Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú)
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940. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the total number of persons who are employed by his Department; the number who are currently working remotely; and the estimated number of persons in his Department who ordinarily worked from home prior to the Covid-19 pandemic. [33968/22]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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The total number of people employed by my Department is 4,022. This figure includes temporary staff, seconded staff and staff on leave of absence.  If these categories are removed, the number is reduced to 3,888.  Throughout the pandemic, approximately half of my staff were in attendance in their usual workplaces. This was due to the essential nature of the work that my Department carries out, for instance, in meat plants, at ports, in laboratories and on farms.

In line with Government advice, my Department implemented a return-to-the-workplace schedule in February of this year and since March, staff who previously worked remotely have been attending the workplace on at least three days per week. Prior to the pandemic, full-time working from home arrangements were rare and, typically, cases related to health matters and were as a result of advice from the Chief Medical Officer (CMO). 

As required under the Blended Working Policy Framework for Civil Service Organisations my Department is preparing to launch its own Blended Working Policy which will enable staff to formally apply to work remotely for some of their working week.