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+

Equality, diversity and inclusionLatest NewsEconomics, government & businessHR practiceFamily-friendly working

Flexible working requests rejected by 69% of employers according to Labour Market Outlook survey

by Greg Pitcher 27 May 2008
by Greg Pitcher 27 May 2008

Flexible working arrangements are proving hard to secure despite new laws – with seven in 10 employers admitting they rarely accept requests to work from home.

The Labour Market Outlook survey of 735 UK employers, by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) with accounting firm KPMG, found that 69% ‘never or occasionally’ grant homeworking wishes.

The figures will come as a blow to the government as it presses ahead with plans to extend the right to request flexible working.

Currently, registered carers and parents of children up to the age of six have the legal right to ask for alternative working arrangements. From next April, this will be extended to those with children up to 16.

However, research has previously found that few people take up the existing right to request for fear it will damage their careers. Now it seems that many of those who do ask for flexible working will be turned down.

Gerwyn Davies, policy adviser at the CIPD, said: “The slow increase in the take-up of homeworking defies the evidence.

“While the cost of homeworking has gone down, the cost of commuting has shot up. While a substantial majority of employers report having recruitment difficulties, a substantial minority accept requests from their workers to work from home.

“Inflexible approaches to homeworking risk restricting the competitiveness and growth of UK organisations if employer and managerial mindsets do not change.”

Of those employers offering homeworking, only 8% in the Labour Market Outlook survey believed homeworkers were less productive than their office-bound colleagues, with 30% saying they were more productive, and the remaining 62% saying there was no difference.

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.

Dave Conder, head of HR at KPMG, said: “In KPMG’s experience, offering homeworking can be a great motivator for people.

“It can also put a company in a stronger position when competing to recruit and retain talented people. Flexible working can help improve the productivity, morale and wellbeing of employees.”

Greg Pitcher

previous post
E-learning expertise to transform Sheffield from steel industry image to creative and digital city
next post
Top 10 unusual mistakes candidates make at interviews

You may also like

Number of Neet women rises but figures fall...

23 May 2025

Sighing in frustration at colleague was discriminatory, judge...

23 May 2025

Unions ponder strike action after public sector pay...

23 May 2025

Fire and rehire: the relocation question

22 May 2025

Public sector workers gain pay rises of up...

22 May 2025

Six ways to kickstart conversations about team stress...

22 May 2025

UK net migration slashed by half in one...

22 May 2025

How neuroscience can unlock employee recognition

22 May 2025

UK universities fret over fall in international students

22 May 2025

HSBC employees warned of office attendance link to...

22 May 2025

  • 2025 Employee Communications Report PROMOTED | HR and leadership...Read more
  • The Majority of Employees Have Their Eyes on Their Next Move PROMOTED | A staggering 65%...Read more
  • Prioritising performance management: Strategies for success (webinar) WEBINAR | In today’s fast-paced...Read more
  • Self-Leadership: The Key to Successful Organisations PROMOTED | Eletive is helping businesses...Read more
  • Retaining Female Talent: Four Ways to Reduce Workplace Drop Out PROMOTED | International Women’s Day...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+