Flexible working refused over productivity fears says research
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Employees have had the right to ask for flexible working from day one of their employment, since April 2024. However, 28% have had their request denied because of employers’ fears about their productivity. This is according to recent research by Phoenix Group, a savings and retirement business.
Previously employees had to have 26 weeks’ worth of continuous service before making a flexible-working request. The change came in under the Employment Regulations (Flexible Working Act) 2023.
Some want flexibility in hours, some in location
For more than half of workers (62%) it was about time; they wanted flexibility over the hours worked. Others (43%) were concerned about location; they wanted employers to be more flexible about where they fulfilled their duties.
The government plans to boost flexible working rights, including the possibility of compressing hours into a four-day working week. Speaking to LBC in August 2024, higher education minister Baroness Jacqui Smith said “We think that flexible working is actually good for productivity”.
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