The government is folding the Right to Request Remote Work Bill into the Work Life Balance Bill that is expected to be voted through the Oireachtas by the end of the year.

Since being introduced early this year, the Right to Request Remote Work framework has undergone some change, with rules set to be weighted more towards employees, who will be given the right to appeal decisions at the Workplace Relations Commission.

Employers are also set to be given fewer grounds to turn down applications for remote working, and the amount of time a worker has served with the company to avail of the protection has been more than halved from six months to 12 weeks.

Under the original, employers were given 13 grounds on which to refuse a request for home working:

• The nature of the work
• Cannot reorganise work among staff
• Impact on quality
• Impact on performance
• Planned structural changes
• Burden of extra costs
• Confidentiality concerns
• Concerns about the suitability of the workplace
• Data protection concerns
• Web connectivity issues
• An inordinate distance between remote location and on-site location
• Conflict with a collective agreement
• Disciplinary process

Under the integrated bill, these grounds will be replaced by an obligation on the employer to consider both their needs and the needs of employees when considering a request.

In Association with

Employers will also be required to have regard to a Code of Practice to be developed by the WRC. 

Under the integrated bill, a complaint can be taken to the WRC where an employer hasn’t complied with the Code of Practice or the other requirements of the bill.  This represents an enhanced right to complain.

The previous bill did not include a requirement for an employer to have regard to a Code of Practice and contained the 13 grounds for refusal of a request. 

The government has also instructed that a review of flexible working, including a consideration of whether the right to request flexible working should be extended to all workers, should take place after two years.

Speaking on Wednesday, Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said that 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."

The integration of the Right to Request Remote Work Bill into the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth's Work Life Balance Bill means that requests can be handled under one piece of legislation and one Code of Practice to be developed by the WRC

"I am conscious that many employers who went to great lengths to accommodate flexible working during the pandemic are now working out the extent to which it can be part of their businesses in the longer term," said Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth Roderic O'Gorman.

"However, we will keep this legislation under review.  That is why I also intend to introduce a provision in the Bill for the flexible working provisions to be reviewed after two years, including a consideration of extending the entitlement to a right to request flexible working to all employees.” 

(Pic: Getty Images)