hUMAN RESOURCE mANAGEMENT

aSSIGNMENT

Adrian Watters
Topic 1

Since the late 1990s and in the 2000s there has been a drive by employees to seek flexible
working arrangements in employment. The UK government has introduced new legislation to
increase the scope of flexible working for all employees. Discuss the main issues and
advantages of flexible patterns of working. How do you expect employers should respond
towards the new requirements and what steps can be taken to manage their introduction?

Brief Overview
The purpose of this essay is to explore the concept of flexible working, by examining; why
flexible working has become more prevalent in businesses in the UK in recent years; the
benefits and detrimental effects that arise from the implementation of flexible working
arrangements; and how firms are able to successfully introduce flexible working. In
addressing this, the essay will be structured as follows: firstly, flexibility with regards to the
workplace will be explained. Second, the reasons for flexible working becoming more
predominant since the late 1990s will be explored. Third, the advantages and disadvantages
associated with flexible working will be discussed. Next, the impact the UK government
legislation has on the employment relationship will be investigated. Finally, the appropriate
method of practice to adopt while implementing flexible working will be deliberated. The
essay will conclude with a summary.

An introduction into Flexibility in workforce

A report from the British Chamber of Commerce (2007) notes that flexibility in the
workplace refers to any means which enables an employer or employee to alter their working
arrangements. Nevertheless, generally flexibility is a term which is difficult to describe due to
its various meanings and therefore there are a number of interpretations. A significant
interpretation is that of Atkinson (1984), he developed a model of a flexible firm which
acknowledges that flexibility takes a variety of forms. Indeed, Atkinson identified four types
of flexibility; that of functional, numerical, distancing strategies and financial. Functional
refers to a business altering the number of staff required with regard to matching its changing
workload, for example, seasonal workers. Numerical is concerned with a business ensuring
that the appropriate number of staff are employed to meet the variations in outputs.
Distancing strategies involves outsourcing jobs to external subcontractors. Financial
flexibility involves the difference in wages between workers, indeed wage levels are not
decided collectively and instead through pay and reward structure.

In recent years there has been a phenomenon in business in which firms are now actively
seeking to achieve the aforementioned types of flexibility. There are various types of flexible
working practices, including- but not limited to- part-time working; term-time working;
flexitime; compressed hours; career breaks; teleworking and working from home on a regular
basis. These practices are becoming increasingly commonplace in businesses according to a
survey issued by the British Chamber of Commerce in 2007. The BCC (2007) found that
seventy-two per cent of firms taking part in the survey offered part-time work, sixty-nine per
cent offered variable working hours and thirty-eight per cent provided the opportunity to
work from home.

