Legislation that will give employees better access to flexible working has now completed its way through parliament and has been granted Royal Assent.
The Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Act 2023 enables employees to make two flexible working requests in any 12-month period (rather than one), and requires employers to respond to requests within two months of receiving them. It passed through its third reading in parliament on Friday (14 July).
Employees will also no longer have to explain the impact that granting the request would have on their role and how that might be dealt with. Managers will not be able to refuse a request until they have consulted with the staff member.
Although a day-one right to request flexible working had been mooted, this is not explicitly stated in the bill. Employees will still need 26 weeks’ service before they can make a flexible working request.
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The government has said it will deal with the day-one request right through separate, secondary legislation, but this is yet to be tabled.
Research from the CIPD in May found that 14% of employers would enable a right to request flexible working from the first day of employment before legislation took effect.
Its survey also revealed that around 4 million workers had changed careers due to a lack of flexibility in their job.
The bill was sponsored by Labour MP Yasmin Qureshi, who argued that “invisible restrictions” are holding many employees back from their career potential.
Qureshi also quoted figures from charity Working Families showing that three in 10 UK parents are in jobs below their skill levels because they cannot secure flexible working arrangements.
Last week conciliation service Acas updated its statutory code of practice on handling flexible working requests to reflect the changes. It is now seeking employers’ views on these updates in a consultation due to end in early September.
Susan Clews, Acas chief executive, said: “There’s been a global shift and changed attitudes towards flexible working. It has allowed more people to better balance their working lives and employers have also benefitted from being an attractive place to work for staff that value flexibility.”
Jane van Zyl, chief executive of the charity Working Families, added: “There are millions of parents and carers in the UK who rely on flexible working to enter and stay in employment. It is no longer a perk; for many, it is a necessity. But flexible working isn’t just good for people–it’s also good for business, and good for the economy.
“When employers implement flexible working effectively, they reap the benefits: from increased talent attraction and retention to better performance. We’re delighted to re-launch our Happy to Talk Flexible Working logo and strapline to support employers on their journey to creating high-performing, flexible workplaces.”
However, Caroline Philipps, senior associate at law firm Fladgate, said the legislation would have “relatively little impact in practice”, particularly because no minimum standard of consultation has been specified.
She said: “The changes do place more of the burden of dealing with a flexible working request on the employer, who is going to have to evidence more engagement and make decisions quicker. An employer’s scope for refusing requests hasn’t otherwise changed.
“However, although the law may not be fighting in the employees’ corner as much as they would like, there remains a strong demand for flexible working in a market where attracting and retaining talent is a challenge. Employers are therefore advised to consider the wider commercial picture when dealing with flexible working, which is fast becoming the norm in our post-pandemic world.
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“If employees can’t secure the flexible working arrangements they want in their current role, the chances are they may find them with a competitor and move on. This, combined with the government’s proposal to reduce the scope of non-compete clauses in employment contracts, is likely to mean that many employers will consider making flexible working the default a sound strategic decision.”
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