Flexible Working and Time off for Dependents: what are your rights?

Dare you ask to work flexibly?


Many employers are coming round to realising that becoming a mother doesn’t make you unemployable. You may have more specific needs than you had before, but companies are waking up to the fact that if they lose you because of their own inflexibility, they lose a valuable member of the workforce.


It’s not cheap to replace and train an employee, whereas showing a bit of understanding where an employee is concerned can lead to a happier, more dedicated worker in the long run.


Many women, however, are afraid to rock the boat and struggle on working regular office hours when it doesn’t fit with school or nursery care, leaving them tired and stressed trying to make everything happen to suit everyone else. You don’t have to do that!


The government introduced flexible working laws in April 2003 to help protect both the employer and the employee by giving them both a structured system that the employee can use to apply to work flexibly.


This is a system specifically designed with working parents in mind and who knows, in the near future when paternity leave and father’s rights are on the political agenda again, men might also use it more in order to help out more at home. Well, it’s a thought! There’s more on this in Chapter 9, The Role of Fathers.


It’s important to note that these regulations are being reviewed and added to and it is a good idea to double check with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) website at http://www.dti.gov.uk/er/flexible.htm as revisions may have been made since this book was published.


What the law currently says about Flexible Working:


As of 6 April 2003 parents of children aged under six or of disabled children aged under 18 have the right to apply to work flexibly providing they have the qualifying length of service (at least 26 weeks at the date the application is made). Employers will have a statutory duty to consider their applications seriously.


The right enables mothers and fathers to request to work flexibly. It does not provide an automatic right to work flexibly as there will always be circumstances when the employer is unable to accommodate the employee’s desired work pattern.


The right is designed to meet the needs of both parents and employers, especially small employers, and aims to facilitate discussion and encourage both the employee and the employer to consider flexible working patterns and to find a solution that suits them both.


It is wise to think carefully about your desired working pattern when making an application, for instance, will it mean a drop in salary? Discuss your ideas with other employees and present solutions to your employers before objections are raised – this will demonstrate your commitment to the company.


In return, the employer is required to follow a specific procedure to ensure requests are considered seriously.

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