Public and Commercial Services Union

Although in some places employers use flexibility simply as a device to save money and undermine good conditions of service, there is a lot of evidence that employers can benefit more from work-life balance arrangements that are designed to support workers.

Good policies make a difference

Good policies can improve recruitment, retention, health, morale, motivation, loyalty, give a better return on training investment and increase productivity all of which reduce costs and result in a more successful organisation.

They are not a luxury add-on, but the core of good management.

Improving equal opportunities

Organisations providing services to the public must now promote equality, produce equality schemes and undertake impact assessments on policy, service delivery and employment practices for race, disability and gender. Work-life balance policies can make a crucial difference to equal opportunities.

In the Civil Service, a 10-point plan to achieve equality and diversity applies to all departments and agencies. This includes targets increasing the number of women in the Senior Civil Service and states that

"All SCS and feeder grade posts (grade 6 and 7) [are] to be available on a flexible working pattern basis unless robust and objective justification is proved."

Policies must work in practice

But often good policies exist on paper but not in practice.

The consequences of job cuts and relocation on work organisation, staffing levels and workloads have stalled any attempt to eradicate the long hours culture that pervades the civil service and private sector organisations.

Managers receive inadequate training and support, have to work with untested procedures and IT systems and are put under pressure to meet targets rather than being encouraged to support and promote work life balance.

Private sector models don't work

In some workplaces private sector models are applied which result in unrealistic workloads, long hours seen as the norm, unachievable targets, little regard for health and safety and no adjustments for disability needs.

Even long-accepted conditions of service, such as flexitime agreements, are being undermined.

The Civil Service Diversity Survey in 2001 confirmed that the experience of those working flexibly was that widespread negative assumptions were made by managers and colleagues about their commitment.

Workers in that group were more likely to experience inequality in appraisal, promotion, access to training,
job allocation and most HR policies.