Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+

Latest News

Flexible working doubled in past six years

by dan thomas 5 Jul 2005
by dan thomas 5 Jul 2005

The number of workplaces offering staff the opportunity to work flexibly has almost doubled in the last six years, according to a major new survey from arbitration service Acas and the DTI.


 


The Workplace Employment Relations Survey shows that the proportion of employers offering flexible working has increased significantly, particularly those offering homeworking and term-time only working.


 


The figures are:


 


* homeworking  – up from 16 to 28%


* term-time only working – up from 14 to 28%


* flexi-time –  up from 19 to 26%


* job sharing – up from 31 to 41%


* switching from full-time to part-time working – up from 46 to 64%


 


Employees were also much more likely to be able to take leave to help them with their work-life balance with employers offering:


 


* parental leave  – up from 38 to 73%


* paid paternity leave  – up from 48  to 92%


* special paid leave in emergencies  – up from 24 to 31%


 


This increase in the availability of flexible working is reflected elsewhere in the survey, with managers showing more understanding of employees’ responsibilities outside work. In 1998 84 per cent of managers believed that it was up to an individual employee to balance their work and family responsibilities.  This has now reduced to around two-thirds (65 per cent).


 


Acas chair Rita Donaghy said: “Flexible working helps employees handle responsibilities such as childcare and caring for others while still carrying out their job effectively and employers benefit from keeping the services of good employees they might otherwise lose. 


 


“Recruiting and training new staff can be a costly exercise so anything which helps organisations keep their existing workers is good for business.”


Sign up to our weekly round-up of HR news and guidance

Receive the Personnel Today Direct e-newsletter every Wednesday

OptOut
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

 


Today’s publication details the first findings of the survey, produced jointly by the DTI, Acas, the Economic and Social Research Council and the Policy Studies Institute.

dan thomas

previous post
Call for UK talent to fill skills gaps in India
next post
Unions accept revised guarantees over job cuts at BBC

You may also like

Ministers loosen fire and rehire proposals in Employment...

10 Jul 2025

£188k tribunal award for director sacked after cardiac...

10 Jul 2025

It’s no secret – parity in the workplace...

10 Jul 2025

Firms’ salary secrecy means ‘they lose out on...

10 Jul 2025

Court of Appeal rules that Ryanair agency pilot...

9 Jul 2025

Teacher recruitment goals ‘lack coherent plan’

9 Jul 2025

Gregg Wallace sacked amid fresh misconduct allegations

9 Jul 2025

Doctors vote for return to strike action

8 Jul 2025

‘Frustrating’ that NHS Plan has overlooked OH, warns...

8 Jul 2025

Employment Rights Bill set to ban employer NDAs

8 Jul 2025

  • Empower and engage for the future: A revolution in talent development (webinar) WEBINAR | As organisations strive...Read more
  • Empowering working parents and productivity during the summer holidays SPONSORED | Businesses play a...Read more
  • AI is here. Your workforce should be ready. SPONSORED | From content creation...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2025

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2025 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+