Information on Public Holiday Entitlement (Organisation of Working Time Act, 1997)

    There are ten public holidays as follows:

    • New Year's Day
    • *St Brigid's Day 
    • St Patrick’s Day
    • Easter Monday
    • The first Monday in May
    • The first Monday in June
    • The first Monday in August
    • The last Monday in October
    • Christmas Day
    • St Stephen’s Day

    *From 2023, there will be a new annual public holiday in early February to mark St Brigid’s Day. The public holiday will be the first Monday in February, except where St Brigid’s day (1 February) happens to fall on a Friday, in which case, that Friday 1 February will be a public holiday.

    Full-time employees paid an annual salary:

    Full-time employees paid an annual salary have an immediate entitlement to receive a day off on the day that the public holiday falls provided they have worked at least 40 hours in the five weeks ending on the day before the public holiday. Full-time employees are not required to take any action to receive the benefit of the Public Holiday; their payment for the public holiday is included in their monthly salary.

    Part-time employees paid a pro-rated annual salary:

    Part-time employees paid a pro-rated annual salary must have worked at least 40 hours in the five weeks ending on the day before the public holiday in order to receive a benefit for same.

    Where the employee is normally scheduled to work on the day the public holiday falls, the employee is entitled to that day off work.

    Where the public holiday falls on a day that the employee is not normally rostered to be in work, they are entitled to time off equivalent to one-fifth of their normal working week. This time off is to be taken in agreement with their Head of Department, or nominee.

    Payment for all public holidays is included in part-time employees monthly salary.

    Hourly paid employees (including Graduate Teaching Assistants, and Occasional Employees)

    Where an hourly paid employee has worked at least 40 hours in the five weeks ending on the day before the public holiday, and where they would normally be rostered to work on the day on which the public holiday falls, the employee should claim payment for their normal rostered hours for the public holiday using the Public Holiday Payment Claim Form (available for download here).

    Where an hourly paid employee has worked at least 40 hours in the five weeks ending on the day before the public holiday, and would not normally be rostered to work on the day on which the public holiday falls, the employee should claim payment to the value of one-fifth of their normal working week using the Public Holiday Payment Claim Form.

    It is the responsibility of hourly paid employees to make a valid claim for their public holiday entitlements using the Public Holiday Pay Occasional Claim Form no later than one month following the day on which the public holiday falls. In all instances, hourly paid employees must make a valid claim for their public holiday entitlement prior to the end date of their engagement at Maynooth University.