WITH ONLY A  few days left until the General Election, key issues such as housing, healthcare and the cost of living are likely to continue to dominate the discourse. It is well known that voters are concerned mostly with the issues that affect them personally.

Recent figures show that approximately 750,000 people now work remotely at least some of the time. This represents just over 20% of the registered voters in Ireland, meaning that remote work is at the forefront of the electorate’s minds now more than ever.

Since the last General Election in 2020, remote working has become an essential part of modern working life, offering numerous social, economic and environmental benefits. It has empowered employees by providing greater flexibility, improved work-life balance, and access to more opportunities, especially for those living in rural areas or those with caregiving responsibilities. People can have great jobs, working for global companies, while living in every community in Ireland. Furthermore, remote work aligns with key environmental goals by reducing commuter traffic and carbon emissions, which are critical for Ireland’s climate action plans.

While remote working became a necessity during the Covid-19 pandemic, it has now proven to be a viable and sustainable option for many industries. To ensure the long-term success of this model, we need strong political leadership that will support its continuation and growth.

Yet for such a transformative force, the political discourse surrounding remote work feels underwhelming, especially given its prominence during the pandemic. After years of experimentation with remote and hybrid work, the question now isn’t whether it works: it’s how to integrate it equitably and sustainably, and to unlock social, economic and environmental benefits for individuals, employers and local communities. Ireland can be the best place in the world to work remotely but this will not happen by itself.

What do the manifestos say?

The recently published election manifestos give an indication of how important each party views remote work as a key issue at this time. Election manifestos need to be all encompassing documents and, with this in mind, any mention of remote work tells us how high up this list of priorities it sits from each Party’s perspective. Here is a summary of the mentions of remote work in each manifesto, looking at the current Government Parties first:

In Fianna Fáil’s manifesto, under its plans for rural communities, says that it will support initiatives to facilitate remote working, to foster regional enterprise growth, and to enhance community structures.

Fine Gael includes remote work as they propose continued support to the Connected Hubs network. These hubs, which have gained traction in rural communities, offer the social and professional benefits of a shared workspace. The party also talks about promoting flexible working arrangements that benefit both workers and employers.

The Green Party presents a worker-focused approach. That party’s proposal to simplify and expand remote working tax credits directly addresses a key concern for employees – cost. By making remote work financially attractive and accessible, they position it as part of a broader push for sustainable living. The Greens commit to funding remote working hubs and expanding the right to request remote and flexible work.

The Social Democrats are the only non-government party to say anything substantive about remote working in their manifesto. They frame remote work as a tool for transformative social, economic and environmental change. They emphasise support for co-working spaces as localised centres of innovation and connectivity.

Interestingly, there is no mention of significance in the manifestos of any of the other parties, that we can find. Could this omission reflect a miscalculation of the importance of this issue? As for smaller parties, their silence on the matter suggests they have yet to recognise remote work’s potential as a lever for positive change, both socially and environmentally.

Grabbing attention

While remote work might not grab headlines like housing or healthcare, its implications ripple through nearly every major policy area. For rural Ireland, it brings a new vibrancy. For urban Ireland, it’s a solution to overburdened infrastructure. For workers, it’s the promise of flexibility, cost savings, and improved well-being — just ask anyone sitting in the relentless gridlocked traffic in this country if they wish there was another way. And for the environment, remote working a tangible way to reduce carbon emissions.

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Irish voters may not view remote work as an election-defining issue but with 25% of workers in Ireland working remotely, new policy and investment will affect how they live their lives. The pandemic has reshaped expectations, with workers across the country now valuing flexibility as much as salary.

As political parties vie for votes, they must recognise that remote work isn’t just a policy issue; it’s a lens through which voters view broader questions of fairness, opportunity and sustainability. Failure to address it convincingly could mean missing a key opportunity to connect with an electorate seeking meaningful change.

Whatever happens on Friday, the incoming Government brings an opportunity to solidify remote work’s place in Ireland’s future. By championing bold and practical policies, parties could unlock the full potential of remote work to reshape our economy and communities.

John Evoy is the General Manager at Grow Remote. Grow Remote is a social enterprise on a mission to solve the problems of remote work in order to unlock social, economic and environmental change for individuals, employers and local communities.