A campaign group has called on the government to ensure tax arrangements around job sharing do not make the arrangement prohibitive.
The group, known as Empower, released a report this week suggesting a number of changes that would make job sharing more appealing to more employers and employees.
According to official figures, 101,000 UK employees had job sharing contracts in 2022, down from 124,000 in 2021.
Empower points out that tax rules mean that companies that offer this option pay an average of 23% additional tax on that role compared to having a solo person.
Wera Hobhouse, a Liberal Democrat MP, last week tabled an early day motion proposing that the government reduced cost barriers to job sharing.
Empower argues that opening up more job sharing opportunities would open up more senior roles to women, as many are more likely to accept junior roles when returning to the workplace after maternity leave, or reduce working hours.
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Job sharing would also help retain women and promote them into more senior roles, as well as increase diversity in senior leadership. Job sharers have been shown to be 30% more productive than their full-time counterparts, according to research from The Job Share Project.
The lobby group recommends that employers and job search sites clearly advertise positions that are applicable for job share, and should not disfavour applicants who want this arrangement.
It also recommends that job search sites introduce an opt-out button where job sharing is not applicable to a role, in a bid to normalise job sharing and increase the number of roles open to sharing.
In terms of government action, Empower wants the Treasury to introduce a reduction on employer National Insurance contributions where two employees are on a job share to incentivise businesses to do this.
It also suggests the government expands the Civil Service’s internal job share finder – which has received much praise from flexible working campaigners – across the rest of the public sector.
Former home secretary Jacqui Smith said that while progress had been made to reduce workplace gender inequalities, women were still disadvantaged from progressing in the workplace.
“Job sharing brings benefits for both employees and the employer. A small tax incentive would create more opportunities for more people – most often women – with caring or other responsibilities to operate in senior roles,” she said.
“In turn that would increase organisational productivity, boost morale and create senior leadership teams which are more representative of the population as a whole.”
Wera Hobhouse MP added: “Flexi-working formats pose a real opportunity for business to reduce gender inequalities. By facilitating a healthy work-life balance and creating more diverse senior leadership teams, job sharing can help close the gender pay gap.
“[This report]’ highlights the need for policy to address the cost barriers faced by companies that offer job-sharing opportunities to employees. Government must support industry by removing these barriers.
“A reduction in employers’ national insurance contributions for employees in job shares is an innovative idea that could make a real difference.”
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In 2021, Empower supported a group of MPs to send an open letter to the government to improve the tax regime for job sharing arrangements.
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