Relocation patterns show counties like Donegal and Mayo are attracting remote workers – especially young, educated professionals in the IT sector.
Earlier this month, the Irish Government finally gave the go-ahead for all employees to legally request remote working. It was a formality; we all knew we would be getting the right to request remote working from employers – anything less would have more than likely resulted in an uproar.
Ireland has a very strong remote working advocacy network. Groups like Grow Remote, CIPD, Ibec and more have long been in favour of legislating to allow flexible and remote working models.
Majority rule
More importantly, Irish people like remote working a lot – at least that’s what the data has been saying. We are several years out of the pandemic and the majority of Ireland’s workforce believes flexible working should be embraced.
Very recently released research from a survey of 1,100 Irish professionals by Morgan McKinley shows that 92pc of Irish people exhibit a strong preference for flexible working. Workers working in hybrid models express the highest contentment with their work patterns, with 59pc willing to forego pay raises for flexibility.
That last statistic may just indicate that Irish workers love flexible working. They see it as a fundamental part of what makes a company an attractive employer.
For their part, lots of the savviest companies here have taken note of the remote, flexible and hybrid revolution. They know it’s a necessity to retain and attract talent. Many are working with Government-backed agencies and initiatives such as Connected Hubs to offer remote working office facilities to employees, so they can work comfortably no matter where they live in Ireland.
More freedom to make alternative life choices
Interestingly, flexible working culture’s popularity here has influenced people’s life choices – especially when it comes to where they live. Remote working means more people can choose to live in rural towns and villages rather than large urban places; living close to their employer’s office is no longer a necessity, meaning people have more freedom to live where they like.
In January of this year, the Western Development Commission (WDC) released data showing the impact of remote work on Irish relocation patterns. The organisation asked people if they would consider relocating due to their experience of remote working since the pandemic. Of the 5,929 usable responses received, just over half said they would not consider relocating.
Who has relocated?
However, just over 840 respondents (14.1pc) said they had already relocated – and remote working was the reason they could do so. Of those that relocated, 63.5pc moved from Dublin. Top destinations for relocating include Cork, Galway, Kildare, Mayo and Donegal.
Deirdre Frost, WDC policy analyst and author of the report, said the data showed how “the extensive remote working practices since the start of Covid-19 have enabled relocation, with individuals actively embracing the flexibility offered by remote work”.
As for the type of people embracing the flexibility of remote working – well, the data showed that they tend to be young. More than one-third are aged 34 and under. They are also less likely to have children and more likely to have a high level of formal education and work in the science and tech sectors.
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