The statement, titled Meeting Stakeholder Expectations in a Changing World of Work, sets out its plans to provide an “appropriate mix of remote, hybrid and in-person services”, as well as a new ICT strategy which include the development of self-service and automation.

Damien English, minister of state for business, employment and retail, said: “The WRC plays a vital role in Irish society and the economy in general and this role has been particularly important over the course of the pandemic. How and where people work has changed over the past 20 months and working from home has become the norm for many.

“Remote, blended and flexible working arrangements will form a much bigger part of life in the years ahead alongside our more traditional and established working practices. In any instance, the expectation of stakeholders and users is that the WRC can be depended upon to meet their needs for timely, consistent, robust and independent services.”

Dr David Begg, chairperson of the WRC’s board, said: “In an era of radical uncertainty, it is appropriate that the Statement of Strategy has a focus on resilience and continuity, continuous improvement and assisting adaptability in order to meet our own objective of providing a world class service to our stakeholders.”

Liam Kelly, the WRC’s director-general, added: “The pandemic not only has had a profound effect on people’s lives but the short to medium-term impact on the world of work is apparent and has already prompted policy and business responses.

“The WRC adjudication, mediation and conciliation work is predominantly provided remotely. The WRC is currently scheduling significantly more adjudication hearings, mainly remotely, than before the pandemic — currently about 30 per cent to 40 per cent more hearings are being scheduled than pre-pandemic.

“The strategy identifies the ability to deliver services efficiently and effectively very much depends on the WRC utilising to the full the opportunities provided by technological advances but, at the same time, the WRC will focus on the outcomes for parties and their service expectations are of primary concern.”