A piece of legislation with a mouthful of a name (Employment
(Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 2018) updated the Organisation of
Working Time Act to provide employees with a statutory entitlement
to a “banded hours” contract in certain circumstances.
We look at how respond to a request for a banded hours contract,
and the formula to calculate the correct band.
What is a banded hours contract?
It is contractual entitlement for employees to work within a set
range of hours for the next 12 months, calculated by averaging out
the hours worked during the previous 12 months.
There are certain sectors in which experience shows that
employees' contracts do not reflect the hours actually
worked. By way of example, the hospitality sector would
historically be seasonal in nature with employees potentially
working full time during busy summer months, with limited hours
during the winter months. Over the years, and prior to Covid, the
“season” extended, and regularly employees
