Cabinet signed off on new legislation to give all workers the right to paid sick leave yesterday. The statutory sick pay scheme will be phased in over a four-year period, starting with three days per year in 2022. Employers will eventually be required cover the cost of 10 sick days per year in 2025. Congress head of social policy Dr Laura Bambrick assessed the proposals on yesterday's News at One. 

Congress general secretary Patricia King welcomed the scheme as a "change for the better" while expressing concern that the requirement to be with your employer for six months to qualify for sick pay has the potential "to incentivise some employers to opt for causal employment contracts to circumnavigate their obligations."

Brexit is continuing to go well: “Load of s***e,” was the assessment of one EU official yesterday when asked about a report (in Brussels-based news outlet Politico Europe) that checks on goods could be introduced between the Republic and the rest of the bloc if Britain continues not to fully apply them in the Irish Sea. Talks to address an impasse over the Northern Ireland Protocol broke down without agreement yesterday. Joe Biden will press Boris Johnson to resolve the dispute when he meets him today ahead of the G7 summit.

Barristers are leaving the profession over poor pay prospects, while workers producing Weetabix are threatening strike action. New research has revealed that Ireland is one of only two countries in Europe where alcohol consumption did not decline during the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. Meanwhile, the Banking and Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI) has warned that housing supply is now unlikely to meet demand until at least the end of 2024.

Zen

Your Zen moment this morning is inspired by the family of fledgling wrens currently occupying our front garden. We had been wondering why the neighbour's cat was taking such a keen interest in the place, but the tiny wrens appear to have so far evaded any harm and are singing up a storm throughout the day (click the image above for a few bars of a tune). If you're a fan of BBC's Springwatch you'll know that they devote a few minutes of each programme to a mindful 'unwind with nature'. The excellent series finishes its run this week. Here's 20 mindful minutes in nature compiled from 2020.