Flexible and Hybrid Working are factors that no business can ignore.
While flexible working has always been around – part-time hours, term-time work, etc – it has gained popularity since the 2020 pandemic. As a result there have been changes in legislation in this area.
Employees are now seeking more flexibility in their workplace and companies who don’t offer such arrangements can have trouble attracting and retaining staff. But don’t think one policy will cover both – Flexible Working and Hybrid Working are separate, and each requires its own policy.
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What is the difference between flexible and hybrid working?
Flexible Working covers several working arrangements, including part-time hours, amended start and finish times, school hours working days and condensed hours. Your employees can request Flexible Working from day one of working for you.
Hybrid Working is a type of Flexible Working, but is about location, specifically the location from where the work is performed. The idea is that some of the working week will be spent onsite and the rest elsewhere, such as at home or another site. It aims to give people a better work-life balance as well as cutting down commuting time and cost.
You need to consider if hybrid working is appropriate for your organisation and how it can effectively be managed. It may not apply to all roles.
How can GFHR Consulting help with Flexible and Hybrid Working?
When we work with you, we’ll know how flexible and hybrid working can best fit with for your organisation. We can help you draft and implement policies and procedures for these different types of working. They’ll include considerations such as managing confidentiality when offsite, obligations around risk assessments, how equipment is transported and maintained and how your people go about requesting either arrangement. It’s also important for you as a business to have a strategy to keep offsite employees engaged and feeling like part of the team.
It is vital that requests to work flexibility are handled in a legally compliant manner, with a record to document the decision making process that has been followed. We can give you professional and compliant HR advice on all manner of working arrangements and support you through the process step by step. Call us today to find out more.
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