HR compliance for veterinary employers

摘要

High regard is required for HR compliance in Ireland, with the ever-increasing regulatory compliance obligations on employers across all professions, including veterinary. People management remains one of the most heavily legislated areas faced by Irish businesses: the National Employment Rights Authority (to fall under Workplace Relations www. workplacerelations.ie) aims to secure compliance with employment rights legislation. Compounding this, there are 23 potential criminal convictions under the Employment Law Compliance Bill 2008 for breaches of employers' obligations. While not yet enacted, the Bill provides penalties for offences in most cases up to ?5,000 and/or 12 months' imprisonment for summary offences and ?250,000 and/ or three years' imprisonment for indictable offences. The Bill also makes provision for 'name and shame' and issuing spot fines called 'fixed payment notices' to employment law defaulters. Such convictions and penalties apply across a range of employment legislation disciplines such as terms of employment, minimum wages, working time, redundancy, protection of employment and employment of young persons. These convictions and penalties, added to those under specific regulated institutions, such as under The Central Bank Reform Act 2010 for regulated financial institution employers, highlights the importance of being compliant employers.