My Department, in collaboration with the Department of Social Protection, is assessing the cumulative impact of recent and forthcoming changes to working conditions, including the Auto-Enrolment Retirement Savings Scheme, Parent’s Leave and Benefit, Statutory Sick Pay, the Additional Public Holiday, the Living Wage, and Remote Working. This follows a recommendation by the National Competitiveness and Productivity Council that a cumulative impact assessment be undertaken.
In preparing this report, officials from my Department met with representatives from a cross-section of enterprises who are among the most impacted by forthcoming changes to working conditions. My Department also hosted workshops with both employer representatives and trade union officials, providing stakeholders with an opportunity to articulate their views on forthcoming changes. As part of this engagement, My Department sought both quantitative and qualitative information, which provided valuable evidence of the impact that these measures are expected to have across a range of sectors.
This report is currently being finalised and will inform public policy in this area.