Minister calls for flexible working to be extended to all employees

All 29 million workers should have a right that is at present granted only to parents with young families, according to the minister in charge of family policy.

Beverley Hughes, the Minister for Children, calls for changes to reflect the growing demand of people to be able to work flexibly.

I would read this article with care though. There is a statement which says that small businesses find it hardest to accommodate flexible working. I don’t know where the journalist got that from, but a report from the Joseph Rowntree research institute at Cambridge University found that small businesses in the Cambridge area actually found that they were able to accommodate flexible working relatively easily.

I also think that the figures quoted of "80% of boss have agreed" (to grant flexible working requests) are perhaps a little optimistic. I question where these figures come from.

I truly hope that this proposed extension will gradually become the norm for all workers.

Excerpt:

Although Ms Hughes is the first minister to call publicly for a radical extension of part-time work, her views are widely supported across the Government. But business chiefs have said that thousands of companies would simply not be able to cope with a universal right to ask for part-time work.

The Government introduced the “right to request” flexible work in 2003 for parents with children under six. Since then, 22 per cent of eligible employees have requested it and 80 per cent of bosses have agreed.

This April the right will be extended to the 2.8 million people who care for elderly or sick relatives.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article1368880.ece

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