Frances Black (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Amendment No. 20 seeks to amend section 13B(3) by deleting the provision that a flexible working agreement "shall end" and substituting that it "may end" when the conditions under subsection (3) are met. There is something of an assumption that employers automatically want flexible work agreements to end and that they are seen as obstructive. However, it may be the case that both an employee and employer may want such arrangements to continue and that such arrangements might be of mutual benefit.

Amendment No. 21 seeks to delete the provision under section 13B(3) that a flexible working agreement shall end if the child concerned has a disability or a long-term illness and that child reaches 16 years of age. The idea that flexible working agreements would automatically end with a hard cliff-edge even in scenarios where an employer and an employee may wish to continue such arrangement is not conducive to society care is prioritised.

In Ireland, many parents are required to care for their disabled children long into adulthood. We know from the very well documented issues with home care and provision of supports to disabled people that they often have to rely on family members. This means that flexible working arrangements should be able to continue past the age of 16.

Family life is complex and children have different needs at different points in their lives. For example, a teenager might need someone to be home with them when they finish school at 4 o'clock because of a variety of different supports they might need, be they academic, emotional, physical, etc. The point is that employers and employees should be able to negotiate and come to an arrangement that suits both rather than there being an assumption in law as to what families need. We should be giving people the scope to make the best decisions for their own families in context-specific circumstances.