ACS

An extra 4.5 million parents in Britain will gain the right to request flexible working, following the publication of the Government's independent review today.

Business Secretary John Hutton accepted the recommendations made by Imelda Walsh, the HR director of Sainsbury's, to extend the right to request flexible working to parents of children up to age 16. The Government will now consult on implementing the proposals.

John Hutton said: "It is important that employers retain control over deciding whether it suits their business allow people to work flexibly, but extending the right to request to parents of older children will allow families to take priority when decisions are made."

Imelda Walsh said:
"Support for more flexible and creative ways of working has made significant progress over the past 10 years, through both legislation and voluntary change. Continuing progress depends on both employers and employees believing that there is a fair balance.

ACS Chief Executive, James Lowman said: “Retailers provide flexible working opportunities to thousands of workers and we know that many choose retail employment to fit with other commitments in their lives. The key concern for us is the extension of yet more red tape onto employers that are already weighed down by a mountain of employment rules.

“We also believe that in some cases an employer cannot accommodate flexible working. Whilst we recognise that this change gives workers the right to request flexible hours, we will be working to ensure employers are able to say no to staff arrangements that don’t work for them.”

The review also found:
• Any change should be implemented at once, rather than a staged introduction, to avoid creating confusion for business and employees.
• Small businesses generally had a better record on accepting flexible working requests than larger ones.
• Business would benefit from increased information and guidance about dealing with flexible working requests.
• Flexible working should not be considered a 'women's issue', with 14 million employees currently working flexibly, and the latest figures showing men make up 45% of this figure. The increasing earning power of women also suggests that flexible working now, and in the future, is far from being an issue that affects only women.
• More work should be done to raise awareness of the right to request flexible working, both among employees and employers.
• Around six million employees currently have the right to request flexible working (3.6 million parents and 2.65 million carers), but over 14 million employees, including part-time workers, actually work flexibly.
• Flexible working arrangements include working from home, part-time work, compressed hours, flexi-time or other arrangements agreed with employers. These arrangements allow for people to grow their careers and remain in the workforce, and reflect the Government's commitment to helping people to make the most of their potential.
• 91% of workplaces who received requests in the last year approved them all and BERR's Third Work-Life Balance Survey of employers shows they largely have positive views about promoting work-life balance.