Parental leave
Irish workers could gain the right to four months of paid parental leave for the first time under a proposal from Brussels that aims to encourage fathers to take on more parenting responsibilities. The Sunday Times reports that Ireland is one of only six EU countries where employers are not obliged to pay workers if they take parental leave. The draft work-life balance directive has angered employers, however.
Eli Lilly expands in Kinsale
US pharma giant Eli Lilly is to proceed with a €200 million expansion at its Kinsale manufacturing site in Co Cork, according to the Sunday Independent. The paper reports senior management in Ireland were informed in recent days that the firm's global board had given the green light for the project which will create hundreds of new jobs in addition to the 500 people it currently employs in Kinsale.
Nama redundancy
Nama staff are getting an average payout of more than €80,000 through the agency’s redundancy programme. The Sunday Business Post reports that new figures show 91 staff have been approved for the voluntary redundancy scheme at a total cost of €7.5 million.
Pay rises at Dalata
Pay rises at Dalata, the listed group that owns the Maldron and Clayton hotel brands, has drawn the ire of influential shareholder adviser ISS according to the Sunday Times. ISS has told institutional shareholders to vote against Dalata's remuneration report.
INM independent directors
Independent News & Media (INM) will face no official sanction for breaching corporate governance rules as the company prepares to explain to investors why its board no longer has a majority of independent directors. The Irish Stock Exchange has told the Sunday Business Post that a company is compliant with official listing rules if it "complies with the relevant corporate governance codes or provides an explanation for the provisions it has not complied with".
House numbers
Both the Sunday Times and and the Sunday Business Post report that the Minister for Housing Simon Coveney is investigating the number of new homes actually being built. The Housing Agency is preparing to advise the Minister that the official completion figures he has been using are too high.
