The purpose of the Personal and Work-Life Balance Survey is to collect information on how people in Ireland balance their work, their personal lives, and their caring commitments. Data that are collected include aspects such as well-being, flexible working arrangements, availability of paid and unpaid leave in employment and barriers to taking leave or availing of flexible working arrangements. Demographic details including date of birth, gender and citizenship are also collected.
The survey was carried out for the first time in Quarter 3 (July to September) 2021. The ‘Personal and Work Life Balance’ Survey is a voluntary survey carried out by the Central Statistics Office under Section 24 of the Statistics Act,1993.
The Personal and Work-Life Balance Survey was carried out as part of the General Household survey (GHS) in Quarter 3 2021. The GHS is a national survey that place takes place three or four times each year. The survey usually has a core of common demographic questions that are always asked (e.g., age, sex, education, etc.). Each survey also has a specific theme and all of the topics covered in the GHS so far are detailed in the table below.
| Year | Quarter | Topic |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Q3 & Q4 | Adult Education Survey |
| 2018 | Q1 | Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Cross Border Shopping |
| Q2 | Household Financial Consumption Survey (HFCS) | |
| Q3 | Household Financial Consumption Survey (HFCS) | |
| Q4 | Household Financial Consumption Survey (HFCS) | |
| 2019 | Q1 | Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Equality and Discrimination Survey |
| Q2 | European Health Interview Survey | |
| 2021 | Q3 | Personal and Work-Life Balance Survey |
You can find more information here: General Household Survey
The survey questionnaire for the Personal and Work-Life Balance Survey was developed in collaboration with the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (DCEDIY) and Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (DETE). The questionnaire developed was an online (CAWI mode) questionnaire. A copy of the final questionnaire is available here PWLB Questionnaire (PDF 301KB)
The survey data collection was multi-modal. The data collection process was divided into two stages. The first stage was conducted using a team of face-to-face interviewers using Computer Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI data collection mode). Interviewers were provided with a map of each of their interview areas as well as a listing of the address of each of the selected households. These interviewers also working on CSO surveys such as the Survey on Income and Living Conditions and the Labour Force Survey. The interviewers did a short face-to-face (CAPI) interview at the selected household. They collected limited demographic information (name, sex, and age of each person in the household) to allow for a person to be randomly selected form the household to complete the main survey. A copy of this short ‘quick count’ questionnaire is available here PWLB Quick Count (PDF 137KB)
The randomly selected person could complete the survey online (CAWI mode) or they could choose to do so by telephone interview (CATI mode). The interviewer collected email and telephone contact details for this randomly selected person. If the person chose to complete the survey online, they were sent an email with all details pertaining to the online survey. If they chose to do a telephone interview instead, the interviewer made an appointment with the randomly selected household member to conduct the telephone interview at a time that was suitable to them.
The Personal and Work-Life Balance Survey was carried out in the three months from July to September (Quarter 3) in 2021.
The questionnaire asked questions about job satisfaction, availability of flexible work practices, and various types of paid and unpaid leave at work, and barriers that get in the way of taking leave. The survey also looked at work-life balance and well-being, and the type of support networks available from family, friends, and community.
The Personal and Work-Life Balance Survey data is collected directly from private households. Institutional households (e.g., nursing homes, barracks, boarding schools, hotels etc.) are not covered by the survey.
One person from each household selected was randomly chosen to participate in the Personal and Work-Life Balance Survey. Information was collected directly from respondents and proxy responses from other members of the household were not accepted.
A household is defined as a single person or group of people who usually reside together in the same accommodation and who share the same catering arrangements. The household members are not necessarily related by blood or marriage.
A person is defined as a "Usual Resident" of a private household if he or she:
(i) Lives regularly at the dwelling in question, and
(ii) Shares the main living accommodation (i.e., kitchen, living room or bathroom) with the other members of the household.
The sample for the General Household Survey (GHS) is stratified using administrative county and the Pombal HP (Haase and Pratschke) Deprivation Index (quintile). A two-stage sample design is used. In the first stage 1,300 blocks are selected using Probability Proportional to Size (PPS) sampling. In the second stage households are selected using Simple Random Sampling (SRS). This ensures each household in the sample frame has an equal probability of selection.
