Our new project with the Scottish government will tackle inequality and help employers provide the flexible roles employees want and need.
The Scottish government was serious about improving access to fair flexible working long before the Covid-19 pandemic hit. Recognising the role that flex can play in tackling inequality, and keen to help employers attract and keep talented people, they commissioned a Flexible Jobs Index for Scotland in 2017, and subsequently asked us to explore how to improve access to flexible work.
And now, as Scottish organisations look to recalibrate their workplaces in response to the pandemic, the government is stepping up their support – and has asked us to work with them to do so. The result is our Fair Flexible Work programme, which launches in Scotland this month.
It’s now widely agreed that flexible working benefits employers as well as employees. There’s a strong social case for it, as a way of opening up the jobs market for vulnerable groups, including parents, carers and those with mental and physical health issues. And the business case, including the pivotal role flex plays in attracting and retaining a diverse talent pool, and closing the gender pay gap, is no longer in doubt.
However, despite the benefits, there are still too few quality flexible jobs available; the 2017 Flexible Jobs Index for Scotland noted that just 11.9% of vacancies paying more than £20,000 FTE referenced part-time or flexible working. With 87% of the UK’s workforce either having or wanting flexibility in their next job, there’s a clear gap here, which employers who want to recruit the best people need to close.
Within the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, improving access to flexible working is all the more critical. On the plus side, the crisis has ripped up the rulebook on what ‘normal’ work looks like, and opened up opportunities for change. Leaders and managers have learned that they can trust their employees to work from home without damaging productivity. 40% of medium to large employers have said they will permanently increase remote working options, and 13 million people plan to ask for permanent flexible working arrangements going forward.
But as well as these opportunities, the pandemic has created some serious risks, for employers and for employees. The impact on the economy and the rise in unemployment are creating huge challenges; between May and July, Scotland’s unemployment rate rose to 4.6%, a higher rate than that of the UK as a whole. And while the increased acceptance of flexible working is great for those who can take advantage of it, it’s just not possible in some sectors.
Frontline roles, such as those of the NHS staff and retail employees who were so appreciated during the crisis, cannot easily be made flexible. So if we don’t take action, we will end up with a two-tier system in which only those who work in an office-based environment can access the benefits of flex. And the knock-on effect of this will be to increase workplace inequality, and deny flexibility to some of the people who need it most.
For all of these reasons, our new Fair Flexible Work programme is happening at the perfect time. A three-stage, eight-month programme, it will provide employers in Scotland with the knowledge, insights and tools they need to take advantage of the opportunities that flexible working delivers, and stops the risks becoming realities.
The first stage of the programme will take place in October, and will see us providing a series of webinars, guidance and toolkits for hundreds of employers across Scotland. Through these platforms, we will share our insights and experience on how to adapt to the crisis, and offer practical support with creating and delivering sustainable flexible roles.
We will also be working with a range of Scottish industry bodies, including the CIPD, the CBI , Scottish Enterprise and Glasgow Chamber of Commerce, to create a network of Fair Flexible Work Change Agents, so they can better support their employer members to embrace new ways of working. This will include training on the job design, culture change and team management skills that support flexible workers and create flexible workplaces.
And finally, in the spring of 2021, we will publish a new Flexible Jobs Index for Scotland. This will assess the proportion of flexibly advertised roles across different wage brackets and sectors, and will also use pre- and post-pandemic data to see whether Covid-19 has shifted the dial on flexible recruitment.
There’s no question that this is a large-scale programme of work, and it’s one which we will relish, not least because the outcome is so worthwhile. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape working practices across the whole of Scotland, to help employees have fair access to flexible work and to help organisations skill up and take action on flex that will make them employers of choice. We can’t wait to get started.
Published October 2020
