How Flexible Working Can Create an Empowered Workforce
As the coronavirus pandemic has receded from daily life, the number of businesses trying to force workers back to the office has grown.
Back in June, a leaked email from Tesla showed Elon Musk expected all workers to fulfil a minimum of 40 hours a week in their office. Following the leak, Musk tweeted that those unhappy with the change should "pretend to work elsewhere".
But Musk isn’t the only business leader choosing to reject flexible working. According to figures from LinkedIn, a third of UK businesses are planning on reducing flexible working in 2023.
But, why?
The Power Of Flexible Working
The rejection of flexible working stems from the belief that collaboration and innovation can only be achieved by keeping everyone working in an office together.
There is evidence to suggest that flexible working can make employees feel isolated and unmotivated. However, if managed properly the benefits far outweigh the risks.
Research has shown that allowing employees more flexibility in their working lives can help businesses achieve:
Lower levels of employee absence
Higher rates of employee retention
Better productivity
A more diverse workforce
Increased employee engagement
Flexibility is also one of the key motivators for job seekers. A report from McKinsey & Company found that 40% of workers rank flexibility as their top motivator for staying in a role. This was only 1% behind salary.
Flexibility at Personnel Checks
Prior to the pandemic, Personnel Checks were already exploring how flexible working could benefit the business.
Coronavirus accelerated this process and we quickly realised that hybrid, flexible working arrangements were the future for us.
Following the success of hybrid work during the pandemic, we implemented a permanent hybrid working policy. On top of this, many of our team members have flexible working arrangements and all staff have the option to access this from day one.
You can check out some of their stories below:
Louise
Louise had worked for Personnel Checks for several years before deciding to leave to look after her newborn son. At the time, it didn’t make financial sense for her to continue working just to pay for nursery fees.
Last year, we approached Louise to see if she would be interested in re-joining us on a temporary basis to help with some projects. But following discussions with Jack, our MD, Louise joined us on a permanent but flexible basis.
“When I left about 3.5 years ago, I got a job in Tesco working evenings. I was out of the house 4 evenings a week which put pressure on me and Graeme (my husband).”
“I had to leave the house the minute Graeme walked through the door (no exaggeration either) to start a shift in Tesco (I worked in the freezers, it was horrific!!). I saw Graeme for about 5 minutes on the days I was working - he'd usually be asleep by the time I finished.”
“I can't express how much flexible working has changed my family life.”
“It was the easiest thing to arrange. I literally told Ryan (TaxiPlus General Manager) what hours I would like to do and he agreed with Jack - it was as simple as that.”
“I work school term time and non-term time hours. The days and hours can vary, but usually I work around 28 hours spread over 3 or 4 days.”
“I feel like we now have proper family time. I spend my evenings with my husband and children and i'm so grateful for that (and so is Graeme because he doesn't have to get 2 kids to bed on his own 4 nights a week!)”
Maria
Maria originally worked for our sister company Cummins Mellor Recruitment before going on maternity leave.
Upon returning to work, she worked part-time as an advisor in our sister business TaxiPlus as it enabled her flexibility around her family life.
Following the success of this arrangement, Maria expressed a desire for full-time flexible work to help her to manage childcare commitments. This was something we were more than happy to arrange.
Maria now works full-time in our tech team as the Technical Coordinator. Working normal hours where possible, but able to work flexibly to allow for family life.
“Even before the pandemic and the dreaded lockdown, where most employers started recognising the need for flexible working hours, TaxiPlus were always happy to amend my hours to factor in childcare/commuting. In return I was flexible with my days off to suit the business and cover holidays/sickness. It always felt like a two-way thing, where both sides benefitted, which I like. I’m happy to see this reflected elsewhere in the business now.”
“Both Personnel Checks and TaxiPlus have been so supportive of my need to work flexibly. With childcare, sick kids, appointments and the joys that come with parenthood, it’s such a relief to be able to work from home at a moment's notice or take a few hours out of the day to deal with something without feeling looked down on or an inconvenience.”
“My boss frequently says “Real life comes first” and that opinion seems to be reflected across the rest of the management team. My work gets done regardless, whether I'm in the office or sat on the sofa with a poorly child. They know this, and trust me to manage my time both inside and outside of work”
“There is no way I’d be able to commit to this job on a full time basis if it wasn’t for the flexibility and understanding of the business.”
JP
JP doesn’t have a formal flexible working arrangement in place. However, after becoming a father to triplets and starting the second year of his degree, flexibility has become an essential part of his working life.
As any parent will know, looking after children can lead to lots of unexpected situations.
“Balancing work, family and my degree studies can be hugely stressful but I’m incredibly fortunate to work for an employer who recognises that family comes first.”
“When you have three newborns, things can happen that mean I need to down tools and put my dad hat on at a moment's notice.
“My wife doesn’t drive, so if one of my girls is ill or has a hospital appointment, I’m the only person who can take them”
“Despite not having flexible hours written into my contract, there has never been an instance where I’ve felt pressured to choose between my work or my family."
“Our leadership team recognises that productivity and time spent at a desk aren’t necessarily correlated. As long as I’m delivering the work that’s required, that’s all that matters!”
Dreaming of flexibility?
If you’re struggling to get the flexibility you need with your current employer, maybe a career change is in order! With the potential for flexible working from day one, Personnel Checks could be the employer for you! You can check out our careers page here.
Even if there’s not an open role that suits you, drop us your CV, we’d love to hear from you!