Government plans to strengthen legislation on working from home

Vivienne Clarke

Workers’ rights around remote working are set to be strengthened following a review of draft laws by the Department of Enterprise and Employment.

Parts of the upcoming legislation on working from home, drawn up earlier this year by Tánaiste Leo Varadkar's department, are getting strengthened in favour of employees, according to a report in the Irish Independent.

Speaking on RTÉ radio, future of work expert Peter Cosgrove warned that legislation on remote working must not be bureaucratic as it could discourage US companies from investing in Ireland. He said the State needed less bureaucracy and a more competitive market.

“I’m not sure we need legislation in the first place” he said of reports the Tánaiste is reviewing the remote work legislation. “I don't think this is workable, even with legislation”.

Mr Cosgrove said he worried that anything that lessened competitiveness would make Ireland less attractive for direct investment.

Sinn Féin’s spokesperson on workers’ rights, Louise O’Reilly TD, said reports had shown staff were more productive when working remotely and that legislation needed to be codified into law.

Ms O’Reilly acknowledged that employees can leave if they are not happy at their workplace and that employers could make offices more appealing. There needed to be a right to disconnect, she said.

“The Tánaiste got it wrong. I welcome that he’s going to review the legislation. He needs to listen to the unions and to Sinn Féin and other parties,” she told RTÉ.

Maeve McElwee of the Irish Business and Employers Confederation (Ibec) said everyone knew the proposed legislation was challenging and there would be “significant challenges in getting it over the line”.

It was a complex piece of legislation with challenges for both employers and employees, she told Newstalk radio. There was a need for a code of practice for remote working and hybrid working. “There is a big learning curve,” she added.