Shift towards flexible working arrangements in late 1990s and

early 2000s
As mentioned above there has been an increasing drive in the UK by managers to attain a
flexible workplace. This drive towards more flexible working arrangement became prevalent
in the late 1990s/early 2000s due to a number of factors. The most significant factor was
that of the legislation introduced by the British Government in 2003. This legislation
involved the right for employees who care for young children to request flexible working.
This legislation has been extended in the last decade. As a result of the 2006 Work and
Families Act, from April 2007 these rights were now available to those who cared for an
adult. Moreover, in June 2014, the rights were further expanded, now almost all employees
who have worked at a firm for at least twenty-six weeks have the right to request for flexible
working arrangements regardless of whether they are a carer or not. Significantly, if the firm
decides to reject the request, they must provide a valid reason for such. The legislation
introduced by the government has led to a shift towards employee friendly approach and to
flexibility that allows more choice over where and when work can be done. Jones et al (2007)
note that employees achieve a more satisfactory work-life balance, and have greater control
as a result of the legislation.
However, the legislation is the not the only factor which has made firms strive for flexible
workplaces. Indeed, according to a report from the CIPD (2008) the key reasons provided by
firms for offering employees the option of working from home are to increase organisational
flexibility (68%), retain workforce/recruit further staff (55%), and to meet employee demand
(54%). A factor which led to firms being able to offer employees flexible working
arrangements since the last 1990s is due to the growing presence of technology in the
business world. Technology has facilitated the process, workers are able to work more
efficiently while working from home or rather on the go due to advances in audio and video
messaging, instant messaging, cloud services, and smartphones. Technology has enabled
employees to work away from the office in a sort of virtual office, not only can this help
the employee achieve a work-life balance, but it also enables the firm to deliver services on a
24/7 basis. Moreover, another factor which led to flexible working arrangements becoming
commonplace in business is the fact that there has been a significant increase of women
working in recent times compared to the past. This has led to a greater concentration by firms
to the importance of helping their employees find a balance between work and family.
Indeed, Maxwell (2005:179) notes that the increasing use of flexibility in the workplace is
associated with the relatively recent emergence of work-life balance. Firms recognise that
there an increasing number of employees with caring responsibilities, many are single parents
while as a result of the ageing population many will be caring for their parents. Moreover, as
a result of the increase in females working, often both parents are working and therefore
would benefit from flexible working in order to be home to take care of their children.
Vincola (1999:13) emphasises that achieving a work-life balance is important to all workers;
women and men. Moreover, since the late 1990s there has been an increasing competition
for talent in a tight labour market, for that reason firms have sought to introduce flexible
arrangements in order to keep their staff happy and motivated. The accountancy firm Ernst &
Young adopt a flexible working approach which is linked to its priority of making the firm
the best place to be. They are keen to create a diverse workforce, and offering a flexible
working policy allows a wide range of people to fit work into their lifestyle.
Advantages and disadvantages of flexible patterns of working
It is widely held that businesses offering flexible working arrangements have much to gain.
By permitting employees to work flexible hours and work out of the office, firms are
becoming more adaptable, their employees can work from anywhere and at any time, so
therefore it is thought the business is more responsive. Also as mentioned above, employees
today want control over their work-life balance, and firms enable them to have this to keep
them satisfied and driven. On the one hand, employees are benefitting but more importantly
firms can use flexible working arrangements as a tool to recruit and retain staff. As a
consequence of offering hours that best suit your employees, there is less stress for the
worker, reduced absence and a reduction in staff turnover. Scott (2007) conducted research on
the Britannia Building Society, which found that as a result of flexible working policy
absence dropped from 3.06% in 2004 to 2.35% in 2006 and turnover from 18.94% in 2004 to
12.6% in 2006. Kelliher and Anderson (2008) suggest that in cases where firms offer flexible
working, employees view this as enhancing job quality due to autonomy and work-life
balance. Also, as a result of listening to employees needs, the firm builds an engaged
workforce, they are grateful and therefore are more loyal and productive, and subsequently
the firm performs better financially. This is supported by a study from the Corporate Voices
for Working Families (2005) in which they note that the banking and financial services
company, JP Morgan Chase found that 95% of employees working in a setting where the
manager is sensitive to their work and personal life, feel motivated to exceed expectations, in
contrast eighty per cent of employees were motivated when the manager did not respond to
their concerns. In addition, flexible working arrangements can improve a businesss
relationship with their customers. The firm can provide a better customer service, which leads
to increased customer loyalty. Stredwick and Ellis (2005:5) acknowledge that by avoiding the
traditional working patterns, flexibility in the workplace can enable the firm to exploit the 24-
hour economy. They note that workers accomplish far more in the flexible mode, indeed
productivity levels are raised while the reputation of the business is enhanced.

Nevertheless, flexible working arrangements are associated with a number of negative issues.
Flexibility in the workplace has led to much debate, and many often associate the term
flexibility with that of insecurity, indeed it is frequently argued that the costs involved
with flexibility outweigh the benefits. A number of researchers consider the model damages
staff commitment, increases staff turnover and moreover, creates problems when trying to
hire talented people. It is doubtful that the flexible firm model is well-suited with best
practice approaches to HRM which aim to increase employees commitment. On the other
hand, Churchard (2012) challenges this understanding, she conducted a survey of over 11,000
employees and found that flexible working arrangements do not negatively impact job
satisfaction. She believed that although there was some discontent associated with temporary
work, in general flexible jobs are not inferior to full-time jobs. However, still doubt remains,
and questions will be asked regarding the appropriateness of flexibility in the workplace.
Heery and Salmon (2000) state that it can lead to detrimental long-term economic
consequences. They refer to the argument that firms may be reluctant to invest in training
which causes a shortage of skilled workers hence holding back economic development.
Additionally, concerns arise with regard to managers treating all employees equally. It is
thought that in some cases managers take advantage of peripheral workers by intensifying
their work to an unacceptable degree. It is important that the business treats all employees
fairly, for example where some are doing jobs that can be done from home but others are not.
Also, despite the advances in technology, employees not working in the office can feel distant
to the firm and it is crucial that the firm ensure they receive all communications and feel like
a part of the team. A survey conducted by the DELNI (2006) found that fourteen per cent of
employers identified areas in the business being left short staffed as a disadvantage to flexible
working practices. Nevertheless, in the same survey thirty-four per cent of employers said
there were no disadvantages. But it is important to recognise that firms encounter a number of
difficulties when implementing flexible working arrangements. Barriers to flexibility arise
when either the employer believes that the cost of implementation outweighs the benefits
while employees may deliberate whether asking for flexible work opportunities may have
negative consequences with regard to their position within the firm.

