Rights to more secure and flexible working are being introduced, but how will employers implement these changes and what will this mean for workers? We're finding out.
Timewise has undertaken new research, in partnership with abrdn Financial Fairness Trust, on frontline employees’ autonomy and control over the hours they work, and when and where they work.
The new Employment Rights Bill, making its way through parliament in 2024 and 2025, proposes new rights around flexible working for employees, among many other changes. It will build on changes brought in earlier in 2024 which made it possible for employees to make a request for flexible working on day one of their employment. The new Bill will put more onus on the employer to accept any ‘reasonable’ request. The rules around zero hours contracts will also change: they will not be banned completely, but those on both zero and low hours contracts will gain the right to have guaranteed hours if they work regular hours over a reference period, likely to be 12 weeks. Workers will also be entitled to reasonable notice of shifts (including details of how many hours are to be worked and when), changes to shifts and cancellation of shifts, and to payment if shifts are cancelled, moved or shortened.
Our research with workers, employers and industry bodies shows that when implemented well, rights to secure and flexible work don’t only benefit employees, they also help employers with challenges like retention, absenteeism and attracting and maintaining a diverse and resilient workforce. Our interim report explores the key challenges for employers, and highlights how creative approaches to flexibility can be implemented in a wide range of sectors.
Our coalition of industry leaders and worker panels in health and care, retail, construction and transport and logistics are recommending ambitious new workplace practices and culture change around flexible work. Despite these sectors being some of the most challenging to implement flexible working within, the employers, workers and industry representatives involved in our project are optimistic and enthusiastic about the potential of extending flexible work to more employees.
They recommend:
Collectively, nationally, I think we need to have legislation that allows these things to happen because not every organisation is going to be committed to flexible working. The legislation means that people have rights but even so organisations will still be able to drag their feet around it. Legislation is good because obviously it holds people the account, but it doesn’t necessarily change totally behaviours.
Construction company
We very much recognise that [offering flexible working] is the way forward to attract people to our organisation because other organisations out there are competing for people … Retention is very much a key driver for us as well. So, I would say a mixture, it’s the right thing to do for the individuals, our colleagues, it supports their health and wellbeing where we can accommodate it, which is good for our patient care.
HR manager, NHS trust
It tends to be based on business need rather than personal circumstances, there is a lot of part time workers, but our workers are used to working flexibly to meet the demands of the business as well as their needs. We need care workers that can meet the demand, the set amount of support that is needed at certain times.
Social care
We’re still looking at how it impacts us, but we’d like to think that because we don’t do zero hour contracts, so colleagues know what their working patterns are, that we’re not going to be overly affected by that change in legislation.
Retailer
The first in the series took place in November 2024, where we heard insights from our panel on the government’s Employment Rights Bill and prospects for improving work for shift-based and site-based workers. Watch below for great contributions from Professor Alan Bogg, Professor of Labour Law at University of Bristol, and Barrister, Old Square Chambers, Nye Cominetti, Principal Economist, Resolution Foundation, Alice Arkwright, Policy Officer, Equality and Strategy Department, TUC, and Amy Butterworth, Consultancy Director and Clare McNeil, Policy and Innovation Director, Timewise.
Our upcoming webinars in this series will share best practice at the sector and employer level, across a range of frontline sectors.
Join trailblazing employers and leading sector voices to learn how to implement good practice, and how to realise the benefits for your organisation and employees. We will showcase employers who have developed innovative ways to improve access to flexible, secure work, and will explore what’s next for those who are leading the way.
Register for Part One: 23 January 2025, 9.00-10.00am
This webinar will explore how we can ensure flexibility is two-way and genuinely brings benefits for both the employees and the organisation. We will hear from employers in social care and in retail about their practices and will look at how it is possible to balance the need for secure, stable jobs with peaks and troughs of demand, and large numbers of part-time workers.
Register for Part Two: 5 February, 9.00-10.00am
The complex services and skills required within sectors such as transport, health and construction can mean employers need to think creatively to provide flexibility and to give workers input into and predictability over their working patterns. Join us for our final webinar in this series to explore what is possible, and how organisations are taking team-based and proactive approaches to improve worker experience, wellbeing and productivity.
Check out Timewise’s existing research and case studies showcasing how employers can support greater input, stability and advance notice for staff in shift-based sectors.
This research is supported by abrdn Financial Fairness Trust
abrdn Financial Fairness Trust funds research, policy work and campaigning activities to tackle financial problems and improve living standards for people on low-to-middle incomes in the UK.
