Head of our Employment Law & Benefits team, Melanie Crowley, spoke to RTÉ News about the impact on parents who will have to stay home with their children.
Melanie explained that there is no automatic entitlement to leave in these circumstances. She commented:
There is no leave for parents who need to be at home for an emergency like strike action.
Force majeure leave, which some people do think of, is for children who are sick or injured and is only for emergencies as the name suggests."
Melanie also advised that most impacted employees will end up asking their employers for annual leave to cover any time off required to look after children.
Our Employment Law & Benefits team is the largest of its kind in Ireland. We advise domestic and multinational employers on the full spectrum of workplace issues, from day-to-day HR matters to complex litigation. The team is ranked in IEL Elite 2026 and consistently recognised as Band 1/Tier 1 by Chambers and Partners and the Legal 500.
Read more on the RTÉ website or watch back on the RTÉ Player.
Contact our Employment Law & Benefits team
The content of this article is provided for information purposes only and does not constitute legal or other advice.
