New Irish law would allow employees to request remote work, report says

Irish workers will have the right to request remote work under a new law that will be introduced later this year, The HR Digest reported.

The aim is to promote a “better work-life balance,” Tánaiste Leo Varadkar, Ireland’s minister for enterprise, trade and employment, was cited as saying by The HR Digest.

Employees may request remote work, and the employer will either agree or explain why it is not possible, he said, adding that the employer’s reasons could be challenged in the Workplace Relations Commission, Ireland’s quasi-judicial forum for discrimination complaints.

“The requirement to work from home where possible, for reasons of public health, has demonstrated how viable home, remote and blended working can be,” Varadkar said. “Post-pandemic, I want remote working to be part of a whole new world of work and this new government strategy sets out how we will enable it.”