Privacy concerns proliferate over remote working in Ireland

The Connected Hubs platform, which is a Government initiative that allows users to book desks in remote working hubs, currently has 312 centres and over 11,000 registered users.

The average occupancy rate across the network is running at 75% but does not include remote workers who may have made other arrangements. 

Barry Crushell, principal solicitor at Crushell & Co, said legal concerns around remote working are becoming "a big issue” as more people work outside the office. Mr Crushell said:  

The important thing to remember for an employer is that when their employee is working for them, whether they are in the office, on a client site, or in a cafe, the employer still bears the same level of responsibility, and liability, if there is any data breaches or any confidentiality breaches.

Employers also have a legal responsibility to protect the personal data of their employees and their customers, which means the employer may be held liable for any damages. 

But offering an approved remote working hub could be a good way to minimise the risks of data breaches, he said.  

It may be tempting for staff to ignore data breaches, but a major way to reduce employer liability from remote workplaces is to provide policies and procedures to  identify and report data breaches, according to the employment law expert. 

Regular reviews 

Employers should regularly review procedures to ensure poor practices don’t creep in, and policies shouldn't sit "gathering dust" and instead be put up for regular review by all employers, Mr Crushell said. 

Human resources consultancy HR Buddy's chief executive Damien McCarthy said his own company and some of his clients operate out of remote working hubs. 

He said tailoring workplace policies for shared remote hubs is a “very simple” exercise, and measures are often the same regardless of where employees are working.

One very clear line in a policy for a co-working space could be that any sensitive conversations, or perhaps any conversations whatsoever, would take place in a private meeting room… or that when a remote meeting is taking place a headset and earphones are always worn, so the threat of a two-way conversation being overheard is taken away straight away.

Irish Management Institute associate faculty member Jennifer Dowling specialises in remote and flexible work as a director of Train Remote, and also runs her own co-working hub in Killarney. 

Ms Dowling said that remote working hubs are not all standard, and that employers should speak to the hub operator to ensure  security concerns are addressed.

“I think it’s kind of a buyer beware, to know what you need the hub for," she said. 

"If you’re looking to base your employee in a hub and there is confidentiality or security issues, then you need to speak with the hub and get your employee set up accordingly.”  

Ms Dowling said employees in some hubs may need to use their own Wifi networks.

Some hubs, she said, are popping up in community centres and GAA halls, which she said is great to promote business activity in the small towns and villages, but may be potentially not well equipped to deal with some requests. 

Ms Dowling emphasised that there is a “lot of talk" about security risks with remote working, but that a greater risk to remote employees could be from being isolated at work.  

Remote working hubs could be a way to address such risks, she said. 

“It’s worth thinking about space as a resource, and how it facilitates the job being done well," Ms Dowling said, noting that building connections and being stimulated by working with other people is a very important goal for any workplace.