Nine in 10 (90%) of those aged 35-44 who could work remotely would like to do so when pandemic restrictions end, a CSO survey shows.

Eight in 10 (80%) of those in employment have worked remotely at some point since the start of the pandemic.

Of those in employment in Kildare, Louth, Meath and Wicklow who could work remotely, 93% said they would like to do so after all pandemic restrictions are removed.

And three in four (75%) respondents who were engaged in home duties and almost seven in 10 (69%) of those unable to work due to longstanding health problems would consider employment if it could be done remotely.

Moving house

In Kildare, Louth, Meath and Wicklow, 59% of all those who would consider moving house if they could work remotely would move to a different county unlike those living in Cork and Kerry who were most likely to remain in their own county.

Just 3% of remote workers whose main mode of transport to work prior to the pandemic was a car are making more trips by car on days they remote work.

Almost two in 10 workers (18%) would like to work from a remote work hub or a combination of home and a remote work hub when pandemic restrictions end.

The Central Statistics Office Frontier Series output includes insights into how much of our work has moved away from regular workplaces to home and other settings since the pandemic.

Statistician Dermot Kinane, said: “Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic (March 2020) the work conditions of those in employment in Ireland has changed dramatically with access to workplaces restricted as part of public health measures.”

Working arrangements

Respondents were asked a series of questions about their current and future working arrangements and the impact remote work has had on their work-life balance.

The results show how conditions have changed with eight in 10 (80%) of those in employment having worked remotely at some point since the start of the pandemic from just under one in four (23%) having worked remotely at some point before then.

This report shows that respondents in employment who could work remotely and living in Kildare, Louth, Meath and Wicklow, as well as those who used public transport and those whose travel time to work before the pandemic was more than one hour, were more likely to say they would like to work remotely after all pandemic restrictions are removed.

Of those in employment who can remote work, 88% would like to do so when all pandemic restrictions are removed.

Of these, nearly three in 10 (28%) said they would like to do so all the time. Six in 10 (60%) said they would like to work remotely some of the time. The remainder (12%) said they would not like to work remotely in the future.

Those aged 35-44 were the age group most likely to want to work remotely all the time (32%).

Broadband

Just under one in 10 (9%) who rated their home broadband as excellent would not like to work remotely in the future. This figure rose to 15% for those who rated their home broadband as poor.

Almost two-thirds (65%) of those in employment whose job could be done remotely but who have not worked remotely at any point since the pandemic began said they would (49%) or probably (16%) work remotely if the opportunity to do so was available.

Three in 10 (30%) of those in employment whose job could not be done remotely with their current employer would be definitely (18%) or probably (12%) attracted to a new job that could.

Almost six in 10 (58%) of those not in employment would consider taking a job if it could be done remotely.

On the impact of remote working on work-life balance, Dermot Kinane commented: “Overall, almost three in four (74%) who work remotely said they feel they had more time on their hands, because of remote work, to do things they never got the chance to do before the pandemic.

“The most popular activity undertaken by remote workers who felt they had extra time, because of working remotely, was domestic or household tasks. Nearly seven in 10 (69%) chose this activity as one of the things they do now with more women (73%) than men (66%) using some extra time for this.”

Gardening, the choice of just under three in 10 (27%) of those who felt they had more time available to them because of working remotely, grew more popular as age increased for both sexes with 56% of males and 38% of females aged 55 and over choosing this activity.

Nearly four in 10 (38%) of those in employment would consider a house move if they could work remotely. A further 7% said they have already moved because they could work remotely.

More bicycle trips

Compared to days they are in their workplace, when those aged 45-54 work remotely 73% take fewer car trips, 34% take more trips on a bicycle and 50% taking more trips on foot.

Dermot Kinane added: “Of those respondents who were working remotely in November 2021 almost all (98%) were doing so from home. However, when asked from where they would like to work remotely after all pandemic restrictions end almost two in 10 (18%) respondents who would like to work remotely said they would like to do so from a remote work hub or a combination of home and a remote work hub.”

Hub 

Almost one-quarter (24%) of those who can work remotely and who would like to do so from a remote work hub, or a combination of home and a remote work hub live in rented accommodation.

This figure falls to 16% for those whose tenure is owner-occupied. 

Of those who said they would consider using a remote-work hub, 44% said they would travel up to 15 minutes to get to one, with an additional 45% saying they would travel up to double that time.