Last week The Irish Times reported again on the recent clash between Fórsa and the Department of Social Protection, following recent attempts by management to unilaterally change blended work arrangements. 

The front-page story reported Fórsa’s intentions to engage with civil service management centrally on the issue of hybrid work arrangements, with a view to preventing any further “solo runs” by individual departments. 

Remote and hybrid work arrangements continue to receive significant media attention, as a number of global tech companies, and the new US administration, take a punitive approach to getting tech workers and federal employees back into the office on a full-time basis. 

Fórsa members have been reflecting on their own experiences about remote and hybrid working. See the item linked below for their take on the benefits that hybrid work has made possible for them, and their concerns on the environmental impact of a full return to the office, including at least one voice expressing the view that remote work is only appropriate in exceptional circumstances, such as a pandemic. 

Survey data 

In a 2024 survey of its members, Fórsa gathered data from 20,000 respondents on a wide range of issues, including the number of days they work remote, and what form of transport they used to get to the office. 

More than half of respondents (51%) said they attend for office-based work on a fulltime (five days) basis.  Just 12% reported working four ‘office days’ per week, while working remote just one day per week.   

Those working only one ‘office day’ per week (four days remote), accounted for just 6% of responses.  A very high proportion of all respondents (around 80%) relied on driving their own car to get to work, while half of those respondents said they had no other transport option.  

Only 12% of all respondents reported using public transport for the longest part of their journey to work.  

Younger workers (<35 yrs) and workers based in Dublin and Leinster had the longest average commute time, suggesting the effect of higher housing costs on younger workers. A much higher proportion of older workers (32%) commute for 15 minutes or less. 

The survey data provides insights into how members are utilising remote work options when it’s available. The data shows that younger workers generally need to spend more time travelling travel further for work, as they’re so often pushed further away from their office locations by the housing crisis.  

Any imposed increase on the number of days workers are required to spend in the office, is likely to make the availability of housing - within a reasonable commuting distance - a much bigger problem for both workers and employers.  

The data also shows that the Irish workforce still has a very high dependence on private cars to get them to work.  

Until the housing crisis abates, and more sustainable transport options expand, blended work arrangements are helping to reduce the burden of congestion on our road networks. The global research continues to show higher levels of productivity by remote workers, illustrating a high probability that time spent commuting is a drain on productivity.  

Related stories - No going back: Your views on remote work - Lives changed for the better: what you told us

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