1. Flexible Working: Provision and Uptake
Genevieve Bach, CIPD
Presentation to ONS Labour Market Statistics User Group Conference

2. About the CIPD The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development
Over 130,000 members internationally
HR, learning and development, people management and consulting – across the private, public and voluntary sectors
Independent, not-for-profit
“Championing better work and working lives”

3. Topics for discussion Trends in flexible working
Provision and uptake of flexible working
Benefits and barriers
Focus on zero hours contracts

4. Flexible Working: Provision and Uptake
Published May 2012
Survey of over 1,000 employers and 2,000 employees
Flexible working provision; access and uptake; benefits of flexible working; barriers to introducing flexible working; flexible working trends

5. Flexible working trends
Provision of flexible working by employers has increased significantly over the past decade:

6. Flexible working trends
The extent to which uptake by employees has increased is less conclusive:

7. Provision of flexible working
The vast majority (96%) of employers offer flexible working

8. Provision of flexible working
Flexible working provision most commonly governed by a formal policy
Small employers more likely to have informal arrangements in place
Employers fear competing requests
Very few employers have had problems complying with right to request legislation
Majority of flexible working requests are agreed – 41% refuse no requests
Reasons for refusal include customer demand (39%), inability to reorganise work (30%) and impact on performance (16%)

9. Uptake of flexible working
Around three quarters of employees report their employer offers flexible working:

10. Uptake of flexible working
Employees more likely to work flexibly if they work for smaller organisations
Flexible working increases with seniority
Many not already working flexibly would like to
The vast majority (83%) have never had a flexible working request refused
Employers need to do more to communicate availability of flexible working

11. Barriers to flexible working
There are a number of barriers to employers improving their flexible working offering:

12. Barriers to flexible working
Large employers more likely to state line management attitudes and ability to manage flexible workers (44%)
Financial constraints are the biggest obstacle for smaller firms (37%)
Public sector employers more likely than private sector to cite financial constraints (39% compared to 25%)
For employees, the nature of their work is the biggest issue (34%) – attitude of other employees significant in larger orgs (21%)
Employees in smaller orgs report fewer barriers

13. Zero Hours Contracts
“Zero Hours Contracts: Myth and Reality” published in November 2013, surveying 1,000 employers and 2,000 employees
Case studies with employers
Legal guidance with Lewis Silkin LLP
Separate survey work among CIPD members

14. Extent and use of zero hours contracts
Just over 1 million UK workers employed on a zero hours contracts (3.1% of the UK workforce)
Just under a quarter (23%) of employers use zero hours contracts
Most prevalent in public (28%) and non-profit (48%) sectors
High proportion of employers in education (38%) and healthcare (29%)
Zero hours workers commonly employed as cleaners (27%), care/social workers (19%) and administrative workers (16%)

15. Employer use of zero hours contracts
Flexibility lies at the heart of employer decisions to use zero hours contracts:

16. The employee experience
Almost half (47%) of zero hours workers are satisfied – 27% are dissatisfied
80% are never penalised for not accepting work – 17% are penalised sometimes
Most (52%) do not want to work more hours
40% receive no notice of cancelled shifts
9% are never allowed to work for another employer
The majority of employers pay zero hour workers either the same (64%) or more (18%) than permanent employees

17. Exclusivity clauses
The vast majority (81%) say exclusivity clauses are never justified:
77% say Government should ban exclusivity clauses where there is no guarantee of work

18. Exclusivity clauses
A majority (60%) would like Govt to provide more focused guidance on the use of exclusivity clauses:
65% say an employer-led Code of Practice would encourage more transparency

19. g.bach@cipd.co.uk www.cipd.co.uk
Thank you