Ms Maeve McElwee:

I have a very strong view on this particular issue. I have also seen the World Health Organization report. It is important to recognise that we have robust legislation already on our Statute Book on the organisation of working time. It is very prescriptive on the maximum number of hours that can be worked. In effect, it provides a right to disconnect. It very clearly states what hours people work, what hours are considered to be rest and what breaks must be taken. We were fully engaged with the Workplace Relations Commission on foot of the Department's request to bring together a code of practice on the right to disconnect. I fully agree with Deputy O'Reilly. This is a very challenging situation, particularly for our younger generations who have grown up with a device in their hands. There is work to be done in organisational cultures on what is an appropriate out-of-hours call. Every role may well have a time when some flexibility will be required. We all accept there is reason and time. There are also needs to be an understanding of what this is. It should not be a regular event. We need to support this culture as at a time when people are sitting with their devices on Twitter or watching TV and they are also scanning through their email there is a general sense that people are never disconnected.

There are cultural things that, as organisations and as a society, we need to think about in the context of our ever-connected environments. We all have a broader responsibility in that regard. I agree that as the world of work is changing, particularly with the imminent introduction of a right to request remote working, but also with the fact that many organisations are already moving to blended and hybrid working, those are issues on which we need to educate people. Many people have never worked remotely or in hybrid models in the long term and there are new ways to one manage one's own work.

With my employer's hat on, we need to think about the many challenges for employers in this regard. How does one regulate employees on their personal device, or even on their work device, without overstepping their privacy in their homes and workplaces? There is a significant amount to be worked through but, in general, it is really important that people rest and work.