The McDonald's fast food chain is to announce later today that it will no longer allow Leaving Certificate students to work for it during the school week, in a move designed to address concerns about the effect this has on their exam performance.
McDonald's restaurants of Ireland, which estimates it employs some 500 fifth and sixth year students in its 71 restaurants here, says it plans to introduce the new rules over the coming months.
A spokeswoman said current employees who are preparing for their Leaving Certificate will in future only be rostered on to work at weekends and outside of term time.
Prospective new employees who are studying for their Leaving Certificate exams will continue to be allowed to work at weekends and during school holidays, but not during the week.
The move applies specifically to fifth and sixth year students because McDonald's says it has not employed anybody under the age of 16 for some years. This means most Junior Certificate students are already prohibited from working for the group.
However, the ban does not apply to transition year students or students over the age of 16 who leave school early.
At a press conference in Dublin later today, McDonald's will also outline plans for a new system allowing for the formal recognition of the skills which employees at its restaurants obtain.
The press conference will be attended by the Minister for Education and Science, Ms Hanafin, who will present four McDonald's employees with scholarship bursaries worth €1,500. The news that McDonald's is to restrict part-time work among school students comes as thousands of students around the country prepare for their mock exams.
According to a recent ESRI report, the number of second-level students working part-time here has more than doubled in recent years, with almost three quarters who do so spending their earnings on their social life.
Students who work part-time achieve lower grades in their Leaving Certificate than those who do not, the report also found.
This has led the employers body, IBEC, to ask its members not to employ Junior Certificate and Leaving Certificate exam students
"We do not want to jeopardise students' study during the week", the spokeswoman for McDonald's said.
"We have been working very closely with the Institute of Guidance Counsellors on this. They don't have a problem with students working at the weekend. It gives them a break from their studies . . . it is all about balance."