(s) of work.
• The title of the job or nature of the work.
• Date of commencement.
• Expected duration and, if it is a fixed term contract, the date on which it expires.
• If it is a fixed purpose contract, the details of the purpose for which it is given.
• The remuneration.
• Frequency of remuneration.
• Details of the hours of work, including overtime.
• Conditions relating to paid leave (other than paid sick leave).
• Conditions relating to sickness/injury, paid sick leave and pensions.
• Notice.
• Reference to any collective agreement in force.

If any change is made or occurs in any of the particulars of the statement, the employer is obliged to notify the employee in writing of the nature and the date of the change. Such notification must take place no later than:

one month after the change takes effect, or

where the change results in the employee having to work outside the State for more than one month, the time of the employee’s departure.

There is no requirement on the employer to notify the employee of a change which occurs as a result of changes in statutory or administrative provisions or collective agreements. It would, however, be good practice to do so, as an employee’s ignorance of changes arising from these sources could give rise to unnecessary problems.