A flexible future for Britain?

With 8.7 million UK full time workers wanting to work flexibly in 2014, this research explores managerial attitudes towards flexible working. We interviewed 500 managers, all responsible for key hiring decisions, to find that while the majority have positive views about flexibility, few take positive action on it. And many managers recognise that there are barriers in their organisations to doing so.

Key findings:

Managers own views about flexible working

Among the managers who responded to our survey:

• 7 in 10 managers believe flexible workers are an underused talent pool
• 9 in 10 are open to discussing flexible working options during the recruitment process
• Nearly half believed that the roles they’d advertised in the past year could have been filled by a candidate on a flexible basis.

Perceived organisational barriers to flexible working

Despite managers being open to flexible workers, our research found both structural and cultural challenges that prevent flexible job design and discussions surrounding flexible working. Among the managers who responded to our survey:

• 75% had never had any training on how to handle flexible working enquiries
• Only 30% said that their organisation was open to offering flexible working in managerial-level job vacancies. This dropped to 14% at director level and 9% at leadership level.
• 25% said that flexible working does not tend to be offered for roles with key responsibilities.

Our recommendations

Timewise recommends a more transparent recruitment process to better reflect the possibilities of how a role can be worked. Additionally showcasing successful examples of flexible working will address the stigma.

Published in 2014

This study comprised a mix of quantitative and qualitative research amongst employers in the London area. It explored what might trigger employers to generate quality part-time vacancies (those with a salary of £20k+ FTE). We found that many employers are unaware or unconvinced of the benefits of recruiting part-time staff, or of the high volume of skilled candidates seeking flexible work. 

Key findings:

• The London part-time recruitment market is skewed strongly in favour of low-paid vacancies. 22% of all jobs are part-time and paid less than £20k FTE. In sharp contrast, only 3% of jobs are part-time and paid more than £20k FTE.

• Part-time working is primarily used as a retention tool. This restricts employment mobility for skilled candidates who need to work part-time. While they may be able to reduce their hours with their existing employers, they will have difficulty switching to new jobs.
  
  
• 16% of employers reported that they ‘sometimes or frequently’ fill £20k+ full time vacancies with part-time candidates. This suggests that the pool of part-time applicants is of high quality.
  
  
• Resistance to part-time recruitment is related to workplace culture, with most resistance amongst employers who have not previously recruited part-time staff at £20k+ FTE. Concerns reduce with experience – those who have recruited at this level cite many benefits and few disadvantages.

Recommendations

To stimulate the flexible recruitment market, the debate around part-time working needs to move away from regulation and towards the business benefits of flexibility. Employers need to be convinced that part-time candidates offer good skills and experience. They also need to see hard evidence that it can work for their business.

Published March 2012