A quick summary:
In the words of Dolly Parton, 9 to 5 - What a way to make a living!
It’s funny how for many employees across the UK, it has crept up slowly to more of a 9-5:30 or 9-6… But they don’t have the same ring to them.
The point is, your contracted hours used to be the only option. You started when you were supposed to start and finished at the same time every day. But now, those days are long gone - at least for the many businesses out there offering flexible working options.
In fact, the days of prolonged isolation and working from home across 2020 and 2021 forced businesses to make arrangements for employees to work more flexibly. For many employees - this was great. And it seems today that many businesses still have flexible working policies in place.
But while we all know what flexible is, what does it really mean?
Do hybrid working options count as flexible working? Or is it only remote working options? Or is it about being able to move your normal working hours around? What about leaving the office early to pick the kids up and make up the hours in the evening?
Maybe to you flexible working means all of these things, but perhaps to some it only means one. The simple fact is, flexible working is so broad it’s almost impossible to know what it exactly means. So let’s get to the bottom of it.
The Evolution of Flexible Working
Flexible working has come a long way from the rigid office hours of the past. The shift started with the introduction of remote working technologies and has accelerated due to the pandemic.
In fact, according to research by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) in 2023, 65% of UK employers provide some kind of flexibility to their front-line workers.
And on April 6th 2024, we’ve seen changes introduced by the Flexible Working Bill that allow employees to ask for flexible working from day one of their employment.
So we’ve seen a great deal of change in the world of flexible working - even to the point of having changes to a bill to legally empower employees seeking flexible working arrangements. The problem? We still don’t even know what flexible working even is!
Different Interpretations of Flexible Working
Remote and Hybrid Working
For many, flexible working simply means remote or hybrid working. But even these are very different things.
In theory, remote working allows employees to work from anywhere, whether it’s their home, a café, or a beach in Bali. But some employers would draw the line somewhere. Can you effectively work from a plane?
A recent viral post from Tushar Agarwal on Linkedin showing an employee joining a work call remotely from a hair salon opened a can of worms on this conversation. Is that okay when working remotely? Or is it abusing the system? Considering many haircuts and colouring can take upwards of 3 hours, is it optimising your time as an employee?
Hybrid working combines remote and office work, giving employees the best of both worlds. More and more we’re seeing large organisations shift away from remote working to hybrid working models.
In January 2024, Nationwide reversed its ‘work from anywhere’ policy and Deutsche Bank put more heavy restrictions on how many days managers and junior employees needed to work from the office. In fact, UK retailer Boots wants to reverse its hybrid working model completely, asking all employees to work from the office 5 days a week from September.
Yet despite that, Boots job descriptions still say that they “have a great range of benefits in addition to the above that offer flexibility to suit you.”
It seems that the word “flexibility” has become a buzzword that is expected by employers and job candidates alike on job descriptions to the point where we run the risk of it being devoid of meaning.
Flexi-time - AKA the core hours model
Another interpretation of flexible working is flexi-time (or the core hours model). In this approach, employees have specific hours they must be working, such as 10am to 4pm, but can choose when to start and end their workday around these core hours.
As long as employees work the hours they need to during the week, what’s the problem? It’s a model that aims to offer a balance between structure and flexibility. Software company Atlassian uses flexi-time to ensure team collaboration while providing employees with flexibility.
In fact, the number of companies offering employees flexi-time has increased by over 36% since 2013 according to data by Statista.
So I thought I’d dive a little deeper. Hopping over to job site Indeed, I searched for jobs offering remote working, hybrid working, and flexi-time in the UK and listed how many results showed up. Here’s what I found:
- Remote working - 9,654
- Hybrid working - 50,836
- Flexi-time - 20,253
Of course, we should take these results with a grain of salt - we’re relying on Indeed’s search after all here. But it does - at least at the time of searching - look as if flexi-time is more commonly offered than fully remote working.
It certainly wasn’t the results I was expecting - but it looks as if flexi-time is definitely on the rise and could be our true definition of “flexible working”.
Tweakable Hours
Some businesses have instead decided to offer tweakable hours, allowing employees to start and finish their day an hour earlier or later. I’d be interested to know how many businesses consider this as flexi-time, but looking through twenty thousand job descriptions isn’t my idea of fun.
While this is a step towards flexibility, it’s still relatively rigid. Companies like Google have experimented with this model, providing a small degree of flexibility to accommodate different lifestyles and preferences.
But the real question is, how much does an hour truly affect the flexibility of a role? Really, it’s a variation of the flexi-time model - just more restricted. Which makes it odd. Can it truly be considered flexible working if it’s a more restricted version of something more flexible?
Challenges and Considerations
Management and Trust Issues
No matter what you’d consider as “flexible working”, managing a flexible workforce requires a high level of trust and effective communication. Leaders might prefer to focus on outcomes rather than hours worked, but it’s a shift that feels unfair and taboo to even consider.
Technology and Infrastructure
Technology also plays a crucial role in enabling flexible working. If employees are working remotely, then reliable internet, collaborative tools like Zoom and Slack, and secure access to company systems are essential. Luckily following the pandemic, most businesses seem to have the infrastructure already set up and working smoothly.
Policy and Communication
Clear policies and open communication are vital. Employees need to understand the boundaries and expectations of flexible working arrangements. Regular check-ins and feedback loops help maintain alignment and address any issues promptly. But a flexible working policy needs to have clear boundaries and guidelines.
Conclusion
I’m a believer in flexible working being more than just a trendy perk. It’s a way of working that we’ll likely see more and more over the next decade. And while this sounds positive, it’s going to bring its own challenges.
The word ‘flexible’ has become a buzzword plastered over every job description because it’s what employees want to hear. But consider if your working arrangements are flexible.
Remote and hybrid working, flexi-time, a 4 day week, tweakable hours, early finish on a Friday - all of these are synonymous with flexible working. That means you’re forced to be more explicit in what you mean by the flexible working benefits you offer.
