Ms Joanne Mangan:

Most employers of which I am aware fulfil the criteria of making sure the employee is well set up from a health and safety perspective by doing virtual inspections as opposed to physically attending. I do not think there is a need for the employer to attend the person's home. It can be done virtually and the Health and Safety Authority, HSA, has guidance on its website on how to do health and safety ergonomic assessments and checks. Most companies we work with do it through the employee self-assessing, taking pictures and sending them in. If any flags come up from that, the employer is required to take action and they give education and training around best practice for health and safety.

Having said that, and Mr. Hegarty will probably have a similar comment, there is a gap in the guidance for remote companies on health and safety. We have been asked how to build a health and safety statement remotely, which is a challenge, as opposed to being in the office. Further work could be done, maybe by the HSA, to provide more guidance for companies. Many companies are worried about the health and safety aspect, particularly because over the past two years it was an emergency situation and may have been more lax. Now that things are moving into a place where this is a more permanent sustainable option for working, it is important to make sure employees' health and safety is taken care of and that employers are confident they are ticking boxes and ensuring their employees are safe.