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Flexible working refers to an adaptation or modification to an employee\u2019s work schedule to suit their needs. For example: job sharing; a change in hours; staggered start and finish times; phased retirement; or a change in working location, such as working from home.<\/p>\n
Although the definition of flexible working is geared towards benefitting an employee, a business can also see many benefits when adopting more flexible practices.<\/p>\n
There are many reasons why an employee might submit a flexible working request as it will come down to their specific needs.<\/p>\n
For example, flexible work requests often come from employees caring for dependants. They need to balance caring or childcare responsibilities with work.<\/p>\n
Employees are legally permitted unpaid time off to deal with an emergency involving a dependant. But a request for flexible working is different and may facilitate their needs better in the long term.<\/p>\n
Working parents and carers are not the only ones who may need flexible working however, and every request will need to be treated fairly to avoid claims of discrimination.
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You are not obliged to permit all requests for flexible working, but you are obliged to consider them. If you choose to decline a request due to business incompatibility, you will need to justify this.<\/p>\n
If an employee feels their request has been declined unfairly, they may raise a claim against you.<\/p>\n
Businesses that can permit flexible working may see the following benefits:<\/p>\n
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