My Job: Adjusting to the changing world of work

“Typically, companies spend anywhere from 8% to 16% of their payroll costs on benefits, but is this creating true value-add?

“Is it resonating with the workforce by creating a compelling value proposition, reflecting their needs and preferences, across all demographics at differing work and life stages?”

“Is there a specific women’s health offering, or financial wellness education support, family forming benefits, or inclusive leave policies that embrace worker expectations?

“A well-designed, communicated and implemented benefits and well-being programme will lead to tangible return on investment and value-add. The business case is compelling, with positive impacts on staff retention, productivity, employee engagement, customer satisfaction, lower sickness rates, faster return to work rates from illness and improved health and safety metrics.”

Having initially qualified as a chartered accountant with KPMG, he quickly realised this kind of work wasn’t for him and moved to Britain where he became a chartered physiotherapist, working in the NHS for 10 years.

“It was a fantastic learning experience, working in all the top teaching hospitals in London. This allowed me to see the large-scale impact of the socio-economic determinants of ill-health, and the many inequities in how healthcare is accessed and delivered among certain population cohorts.”

He also worked with the McLaren F1 team, in addition to the professional golf and rugby sectors: “It was an amazing opportunity to work side-by-side with such elite performers.”

More recently, he was a senior manager with Deloitte Ireland’s health and social care consulting team.

“My experiences to date give me great insight into the varied elements impacting on people’s health, wellbeing, and the right environmental factors to optimise them,” Tom explains.

Employers should periodically survey their employee population to stay abreast of needs, preferences, and attitudes toward benefit options, he says: “Establishing solid lines of communication, liaising with employee resource groups, and securing executive sponsorship will ensure that employees feel heard and respected.

“Ultimately, an employee who feels valued and supported is an employee who performs better at work and is happier in life.”

Looking at what the market holds for workers in 2024, one of the biggest things in the pipeline is the legislation around the right to request remote work.

“This could change the fortunes of those who’d prefer not to be based in the office,” he says.

The Work-Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2023, which was signed into law on April 4, has not yet taken effect.

“Once commenced, the act would give all employees the legal right to request remote working once certain conditions are met,” Tom says.

“Employees need to have worked at least six months of continuous service with their employer and must submit the request at least eight weeks before the date they intend to start the new work arrangement.”

It should be noted that employers have the right to end the remote working set-up if they find that it is having substantial negative effects on their business, he adds. Furthermore, employers would be required to provide reasonable grounds for refusing to facilitate an employee’s request in the first place.

“Once the legislation around the right to request remote work is implemented, there will likely be teething problems and challenges for employers and employees alike as they navigate the new rules to see what works best for both the business and its people.”

While it can be challenging for employers to facilitate working from home and hybrid working, it has been shown to increase engagement and productivity in an organisation.

“Ideally employers should approach this as an open conversation with employees, to strike a fair balance between business objectives and worker preferences.”

Ironically, while remote working has enabled many to create a better work-life balance and spend more time with family and on other personal pursuits, many of those working from home have slipped into ‘always on’ mode, finding it hard to switch off from work.

“This can lead to chronically elevated levels of cortical, a stress hormone, and disrupted sleep, which can lead to burnout or in more severe cases to chronic fatigue syndrome and metabolic diseases such as diabetes,” Tom says.

Recent research from Lockton People Solutions revealed the prevalence of employee burnout in Ireland, with seven in 10 workers reported to have suffered from the condition at some point in their career.

From January 2024, a more flexible state pension system comes into play which will allow workers to draw this down at any age between 66 and 70, meaning they can choose to keep working until 70 in return for a higher rate of state pension.

“Next year, we could see more workers looking to work beyond the traditional retirement age of 65 and 66 — and requesting that their employers facilitate them in this regard. This could present challenges for employers — under employment equality law, employers are not allowed to discriminate against employees as a result of their age, though there are some exceptions. It will be interesting to see how many workers will decide to work for longer in return for a higher rate of state pension.”

A survey commissioned by Lockton People Solutions earlier this year found that fewer than one in four workers would work for longer in order to be able to access a larger state pension. Nearly a third surveyed stated that the changes would only entice them to work longer if they were unable to afford to retire at the current state pension age of 66.

“An important consideration in deciding to work for longer is whether people’s health will allow them to work in a safe and effective manner,” Tom says. With increasing rates of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity and the impact of long-term sedentary lifestyles, many may not be in a position to do so.

“This also leads to the follow-on issue of being able to enjoy retirement when it comes and have sufficiently good health to do the things that matter most. Adopting better exercise, nutritional, and sleep habits now will pay dividends in years to come, and we should all be trying to lay the strongest foundations now to support our future selves up to and beyond retirement.”