The CIPD is calling on organisations and government to make the right to request flexible working a day-one right.
Flexible working practices in the UK aren’t fair. Those in lower paid, more manual occupations often don't have access to the same flexible working opportunities as those in higher paid, managerial professions.
Government consultation
On Thursday 23 September, the Government published a consultation on making the right to request flexible working a day one right for all employees. The CIPD welcomed the consultation after campaigning for this on behalf of millions of employees since launching Flex from 1st in February 2021 and responded positively to the proposed change in legislation.
We surveyed over 1,000 senior HR/decision-makers in our response to the government and found 57% were in favour of a day-one right to request flexible working. Our response also covered our key recommendations, which we believe will create fairer, more inclusive flexible working practices. These recommendations included the shortening of employer response times to requests to one month and increasing employee flexible working requests to up to twice a year. We are currently awaiting the response to the consultation and will continue campaigning for this change.
What is Flex From 1st?
The CIPD’s Flex From 1st campaign aims to make access to flexible working arrangements more equal.
While COVID-19 has driven an increase in remote working, CIPD research has found that 46% of UK employees still do not have access to any form of flexible working in their current role, despite the many different
types of flexible working arrangements available. Those without access to flexible working are around twice as likely to be dissatisfied in their job, compared to those who do.
CIPD research has also clearly identified the benefits of flexible working arrangements for
employers and
employees, from improved wellbeing and work–life balance to greater productivity. Take a look at our
glossary of flexible working terms for more information on what each type of flexible working arrangement means.
The CIPD’s Flex From 1st campaign is encouraging employers to support flexible working for all and the right to request flexible working from day-one of employment. And we’re calling for a change to UK law to make flexible working requests a day-one right for all employees. At present, UK law states that employees can only request to work flexibly after 26 weeks of employment, with a limit of one request per 12-months. This needs to change.
