While the current work-life balance legislation does not amount to a legal right to remote work, claims of the ‘death of remote work’ are premature, according to an employment law solicitor.
With an increasing number of companies trying to bring employees back to the office, either full-time or part-time, many people have expressed fears over the future of remote work.
Barry Crushell runs an employment law firm in Dublin.
Mr Crushell told BreakingNews.ie that “10 to 20 per cent of the enquiries currently coming in are related to remote work in some shape or form”.
He explained that the current work-life balance legislation only compels employers to consider remote work requests, so the law is in their favour on most occasions.
“An example of the type of enquiry coming in is from people who have become accustomed to remote work. They have changed their lifestyle, potentially their location because of remote work. They never envisaged in 2021 or 2022 that there would be a push back on remote work and a desire to get people back in the office.
“What we’re increasingly seeing is people querying what the consequences would be if they don’t return to the office. Although there is a legal right to request remote work, there are very few circumstances under which an employer would be compelled to grant remote work. It is very much the exception, rather than the rule.”
He added: “If an individual was refusing to return to the workplace, then an employer could commence an investigation and a disciplinary process to terminate their employment; there is a high probability that if done correctly, the employer would succeed in defending any unfair dismissal claim that may follow.
“There may be exceptions for individuals who are suffering from a disability or medical condition wherein remote work constitutes a reasonable accommodation.”
WRC cases
He said the majority of cases he has seen come before the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC), particularly under the work-life balance legislation, have been successfully defended by the employer.
“Many employers are pushing back. We are increasingly seeing certain companies not only moving to a two or three day remote working environment, but some international financial institutions are requiring their employees to come back to the office five days a week.
“I think most employees who are dissatisfied with those arrangements will simply find employment elsewhere that facilitates remote work, rather than exercising their right to bring a claim to the WRC.
“When I’m advising my clients during an initial consultation, I’m required to inform them of the risks of bringing a complaint to the WRC, if somebody is looking at pure remote work request with no distinguishing features, I’m often advising them that they are wasting their time, energy and money in taking that claim… once they employer has considered the request.
“For other individuals who might have had a contractual right to remote work from the beginning, a failure to honour that request might be a breach of contract.
“What I’m seeing in many of the cases that we’re bringing that have a remote work element, we are not bringing claims under the work-life balance legislation, we’re bringing claims under different provisions that actually have redress mechanisms available and where compensation might be payable, and a positive outcome might be achievable.”
“The takeaway is that although remote work concerns are featuring in employment litigation, very rarely am I advising clients to bring complaints under the work-life balance legislation,” Mr Crushell explained.
“When the Government enacted this legislation, they were trying to keep two camps happy; the first were employees who got used to working from home during the Covid crisis, the second were employers who wanted those same employees to come back to the office.
“They gave employees the right to request remote work, but no obligation on an employer to guarantee that remote work request would be granted.
“Where does this leave people? I think our new government may be asked in time by employee representatives and trade unions to reconsider the work0life balance legislation to ensure that an employer cannot unreasonably deny a request, particularly in circumstances where remote work has no discernable negative impact on productivity. For now, the legislation is a toothless tiger.”
Mr Crushell said claims of the “death of remote working” are “premature”, adding that he feels it will evolve.
“I think we’re at the very early stage of a reconfiguration of how we work post-pandemic. There are very few employers that I am aware of who are compelling employees to be in the office five days per week.
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“I think one of the biggest problems people have about returning to the workplace is returning to a desk with little interaction with colleagues. People are often required to work two or three days a week, they’re picking when to go in, and there is little extra interaction, half of a team remote with one in the office.
“Employers need to plan ahead to have staff members together for a certain day or days. People currently feel it’s just a box ticking exercise which is adding to their financial costs in travel, buying lunches, different overheads.
“So many people now appreciate the benefits of remote work. If compelled to go in five days per week they will vote with their feet.
“I don’t think we’ll ever see a return to full-time work from the office in the same way we saw before the pandemic.”
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
