The European Commission is to refer Ireland, Belgium and Spain to the Court of Justice of the European Union for failing to notify national measures fully transposing an EU directive on work-life balance rights for parents and carers.
The commission said it will ask the court to impose financial sanctions on the three member states.
The EU Work-Life Balance Directive, adopted in 2019, is designed to enable working parents to better reconcile professional and private lives.
The deadline for transposition of the provisions of the Work-life Balance Directive into national law was 2 August 2022, but the commission said that Ireland, Belgium and Spain have still not communicated their transposition measures.
In March, the Oireachtas passed the Work Life Balance Act which introduced new workers' rights including domestic violence leave, unpaid leave for medical care and breastfeeding breaks.
The law also includes rights to request remote and flexible working, measures which will be introduced once the Workplace Relations Commission has finalised a new code of practice.
A spokesperson for Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, which is responsible for the Work-Life Balance Act, said officials are working to address the issue as a matter of urgency.
"Ireland has informed the commission of significant progress on the transposition of the directive and of our intention to complete the final element requiring transposition at the earliest possible opportunity," the spokesperson said.
Separately, the European Commission also today called on Ireland and 11 other member states to comply with EU law in relation to air pollution and to reduce their emissions of several pollutants to cut air pollution.
