A recent ‘Work in Progress’ study of more than 2000 people working in the UK and Germany, highlights a generational split in employee preferences at work. The report, conducted by Taylor Wessing, suggests that employee preferences change as they get older with 48% of UK workers responding to say that the ability to work flexibly is important.
Employees with at least 26 weeks’ continuous service have the right to request flexible working but there is nothing to stop an employer extending the right to request flexibility to all staff. Employers should deal with all requests in a reasonable manner and always within three months of the request.
Here are our top tips for flexible working practice in the workplace:
- Have a policy on flexible working which covers the process employees should follow and how you will respond – ensure your managers are briefed on their responsibilities
- Promote a positive stance on flexible working to new and existing staff, it may help with recruitment, morale and retention of staff
- Communicate early on with your employee, arranging to meet to discuss their request
- If you are concerned about a detrimental impact on the business, encourage your employee to put forward ideas about how they see their proposal working and how potential issues could be handled. A trial period may help or a compromise could be reached if the employee is open to alternatives.
- Don’t refuse a request unless there is a legitimate business reason, there are 7 valid reasons which are grounds for declining a request including burden of additional costs, detrimental impact on performance or ability to meet demands, inability to recruit additional staff or reorganise work among existing staff, a lack of work during the period proposed or planned structural changes.
For help with creating a policy or managing a flexible working request, please do not hesitate to get in touch with one of the team on 01924 827869.
https://united-kingdom.taylorwessing.com/en/news/work-in-progress
