Peter Cheese
Chief Executive, CIPD
The pandemic is a huge catalyst for change in how and where we work. Flexible working benefits inclusion, wellbeing and productivity, but there is no one size fits all.
Despite advances in technology, too often we’re working harder but not smarter. Stress has become the most significant cause of long-term absence from work. Inclusion, fairness and access to good work have also become headline issues.
Less than 15% of the workforce worked flexibly before the pandemic – including those working ‘non-standard’ hours or working from home.
Less than 15% of the workforce worked flexibly before the pandemic – including those working ‘non-standard’ hours or working from home. Working cultures are often biased towards being present, visible, and together, with long work hours seen as a sign of commitment. This impacted many people with personal commitments or constraints that prevent them working full time or attending a place of work.
Expectations and the great reset
The last two years have provoked a lot of rethinking, driven by the challenges of the pandemic, greater social awareness of inequalities, wellbeing and the urgency of the climate crisis. These challenges demand more responsible businesses that recognises all stakeholders, including employees. We’ve also learned we can work differently, balancing work and home life, trusting people to deliver remotely, innovating and learning when we’re not physically together.
Expectations across our workforces have changed. There is talk of ‘the great resignation’, but it’s perhaps more of ‘a great reset’. A reset to better meet the expectations and needs of people at work, to enable more choice in how and where people work. This is now a central retention and recruitment issue, reinforced by the significant job vacancies and skills gaps that are giving employees more power and voice. There’s also growing demand to embed greater flexible working opportunities through legislative change, including the right to request flexible working as a day one right.
Benefits and challenges of flexible working
The benefits of flexible working are clear. But there are many challenges in how organisations can balance individual wants and needs with organisational needs. There’s no one size fits all and much still to learn. Fairness and inclusion will be key issues. People managers will need more training and support to understand how to work with more diverse teams working in more diverse ways. Work cultures need to shift to put people at the heart of the business agenda and to recognise that improved wellbeing and diversity drive both positive business and societal outcomes.