Irish Public Servants want a formal agreement with the Government on fair access to remote working in the future, and safeguards against any arrangements being abused.
Delegates at trade union, Fórsa’s Public Service conference expressed concern that remote working could lead to “creeping forced self-employment” with Public Servants ending up like “Deliveroo workers at home”.
One delegate, Francis McHugh said members had concerns that remote workers could be turned into self-employed officers and as a result lose pay, pension rights and conditions of employment they had spent a lifetime paying into.
“Nobody wants to end up like a Deliveroo worker at home,” Mr McHugh said.
He said workers wanted the union to safeguard the home-working Public Servants from “creeping forced self-employment” while having the right to “switch off” from remote working set out in law.
In a statement, Fórsa said there had to be consistent guidelines introduced in relation to roles that could be carried out outside of the office and also to prevent the option of remote working being withheld without an objective reason.
The union’s National Secretary, Derek Mullen (pictured) told the conference that it favoured “a blended approach to future working arrangements ensuring that we deal with the key issues that arise, including safe offices, safe home work spaces, serious attention and support for mental health issues, proper equipment and allowances”.
Mr Mullen said choice in relation to working arrangements was also crucial and there had to be agreement on flexible working arrangements and access to appropriate equipment.
“Importantly, there should be no divergence from existing terms and conditions of employment, including for new hires, for whom remote working should never be a condition of employment,” he said.
Dublin, 30 May 2021