The total selected sample size for the Personal and Work-Life Balance Survey was 9,600 households. However, only 9,146 were distributed in the field due to coverage issues as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The achieved sample size was 3,060 individuals.
The survey results were weighted to agree with population estimates broken down by age, sex and region and are also calibrated to nationality totals.
To provide national population results, the survey results were weighted to represent the entire population of persons 18 years and over. The survey results were weighted to agree with population estimates broken down by age group, sex and region and were also calibrated to nationality totals.
Household weights were calculated for all households in the initial sample. The design weights are computed as the inverse of the selection probability of the unit. The purpose of design weights is to eliminate the bias induced by unequal selection probabilities.
These design weights were then adjusted for non-response. This eliminated the bias introduced by discrepancies caused by non-response, particularly critical when the non-responding households are different from the responding ones in respect to some survey variables as this may create substantial bias in the estimates. Design weights are adjusted for non-response by dividing the design weights of each responding unit in the final/achieved sample by the (weighted) response probability of the corresponding group or strata.
To obtain the final household weights for the results, after the previous steps were carried out, the distribution of households by deprivation, NUTS3 region, sex and age was calibrated to the population of households in Quarter 3 2021 (as derived from the LFS Survey). The CALMAR2-macro, developed by INSEE, was used for this purpose.
All estimates based on sample surveys are subject to error, some of which is measurable. Where an estimate is statistically significantly different from another estimate it means that we can be 95% confident that differences between those two estimates are not due to sampling error.
Estimates for number of persons, where there are less than 30 persons in a cell, are too small to be considered reliable. These estimates are presented with an asterisk (*) in the relevant tables.
Where there are 30-49 persons in a cell, estimates are considered to have a wider margin of error and should be treated with caution. These cells are presented with parentheses [].
The sum of row or column percentages in the tables in this report may not add to 100.0% due to rounding. Percentage breakdowns exclude cases where the interviewee did not respond.
Up to and including Q1 2006 the annual population estimates were calculated using the defacto definition of population (i.e. all persons present in the State). Since Q2 2006 a new concept of usual residence has been used, i.e., all persons usually resident and present in the state plus absent persons who are usually resident in Ireland but are temporarily away from home and outside the State.
The Work-life Balance Directive, aims to improve families’ access to family leave and flexible work arrangements. The EU directive means that employees who are also in a caring role such as parents or carers will have the right 'to request' flexible work arrangements.
The Directive, which was passed by the European Parliament in April 2019, entered into force on 1 August 2019. Member States have three years from this date to adopt the laws, regulations, and administrative provisions necessary to comply with the Directive.
The Work-life Balance Directive introduces a set of legislative actions designed to modernise the existing EU legal and policy frameworks, with the aims of
Measures under the Directive include:
The Directive is also accompanied by a set of policy measures that are designed to support Member States in achieving the aims of better work-life balance and more equally distributed caring responsibilities. These include:
As a result of these measures, the directive aims to improve not only work-life balance but also contribute to an increase in women’s employment and families’ economic stability.
The Family Leave and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 2021 (the Act”) which entitles working parents to an additional three weeks of paid Parents Leave for each parent, and extends the period in which the leave can be taken to the first two years after the birth or adoptive placement of a child, has been signed into law by the President on 27th March. The changes brought about by the Act, came into effect from April 2021.
New provisions under the Family Leave and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2021 include:
The previous term time scheme only allowed for parents of school-going children up to 18 years of age to take a continuous block of 8, 10 or 13 weeks unpaid leave during the summer holidays so as to have time off with their children. The new scheme (revised in 2009) allow any civil servant an opportunity to take up to 3 continuous blocks of 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 or 13 weeks (to a maximum of 13 weeks) unpaid leave for any reason at any time during the year. See Circular 14/2009 - Shorter Working Year Scheme.
The Organisation of Working Time Act 1997 sets out the statutory rights for employees in respect of rest and breaks at work, maximum working time, and holidays. Awareness of entitlements, such as breaks at work, are covered by this publication. Breaks at work, or ‘rest periods’, form an important part of the Organisation of Working Time Act. The Act, in summary, states that an employee must receive a 15-minute break where they work more than four and a half hours. This increases to 30 minutes when they work more than six hours. The Act stipulates that these rest periods or breaks must not be taken at the end of the employee's working shift.
