Ms ?ine Maher:

Regarding the Deputy's point about the policy and the requirement for a policy, we fully agree that we want to make this as simple and straightforward as possible for businesses and to allow employees to avail of this. We referenced the codes of practice. This is something we will look at in terms of the codes providing practical and pragmatic guidance to workers and employees on how such a policy would be developed and what it might cover. We agree with the Deputy's main point. We want to make it simple and accessible and we are mindful of not placing an onerous administrative burden on anyone.

We take the point around self-assessment. We do not want to inadvertently transfer any obligations. We want to make this a fairly simple and streamlined process. We will look at self-assessment in the draft and reflect on the comments the Deputy and his colleagues on the committee might make in their report.

Regarding the six-month eligibility criteria, a minimum term of employment is a relatively common provision around accessing a suite of employment rights through legislation in Ireland. As far as I am aware, parental and carer's leave entitlements require 12 months continuous service so it is relatively well-established. We will examine the Deputy's comments around the length of time.

We are looking at grounds for refusal in the round for subjectivity and other areas. Obviously, we will be guided by the committee's report. I will finish on the point about continuous service. The Deputy is right. In the current very tight and competitive market, many employers are already offering remote-only or hybrid work patterns on an entry model. Of course, in a competitive market, employees are free to negotiate on entry. The intention of this legislation is not to supplant any more favourable arrangements for remote or hybrid work that are already being offered.