Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 18 September 2012
549. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if he will examine the proposal of encouraging business to allow persons to work shorter hours thus creating more jobs in their organisation (details supplied). [37161/12]
View answerThe Protection of Employees (Part-Time-Work) Act 2001 provides that part-time employees must not be treated less favourably than comparable full-time employees unless there are objective grounds, and where a benefit is determined by the number of hours an employee works, it shall be on a pro-rata or proportionate basis to part-time employees. There is no provision in the Act, or elsewhere in Irish employment law, for a statutory entitlement to part-time work. Rather, the Act makes provision for the Labour Relations Commission to carry out studies for the purposes of identifying obstacles that may exist in particular industries or sectors to access to part-time work, and for the Commission, in consultation with the social partners, to prepare a Code of Practice which would be of practical benefit to employers and employees in addressing such obstacles.
In this context, the Code of Practice on Access to Part-Time Working (Statutory Instrument Number 8 of 2006) aims to encourage employers and employees to consider part-time work and provides guidance on procedures to improve access to part-time work for those employees who wish to work on a part-time basis.
Best practice recommends that employers assess within their own organisations the possibilities of either introducing part-time working or increasing the range/scope of existing part-time working arrangements. The Code recommends that employers should explore, in consultation with their employees and representatives, as appropriate, the possibility of introducing part-time work opportunities and/or maximise the range of posts as suitable for part-time working at all levels in the organisation.
A key element in the consideration of improving access to part-time work - either introducing part-time working arrangements or enhancing existing arrangements - is the operational/business context of the organisation and the need to enhance economic competitiveness. Ultimately, the capacity of an organisation to facilitate part time working is dependent on business and operational factors.
