Significant new employment rights and obligations have been introduced by the Work Life Balance and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2023 ("Work Life Balance Act"). A key aim of the Work Life Balance Act is to contribute to the achievement of gender equality by promoting the participation of women in work and the equal sharing of caring responsibilities between genders.

Although some of the Work Life Balance Act's provisions commenced on 3 July 2023, key provisions, such as a right to take domestic violence leave and the right to request remote and flexible working, are expected to commence this autumn when specific guidance for employers and employees along with a Workplace Relations Commission ("WRC") Code of Practice ("COP") will also be published.

Since the pandemic, many employers' remote and flexible working arrangements have evolved and matured. The Work Life Balance Act provides greater clarity and structure on agile working practices.

New rights for employees

The core elements of the Work Life Balance Act are:

• a right for all employees to request remote working arrangements;
• a right for parents and those with caring responsibilities to request flexible working arrangements;
• a right to take up to five days unpaid leave per year for medical care purposes;
• a right to take up to five days paid leave per year for victims of domestic violence;
• a significant extension to the period in which new mothers are entitled to paid time off work to breastfeed (from six months to...

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