Days in the office now a numbers game for Irish employers and employees

Almost 40% of Irish employers are finding it difficult to get employees back to the office, according to a new survey.

The vast majority (80%) of HR and employment professionals say they have a hybrid model in place: a quarter are in the office 1 - 2 days a week, almost half (46%) are in 3 – 4 days, while less than 1 in ten are back to the office 4 days or more each week. Only 1 in 5 have a ‘mainly remote workforce’.

That’s according to an HR and Employment survey from Ireland’s largest and most established global law firm, Eversheds Sutherland.

Julie Galbraith, Partner and Head of Employment Law at Eversheds Sutherland, and chair of the Employment Law Association of Ireland (ELAI), said:

“There have been many changes in the world of work and employment legislation over the last 12 months. Amid the WRC’s published code of practice on requesting remote and flexible working, over the last six months, we have seen a change in remote versus ‘in office’ working and a significant increase in return to the office policies.

“Many companies require two or more days in the office now and are actively enforcing this with disciplinary action for non-attendance, signalling another shift in the balance of power enjoyed by employees in previous years.”

In addition, HR and employment professionals surveyed say the biggest challenges facing their organisations are managing performance (63%) followed by sick leave or capability challenges, and employee retention or engagement (both at 17%).

Also, of note, 1 in 5 respondents have not taken steps to consider auto-enrolment.

“While it is not due to commence until late September 2025, auto-enrolment will impact all employers, and many may still have a lot to do. It. For example, while many organisations have a pension scheme in place it may not be adequate – e.g., Is there a waiting period? Can all types of workers access the scheme? “

The other key findings include:

• Half of respondents do not enforce a mandatory retirement age
  
  
• When it comes to artificial intelligence, 92% permit their employees to use it yet only almost a third are using AI in their recruitment and performance management processes.

The survey findings were revealed at the law firm’s Employment Law and HR Conference yesterday, which included a review of 2024 and a look ahead to the key developments for 2025, as well as a deep dive into the topics of pensions and auto-enrolment and navigating AI in HR.

Status of Workers

The event also covered the topic of worker status as an ongoing issue following the recent implications of the Karshan Domino’s Pizza case and the updated Revenue Code of Practice on the use of contractors.

“Many businesses in Ireland have used contractors for many years and may not realise that this could be a significant problem for them. We see very low tolerance now with Revenue, the Department of Social Protection and the WRC. Even if a contractor provides services for a small number of hours a week, they could be deemed to be a part-time employee,” continued Julie.

Pay Transparency

The topic of pay transparency was also raised, which will bring a significant change to the openness or lack thereof in salary and benefits in Ireland.

Julie continued, “Many businesses in Ireland are preparing for pay transparency. We expect this to give rise to equal pay claims like in the UK where groups of retail workers have challenged the pay differences between shop floor workers (often female) and those in the warehouse or involved in distribution (often male).”