Employees are also entitled to get regular rest periods between working days. The definition of a rest period is any time that is not working time.
Workers are entitled to daily and weekly rest periods.
The Act specifies that an employee must receive at least 11 consecutive hours of rest in each period of 24 hours. For example, if you finish work at 8pm, you should not start work again until 7am the next day Awareness of entitlement to daily rest periods is covered in this publication.
Note that weekly rest periods or days off are not covered in this publication.
However, the Act stipulates that workers are entitled to: A weekly rest period of 24 consecutive hours in any 7 days, following a daily rest period (should be a Sunday, unless your contract says something different) Two 24-hour rest periods in a week if it follows a week, in which you did not get any 24-hour rest periods (should include a Sunday, unless your contract says something different). Some workers are not covered by the rules on breaks and rest periods, including An Garda Síochána, Defence Forces, certain categories of civil protection services, etc.) Also, there are special circumstances where you might not get the normal breaks or rest, but you have a right to compensatory rest (rest period taken later) instead.
The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) has a Code of Practice on Compensatory Rest Periods. This Code of Practice was prepared by Labour Relations Commission (LRC) has prepared this Code of Practice on Compensatory Rest in accordance with the provisions of the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997. The Code is designed to assist employers, employees and their representatives in observing the 1997 Act generally as regards compensatory rest. It gives guidance, in particular, on arrangements that may be put in place to comply with the compensatory rest provisions which apply where, because of exemptions or collective agreements or emergencies or unforeseeable circumstances, employees cannot avail themselves of the rest or break periods provided for the Act.
Under Section 9 of the Maternity Protection (Amendment) Act 2004 women in employment who are breastfeeding are entitled to take time off work each day in order to breastfeed and/or express milk. The provision applies to all women in employment who have given birth within the previous 6 months (26 weeks). Employers are not obliged to provide facilities in the workplace to facilitate breastfeeding if the provision of such facilities would give rise to considerable costs. At the choice of your employer, you may:
Breastfeed in the workplace or express breast milk, where facilities are provided in the workplace by the employer.
Have your working hours reduced (without loss of pay) to facilitate breastfeeding where facilities are not made available.
Women who are in employment and are breastfeeding are entitled to take 1 hour (with pay) off work each day as a breastfeeding break for up to 26 weeks after birth. This time may be taken as;
Breaks may be longer and more frequent if agreed between the woman and her employer. Part-time workers are also entitled to breastfeeding breaks, calculated on a pro-rata basis. After 26 weeks, there is currently no legal entitlement to breastfeeding breaks. Some workplaces have policies which support employees to continue to breastfeed.
The LFS sectoral employment figures are based on the EU NACE Rev. 2 (Nomenclature généraledes activités économiques dans les Communauté européenne) classification as defined in Council Regulation (EC) no 1893/2006. Fourteen NACE sub-categories are distinguished in Tables 2 and 3 of this release. From Q1 2009 NACE Rev. 2 has been adopted as the primary classification of industrial sectors for use in QNHS/LFS outputs. The NACE Rev. 1.1 classification had been in use from Q4 1997 to Q4 2008.
The CSO was obliged to report occupational coding data to Eurostat based on the new classification ISCO-08 from Q1 2011 onwards, because of changes to the EU regulations on the Quarterly Labour Force Survey, which is implemented in Ireland using the LFS, (formerly the QNHS). The CSO changed to UKSOC2010 as the primary classification for occupations, from which ISCO-08 is then derived.
The previously used classification for publication purposes in Ireland was UK SOC1990 and this cannot be directly compared to the new UK SOC2010 classification as all occupations have been reclassified accordingly. One particular example which highlighted this change was the reclassifying of farmers from the major occupation grouping of ‘Managers and administrators’ in SOC1990 to the major occupation grouping of ‘Skilled trades’ in SOC2010.
Results for occupations coded to the new SOC2010 classification have now been recoded for historical quarters back to Q1 2007 to provide a longer and consistent time series for users.
Further information regarding SOC 2010 is available on the Office for National Statistics Office webpage.
The Central Statistics Office wishes to thank the participating households for their co-operation in agreeing to take part in the survey and for facilitating the collection of the relevant data, despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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