Flexible Working | How to Make a Request And Avoid Disputes

What is flexible working? How can I request flexible working hours? How can I avoid flexible working disputes? What can I do if my employer refuses my flexible working request?

Rachel Harfield, an employment solicitor at Slater and Gordon Lawyers, answers some of the most frequently asked questions regarding flexible working requests.

For confidential legal advice from a specialist employment solicitor, call Slater and Gordon Lawyers today on 0808 175 7783, or contact us online at https://www.slatergordon.co.uk/contac...

Transcript:

So anything is potentially up for grabs when you’re making a flexible working application. Some of the common types of flexible working we see is somebody working reduced hours or somebody working compressed hours so they’re compressing their normal working week into a smaller number of days in the week, somebody who might want to term-time work or work in the evenings or work at weekends or not work at weekends, so something that’s non-standard.
Well there’s a set process that you should follow when making an application for flexible working and there’s a set form that you should fill out, which has got certain details on it and you need to set out what you’re asking for and why and try and pre-empt the objections your employer is going to make.
A flexible working dispute is where an issue arises between an employee and their employer. The employee wants to change their working pattern to something that’s not the standard working pattern and they’re trying to reach agreement with their employer as to the hours of work – pattern of work – that they’re going to work going forward. Problems that we tend to see arising from flexible working applications is where an employer is not very keen on the idea of the employee moving to work the new pattern that they are proposing and if you’re making a flexible working request the best thing that you can do is to try and predict what your employer’s objections might be and try and put them in writing to your employer as to how you see it’s going to work and how it can work for you and how it can work for the organisation. It’s then far harder for an employer to say no.
You can also raise a grievance if your flexible working request has not been accepted and after that if you really are stuck you can consider taking some legal advice from a lawyer or from a body such as ACAS. In certain circumstances you can bring an employment tribunal claim to challenge a refusal to allow you to work flexibly but that’s something it would be wise to seek some advice about.