As many employers will have experienced, the current flexible working regime does not live up to its title as it is in fact, very rigid. There are strict eligibility criteria; the process if very procedural and deadline driven and the decision making process gives the employer very limited options. Although this system has been proved to work for some employees, it also helps create a number of disputes.

It is currently proposed that from April 2014, the existing flexible working regime will be scrapped and replaced with a less onerous process. The fundamental change will be that instead of the entitlement being limited to those employees with children of a certain age (17 or under or 18 if disabled) or care of an adult, all employees, regardless of whether or not they have caring responsibilities, will be able to make a flexible working request.

The new regime would be available to all employees after 26 weeks continuous service who would then have the right to make one request per year. There would be no legally prescribed procedure or as limited a timeframe as currently exists. Instead, employers will be able to implement their own internal processes provided that they consider any requests in a reasonable manner, base decision on business reasons and make decisions within three months of the request (unless an extension is mutually agreed).

These proposals have their own pros and cons. The freedom to operate within a more relaxed regime with the ability to give a greater focus on business needs when considering any requests can only be positive for employers. However, by opening up the entitlement to everyone, employers may find themselves with some awkward situations. What if a mother makes a request for childcare reasons but another female employee wants to change her working pattern to undertake an outside interest? Would you need to prioritise based upon your personal opinion of whose need was the greater?

One thing is for certain, employers should focus their minds to how they as a business operate on a day to day basis. Can you as a business actually function on a more flexible basis? What are your core hours? Do employees need to work from the office every day? etc. With the advances of technology, remote working has never been easier. We would be more than happy to assist with reviewing and implementing new policies.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.