Research claims two in five workers not offered flexible working

According to research conducted by conference call provider PowWowNow and Censuswide, 40 per cent of UK employees are still not offered flexible working as part of their company’s policies.

The survey claims 67 per cent of those employees wish flexible working was available to them in their current role. The number of employees not offered flexible working has gone up by a third from last year when 33 per cent of UK employees were not offered flexible working, suggesting that the UK has gone backwards on offering the initiative despite its popularity amongst workers.

[perfectpullquote align=”right” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]”It will take time for offices to phase back to normality; the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic has had devastating consequences for lives and the economy”[/perfectpullquote]

Since coronavirus, many office workers have been able to work from home and have proven that they are just as productive remotely as they are in the office. New data claims that 62 per cent of decision makers said productivity levels have increased at their company since lockdown and with investments in technology, 72 per cent of decision makers believe their business can now adequately support their staff when working remotely. 70 per cent have also said they would increase the amount of flexibility their workforce has when we return to the office. These statistics suggest that productivity is not negatively impacted by flexible working— in fact, it has been a positive.

This year, the ongoing coronavirus pandemic has meant unprecedented numbers of employees have worked from home during the government-imposed lockdown. With many employees admitting they wish they were offered more flexible working, the pandemic has provided more workers with the confidence they need to request it. Flexible working allows more flexibility over the hours staff work to improve work-life balance and especially support those with parenting or caring responsibilities.

Andrew Johnson, Managing Director of PowWowNow, said: “It is evident that flexible working does not negatively impact the productivity of a workforce, and actually not having to spend time commuting can improve the productivity of a team. Throughout the pandemic businesses have invested heavily in technology to enable employees to work flexibly, and now they must continue to offer their workforce the chance to choose how they work; whether that’s from the office, remotely or flexibly, in order to reflect the growing demand for flexibility and to reap the benefits of their workforce living a well-balanced home and work life.”