[Scotland] Flexible working denied to 3 out of 10 women in the public sector

In the UK, the public service union Unison has called for more employers to include flexible working options following a nationwide survey that revealed 29 per cent of women employed within public services had requests to work flexibly denied, STV reports.

More than 8,800 survey responses were received from women working in the public sector across Scotland. These suggested that employers are being “inconsistent, rigid and unimaginative” by denying individuals the flexibility needed.

It was reportedly part of a wider survey of 44,065 UK workers released to mark the beginning of the union’s women’s conference in Brighton which ran from February 15 to February 17.

Some respondents said their employers suggested that they should use annual leave, resign, or buy their own IT equipment if they wanted to work differently.

As a result, Unison said, many women had simply quit and taken reliable agency or zero-hour contract jobs.

According to Unison’s survey, nearly three in ten (29 per cent) women employed in schools, hospitals, care homes, town halls, police stations and other key services in Scotland have had requests to work flexibly denied.

One in five (20 per cent) of the women who were told they couldn’t make changes to the way they worked stated that their requests had been denied multiple times.

The data reportedly revealed that almost half (48 per cent) of respondents had requested some flexibility in their jobs to help them achieve a better work-life balance while a third (34 per cent) had done so to look after their mental health; 36 per cent to accommodate their childcare needs; and 25 per cent for physical health reasons.

The women were reportedly given a range of explanations by employers for why they couldn't work flexibly.

More than two-fifths (42 per cent) were told it would affect the quality of the service provided while 28 per cent were told that there wouldn’t be enough colleagues to cover their duties.

One in six (16 per cent) were reportedly denied any flexibility because managers claimed it would prompt colleagues to ask for similar working patterns. About one in eight (13 per cent) were given no reason at all.

Unison said that the passage of a new flexible working law will give employees a statutory right to request flexible working from their first day of work. At present employees have a six-month wait before flexible working requests can be granted.

The union reportedly said that more has to be done to allow employees to work flexibly.

Davena Rankin - Unison Scotland women’s committee chairwoman - said, “It’s disheartening to see many employers continuing to deny their staff the opportunity to work flexibly. They have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

“But, sadly, many women who find they need to inject some flexibility into their working lives are coming up against employers with inconsistent, rigid and unimaginative attitudes.

“While there’s no one-size-fits-all solution, some form of flexible working is achievable in most workplaces.

“Helping women to balance work with caring commitments not only improves morale, but can also help employers fill hard-to-recruit jobs. And with fewer vacancies, services provided to the public are likely to improve.

“Too many employers are still turning down flexible working requests, which means the right to request is pretty meaningless for many women.

“The right to work flexibly from day one would be beneficial for staff and employers alike, and help bring workplaces into the 21st century.”

Source: STV

(Quotes via original reporting)

In the UK, the public service union Unison has called for more employers to include flexible working options following a nationwide survey that revealed 29 per cent of women employed within public services had requests to work flexibly denied, STV reports.

More than 8,800 survey responses were received from women working in the public sector across Scotland. These suggested that employers are being “inconsistent, rigid and unimaginative” by denying individuals the flexibility needed.

It was reportedly part of a wider survey of 44,065 UK workers released to mark the beginning of the union’s women’s conference in Brighton which ran from February 15 to February 17.

Some respondents said their employers suggested that they should use annual leave, resign, or buy their own IT equipment if they wanted to work differently.

As a result, Unison said, many women had simply quit and taken reliable agency or zero-hour contract jobs.

According to Unison’s survey, nearly three in ten (29 per cent) women employed in schools, hospitals, care homes, town halls, police stations and other key services in Scotland have had requests to work flexibly denied.

One in five (20 per cent) of the women who were told they couldn’t make changes to the way they worked stated that their requests had been denied multiple times.

The data reportedly revealed that almost half (48 per cent) of respondents had requested some flexibility in their jobs to help them achieve a better work-life balance while a third (34 per cent) had done so to look after their mental health; 36 per cent to accommodate their childcare needs; and 25 per cent for physical health reasons.

The women were reportedly given a range of explanations by employers for why they couldn't work flexibly.

More than two-fifths (42 per cent) were told it would affect the quality of the service provided while 28 per cent were told that there wouldn’t be enough colleagues to cover their duties.

One in six (16 per cent) were reportedly denied any flexibility because managers claimed it would prompt colleagues to ask for similar working patterns. About one in eight (13 per cent) were given no reason at all.

Unison said that the passage of a new flexible working law will give employees a statutory right to request flexible working from their first day of work. At present employees have a six-month wait before flexible working requests can be granted.

The union reportedly said that more has to be done to allow employees to work flexibly.

Davena Rankin - Unison Scotland women’s committee chairwoman - said, “It’s disheartening to see many employers continuing to deny their staff the opportunity to work flexibly. They have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

“But, sadly, many women who find they need to inject some flexibility into their working lives are coming up against employers with inconsistent, rigid and unimaginative attitudes.

“While there’s no one-size-fits-all solution, some form of flexible working is achievable in most workplaces.

“Helping women to balance work with caring commitments not only improves morale, but can also help employers fill hard-to-recruit jobs. And with fewer vacancies, services provided to the public are likely to improve.

“Too many employers are still turning down flexible working requests, which means the right to request is pretty meaningless for many women.

“The right to work flexibly from day one would be beneficial for staff and employers alike, and help bring workplaces into the 21st century.”

Source: STV

(Quotes via original reporting)