Flexible Hours
Hours of work – The right to apply for flexible working to care for a child or adult.
1. Who may apply?
(i) To care for a child:
An employee who:
a. has been continuously employed for at least 26 weeks
b. is the mother, father, adopter, guardian, special guardian or foster parent of a child under the age of 16 years or a disabled child under the age of 18 years OR is married to or the partner of any such person
c. has or expects to have responsibility for the upbringing of the child
(ii) To care for an adult:
An employee who:
a. has been continuously employed for at least 26 weeks
b. is or expects to be caring for a husband, wife, partner, civil partner, relative or person living at the same address who is in need of care.
2. Form of the application
The employee’s application must be in writing, state whether any previous application has been made (and if so when) and be dated. It should also:
a. state that it is such an application
b. specify the change applied for and the date on which it is proposed the chance should become effective
c. explain what effect, if any, the employee thinks making the change applied for would have on his employer and how, in his opinion, any such effect might be dealt with, and
d. explain how the employee meets the conditions as to the relationship to the child or adult as mentioned above.(Note that DTI Guidelines do not make this an essential requirement.)
3. How the employer must deal with the application
If the employer agrees to the application he must give notice to the employee within 28 days stating:
a. the contract variation agreed to and
b. the date from which the variation is to take effect.
It might be prudent to impose a trial period with an agreed review date to ensure the change works for all concerned.
The employer can only refuse the application if one or more of the following grounds applies
a. the burden of additional costs
b. detrimental effect on ability to meet customer demand
c. inability to re-organise work among existing staff
d. inability to recruit additional staff
e. detrimental impact on quality
f. detrimental impact on performance
g. insufficiency of work during the periods the employee proposes to work
h. planned structural changes
If the employee’s request cannot be disposed of by prompt agreement then the employer must arrange a meeting within 28 days of the receipt of the application so that it can be discussed with the employee. At this meeting the employee can be accompanied by a union official or fellow worker of his or her choice.
The employer must give notice to the employee of the decision on the application within 14 days after the date of the meeting. The notice must be in writing and if the application is agreed, it must specify the contract variation agreed to and the date on which it is to take effect.
If the application is not agreed then the employer’s notice must specify the grounds of refusal considered to apply from the above list and sufficient explanation as to why those grounds are relevant to the application. The appeal procedure must then be set out and the notice dated.
The appeal procedure includes the type of notice to be given by the employee, the relevant time limits, the right to be accompanied and the arrangements for the hearing. These and other matters such as extensions to time limits, withdrawal of application by the employee or ultimate complaint to an Employment Tribunal should be discussed with a P.B.S Consultant.
Note that the employee can make a complaint to an Employment Tribunal if the employer is in breach of certain procedures, i.e. fails to hold a meeting or to notify the employee in writing of decisions relating to the application.
All PBS Information Sheets are designed to provide the detail you need to implement best business and employment practices. They are not a detailed commentary on the current law and where advice is needed in a specific case you should contact PBS for expert consultation.
flexible hrs