This article is about Justworks EOR (Employer of Record). What product am I using?
As an employee working in Ireland through Justworks, you’re supported by a full range of statutory benefits and workplace protections under Irish law. These benefits are designed to safeguard your wellbeing, provide flexibility when life events occur, and ensure you’re paid fairly and treated with care.
To help you understand what you’re entitled to, we’ve created a series of employee guides that explain your rights and how to access your benefits. Each guide includes plain-language explanations and verified information from trusted Irish government sources, including Citizens Information and Gov.ie.
What You’ll Find in This Series
- Leave and Sick Pay – Learn about your annual leave, public holidays, and statutory sick pay, including how to apply for Illness Benefit through the Department of Social Protection.
- Family and Parental Leave – Understand your maternity, paternity, adoption, and parent’s leave entitlements and how to claim related state benefits.
- Other Types of Leave – Find information on special leave options such as carer’s leave, force majeure leave, health and safety leave, and domestic violence leave.
If you ever have questions about your employment or benefits while working in Ireland, you can contact Justworks Support or visit the Citizens Information – Employment Rights and Conditions page for more detailed guidance.
These resources are meant to help you understand your rights and available supports — and to make sure you can confidently take the time you need, when you need it.
Working in Ireland with Justworks: Leave and Sick Pay
As an employee in Ireland working through Justworks, you are entitled to specific types of paid time off and income protection when you are unwell. This guide explains your rights around annual leave, public holidays, and sick pay, along with how to apply for each.
Annual Leave and Public Holidays
All employees in Ireland are entitled to paid annual leave each year. This entitlement is separate from other types of leave, such as sick or maternity leave.
In addition to annual leave, Ireland observes ten public holidays, including New Year’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, Easter Monday, Christmas Day, and St. Stephen’s Day.
If you work full time, you automatically qualify for paid leave on these days. Part-time employees qualify once they have worked at least forty hours in the five weeks before a public holiday. When a public holiday falls on a weekend, it is normally moved to the following weekday.
Annual leave is intended to give you protected rest and recovery time away from work. It should be planned with your employer in advance. If you are unable to take your annual leave because of illness, you can carry it forward for up to fifteen months after the end of the leave year.
Sick Leave and Statutory Sick Pay
If you are unable to work due to illness, you have a legal right to paid sick leave under Ireland’s Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) scheme, introduced by the Sick Leave Act 2022. This ensures that all employees – full-time and part-time – can take paid time off when sick.
From 1 January 2024, employees are entitled to five days of paid sick leave per year, increased from three days in 2023. This entitlement will rise annually until it reaches ten days per year by 2026.
Sick pay is provided directly by your employer at 70 % of your normal daily pay, capped at €110 per day. Sick days can be taken together or separately throughout the calendar year (1 January – 31 December).
Who qualifies
To qualify for Statutory Sick Pay, you must:
- Be an employee (not self-employed)
- Have worked for your employer for at least 13 continuous weeks before becoming ill
- Be certified by a medical practitioner as unfit for work
You are covered by SSP even if you are on probation, training, or an apprenticeship. Agency workers and employees over State Pension age are also eligible.
If you have more than one employer, you can claim sick pay from each employer once you meet the 13-week requirement with each. If you leave your job and return to the same employer within 26 weeks, your previous service still counts toward eligibility.
Medical certification
You must be certified by a doctor from day one of your sick leave. This certificate confirms that you are unable to work and estimates the expected duration of your illness. Employers cannot impose “waiting days,” meaning you are entitled to sick pay from your first day off.
How pay is calculated
Sick pay is based on your normal daily rate of pay, which includes any regular bonus or allowance that does not vary from week to week (but excludes overtime or commission).
If your pay varies, your normal daily pay is the average of your pay over the 13 weeks before your illness.
Part-time employees are entitled to sick pay calculated in proportion to their usual working pattern.
Employer sick pay schemes
Some employers offer company sick-pay schemes that are more generous than the statutory minimum. If your employer has such a scheme, that policy applies instead – but it must be at least as favourable as SSP. You cannot receive both SSP and company sick pay at the same time.
Illness Benefit
If your illness continues beyond your paid sick days, you may be eligible for Illness Benefit from the Department of Social Protection (DSP).
Illness Benefit begins on the sixth day of illness and provides income support if you cannot work due to sickness or injury. The payment can last for up to two years, depending on your PRSI (Pay-Related Social Insurance) contributions.
The rate you receive depends on your average weekly earnings.
How to apply
To receive Illness Benefit, you must apply within 6 weeks of becoming ill. If you fail to apply within this timeframe, you may lose some of your payments. However, if you have a valid reason for the delay in your application, your payments may be backdated.
To apply for Illness Benefit online, please visit MyWelfare.ie. You will need:
- A verified MyGovID account
- A medical certificate from your GP
If your GP has completed the medical certificate online, you will receive a copy for your records. If your GP is unable to complete the certificate online, you can obtain it directly from them and mail it to the following address:
Freepost
Social Welfare Services
P.O. Box 1650
Dublin 1
Sick Pay and Illness Benefit work together to protect your income and employment rights during periods of illness.
Source: Citizens Information – Sick Leave and Sick Pay
Need Help?
If you have questions about your benefits or time-off entitlements, you can reach out to international-support@justworks.com for assistance.
Disclaimer
This material has been prepared for informational purposes only, and is not intended to provide, and should not be relied on for accounting, legal or tax advice. If you have any legal or tax questions regarding this content or related issues, then you should consult with your professional legal or tax advisor.