Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour) | Oireachtas source

If I am reading correctly what the Minister is saying, he is comfortable with what the Department of Social Protection did in recent weeks, essentially instructing staff to come back to the office without agreement two days a week. By the way, that may seem reasonable to some, and I am not saying it is unreasonable. What is unreasonable is the lack of consultation and the unilateral nature of that decision, which appeared to blindside staff and their representative organisations, Fórsa in this case. Nobody has any difficulty - I certainly do not - with tailored, customised solutions to address the workplace needs and business environment in individual Departments and agencies because they are all different and all have different needs.

However, we need to agree on a core set of principles that would apply across the Civil Service and public service on approaches to blended, remote and hybrid work. Any initiative the Government undertakes or plans to undertake - I would appreciate it if the Minister put it on the record of the House when he intends to have this process completed - must be informed by evidence. Productivity, performance and all those very important things should be included and any examination needs to be robust and decisions need to be evidence-based. However, I am not seeing much of that.

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