Work-life balance boost

Work-life balance has been hitting the headlines post-lockdown, but debate on the matter has been simmering away for years – back in 2015 a Robert Half survey identified the search for flexible working conditions as the number one reason people left their jobs.

Current motivators for flexible working include employees getting more control over where and when they work and removing the burden and costs of commuting. Flexible working schedules also have a role in supporting women’s participation in the workplace, given that managing parental and caring responsibilities still often fall primarily to mothers.

A 2022 study by YouGov in the US, for example, found 57% of female respondents agreed that work flexibility is very important for a business to offer, compared with 44% of male respondents.

Progressive

Flexible working has accordingly become a key expectation in the offering of progressive employers. Recent ACCA research found 88% of accounting and finance professionals want a better work-life balance, and 87% aspire to work remotely at least one day a week in the future.

With the Work Life Balance Bill expected to become law in 2023, the Irish government is making good on its pandemic-era promise to give workers a legal framework to request remote working. The bill also addresses longer-standing issues around work flexibility for parents, and takes a number of other progressive steps: supporting victims of domestic violence, extending the entitlement to breastfeeding breaks from six months to two years, and making maternity leave available to transgender males with a gender recognition certificate who become pregnant.

Flexibility

The new legislation provides the clearest evidence yet that hybrid working will remain a long-term option for Irish workers. Under the bill, remote working becomes defined as a type of flexible working that all employees have a right to request. While this can be seen as a response to popular demand, it also reflects a body of research pointing to its social and productivity benefits.

A study by the government’s Economic and Evaluation Service in 2022 found remote working has positive effects on productivity, the environment, regional development, private finances and labour market participation.

The government originally proposed a standalone Right to Request Remote Working Bill but subsequently incorporated it into the wider Work Life Balance Bill. Under the integrated legislation, an employer will find it more difficult to refuse a request to work remotely.

The 13 grounds originally set out for refusal have been replaced by an obligation on the employer to consider both the needs of the business and the employee, as well as to have regard to a government code of practice on the subject that is being developed by the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC). In addition, employees can now take a complaint to the WRC if an employer does not comply with the code of practice or other requirements of the bill.

Employer view

Employer response has so far been muted, although business group Ibec initially argued that the legislation created an additional and unnecessary administrative burden. Ibec’s director of employer relations Maeve McElwee described the legislation as ‘premature’, saying a legal framework ‘may stymie the ability for employers and employees to manage remote working in a creative and flexible way’.

Recent data from FRS Recruitment pointing to 33% of all job advertisements in Ireland now offering hybrid working suggests employers have largely bought into the concept. The bill also provides for a review of flexible working policies every two years so that lessons learned can be factored into future approaches.

Parental role

For parents and carers who live in the same household as a dependent, the new bill offers the opportunity to request flexible working arrangements that go beyond remote working, such as reduced hours or adjusted schedules. It also introduces five days unpaid leave per calendar year to provide care or support for dependents.

In ‘recognising that a parent’s or carer’s role is not suspended between 9am and 5pm’, the minister for children, equality and disability said the new bill provides a ‘wide-ranging set of measures that go beyond our EU law requirements’ and ‘protect and promote women’s participation in the workplace’.

The bill also entitles those suffering or at risk of domestic violence to five days of paid leave a year.

Swing to employees

The introduction of the bill undoubtedly represents a swing of the pendulum towards employees in terms of how work is scheduled and structured. But businesses will enter the new environment with a large body of evidence that suggests such flexibility ultimately works in their favour.

Most will also recognise that the issues around work-life balance won’t end with implementation of the bill. The subject will continue to keep HR teams busy in the search for competitive advantage to attract and retain talent.

But the weight of government support is clear. The tánaiste Leo Varadkar described the right to request remote work as ‘important … to improve workers’ rights and modernise the world of work’. He added: ‘The benefits of remote working are obvious – less commuting, fewer transport emissions, better quality of life with more time with family and friends. New job opportunities will be created for people who want to live in rural Ireland, for people with disabilities and for people with caring responsibilities. Smaller towns and villages across Ireland will benefit from new investment, increased footfall and local spend.’