How legislation affects employment relationship?

The introduction of flexibility in the workplace has had a profound effect on the relationship
between the employer and the employee. Due to the legislation introduced by the UK
government, employees now have more power in the relationship than ever before, they are
legally free to request flexible hours and the firm is accountable by the law to provide a valid
reason if they are to reject this request. It is perhaps thought that the legislation has led to a
new stage in the relationship whereby both the employer and the employee trust each other,
and more information is shared. An example of this would be the South American
manufacturing company Semco owned by Ricardo Semler. He encourages employees to
choose their own hours to suit their lifestyles, Semcos philosophy is to challenge their
employees and give them freedom. When employers offer flexible work options they provide
employees with the opportunity to have greater control over where and when work gets done.
This, in turn, can lead to employees becoming more loyal, it is therefore likely that they work
harder to help their company prosper.

A study conducted by Guest (1998) found that workers on fixed-term contracts generally had
a positive psychological contract. He concluded that this was due to the fact they were
focused on the work they had to complete; moreover, it was found that they might also face
lower work demands than permanent staff, avoiding stress and taking less work home. On the
other hand, McInnis et al (2009) notes that employees on short-term contracts are prone to be
less commitment to the firm, and this could led to a reduction in productivity in the long-
term. It is therefore thought that firm have to distinguish which type of flexible firm they
want to be. They can take an attitude which is driven by cost reduction which produces short-
term results but has detrimental effects on motivation, innovation and commitment.
Alternatively they can focus on the long-term vision for the company, one which breeds
productivity and motivated, loyal, efficient & innovative employers. Michie and Sheehan-
Quinn (2001:p302) note that firms may be tempted by the wrong sort of flexibility.

Implementation
According to CIPD (2007) survey research, flexible working arrangements are widespread in
UK firms, however, introducing them effectively often poses challenges. These range from
problems with balancing customer and employee demands; treating all employees fairly;
ensuring employees are aware of the companys policy on flexible working; ensuring
homeworkers are not isolated; and providing the required training to support staff to do a
wider range of jobs. Moreover, it can be difficult to overcome line managers attitudes toward
flexible working and the present organisational culture. Nevertheless, it is generally held that
these problems can be overcome with good management, communication and importantly
effective implementation of the policy. Before introducing the policy to the business,
managers must speak to their employees or perhaps conduct surveys, to get a better
understanding of the needs of the business; they must ensure that there are clear roles and
responsibilities for employees and line managers. Moreover, as noted above it is vital that
managers implement flexible working to suit the needs for all parties involved, this is
demonstrated by the diagram below (CIPD):

A CIPD report notes that often problems that arise, can be solved by good communication.
Flexible working does not mean that employers allow their workers to do as they like, it is
important to work as a team; the manager must agree goals with the workers on what they
want to obtain from flexible working. Moreover, it is important for the employer to know the
personal lives of their employees in order to assess whether they are fixed, mobile or home
workers. In addition, it is important to plan for change, it should be well researched, and
insights should be made into how other businesss successfully made the transition.
Additionally, firms must make use of pilots and trial periods in order to identify possible
complications with flexible working, if any challenges are encountered then changes should
be made. Next, the firm must understand that the transition will be gradual, however, they
must keep employees involved in the process in order to maintain their trust. Finally, the
business must continuously review the policy, monitoring and evaluating the progress made.

Conclusion
In summary, in recent years flexibility in the workplace has been widespread. This is the
result of a combination of factors, but it is generally regarded that the implementation of
flexible working arrangements has been accelerated by the introduction of legislation in the
UK. Although flexible work options are prevalent in business, they do not come without
issues. Although much research has been conducted on how best to implement flexible
working arrangements, and how to deal with problems that arise, firms still encounter many
difficulties. Issues range from a lack of commitment, areas left short-staffed and discontent
amongst staff not working flexible hours. There are a number of barriers to introducing
flexible working arrangements but crucially the company must create harmony amongst all
levels. it is generally held that in most cases the benefits outweigh the negative issues, as long
as the firm appropriately incorporates the policy into its organisations culture. It is important
that when implementing flexibility in the workplace firms and employees both have
obligations. The needs of the business and the customer or client come first.
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