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Anyone who works for an employer in Ireland for a regular wage or salary automatically has a contract of employment. This contract need not necessarily be a written contract.

While a written contract as such is not a legal requirment in Ireland, the Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994 and Protection of Employees (Part-Time Work) Act 2001 provide that an employer is obliged to provide an employee with a written statement of terms of employment within the first two months of the commencement of employment.

The statement of terms must include the following elements;

• Full name and address of employer and the full name of the employee.
• Job title or the nature of the work to be undertaken by the employee along with details of the place of work.
• Date of commencement of the contract and if applicable the duration or date after which the contract expires.
• Rate or method of calculation of pay along with details of payment intervals.
• Terms relating to hours of work, which should include overtime.
• Terms and conditions relating to paid leave.
• Terms relating to inability to work owing to sickness or injury and details of paid sick leave.
• Details of rest period and breaks as required by law.
• The period of notice to be given by either the employer or employee when terminating employment.
• Reference to any collective agreements which may impact on the employee.

The written statement must be signed and dated by the employer or on his behalf. A copy must be retained for the duration of the employment and for one year following the end of the employment. An employee who did not receive a written statement of the terms of employment may claim up to a maximum of four weeks compensation.