There are 9 public holidays in Ireland each year. Public holidays in Ireland (as in other countries) may commemorate a special day or other event, for example, St Patrick’s Day (17 March) or Christmas Day (25 December). On a public holiday, sometimes called a bank holiday, most businesses and schools close. Other services, for example, public transport still operate but often with restricted schedules. The list of public holidays in Ireland each year is as follows:

• New Year’s Day (1 January)
• St. Patrick’s Day (17 March)
• Easter Monday
• First Monday in May, June, August
• Last Monday in October
• Christmas Day (25 December)
• St. Stephen’s Day (26 December)

Good Friday is not a public holiday. While some schools and businesses close on that day, you have no automatic entitlement to time off work on that day.

Rules

Your entitlement to public holidays is set out in the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997. Most employees are entitled to paid leave on public holidays. One exception is part-time employees who have not worked for their employer at least 40 hours in total in the 5 weeks before the public holiday.

Employees who qualify will be entitled to either the public holiday off as paid leave or one of the following alternatives:

• A paid day off within a month of the public holiday
• An additional day of annual leave
• An additional day’s pay
• The nearest church holiday to the public holiday as a paid day off

The Organisation of Working Time Act provides that you may ask your employer at least 21 days before a public holiday, which of the alternatives will apply. If your employer fails to respond at least 14 days before the public holiday, you are entitled to take the actual public holiday as a paid day off.

Part-time employees

If you have worked for your employer at least 40 hours in the 5 weeks before the public holiday and you are due to work on a public holiday you are entitled to that day off as paid leave or one of the alternatives as listed above. If you are not required to work on that particular day you should receive one-fifth of your weekly pay instead of the actual day’s leave. Even if you may never be rostered to work on a public holiday you are entitled to one-fifth of your weekly pay as compensation for the public holiday.

You can find out more about public holidays in this explanatory booklet on holidays and public holidays (pdf) or from the Information Services of the National Employment Rights Authority.

Most importantly everyone have a safe break over the holiday period.