date: 13 March 2006

embargo: 00.01hrs Wednesday 15 March 2006

Employers denying dads flexible working hours says TUC

More men are now starting to ask their employers if they can work flexibly but they are less likely to consider changing their hours than working mums and when they do, are more likely to have their requests turned down, according to TUC research published today (Wednesday).

The TUC report 'Out of time' calls for a whole new approach to the way that work is organised in the UK, and says that greater flexibility over working hours is something that should be an option for all employees, not just parents and carers.

'Out of time: Why Britain needs a new approach to flexible working' shows that in the first two years that the right to request to work flexibly was in existence for the parents of children under six, around ten per cent (1,267,000) of male employees have approached their bosses about changing their working hours. In the same period, 19 per cent of women in work (2,375,000) requested flexible working.

According to the report, bosses look more favourably on requests submitted by their female members of staff. Only ten per cent of women (235,000) had their flexible working requests rejected out of hand compared to 14 per cent of men (177,000).

Only a handful of disappointed workers who have their requests rejected ever take their employer to an employment tribunal, and claims submitted by men are much less likely to be successful. The report says that male claimants account for just over a quarter (27 per cent) of flexible working tribunal claims but for nearly half (45 per cent) of cases that were lost, ruled out on procedural grounds or dismissed.

'Out of time' says that the reluctance of employers to let more of their male employees change their hours in some way after they become parents is reinforcing the idea that it is the working mother who has to reduce her hours and juggle childcare and work when her children are young.

As a result, women end up paying a part time pay penalty, will often be in a job well below their skill potential, and lose out when it comes to future pensions payouts because of the time they have spent out of the labour market. And fathers are forced to work longer hours to compensate for the loss of family income as their partners switch to part time working. The report argues for a more equitable share of work between men and women - at home and at work.

TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber said: 'Many UK bosses are too short-sighted to grasp the fact that a flexible approach to work is not something to fear as expensive and irritating, but a change which makes sound business sense, both in terms of company profits, and staff recruitment and retention. The UK's long hours culture will never be challenged if it's only parents and carers who can ask to change their hours, and if it remains all too easy for inflexible employers to say no.

'By accepting flexible work requests from their female employees but not from their male staff, employers are helping reinforce the gender pay gap, when instead they could be enabling young dads to play a more active role in the raising of their children.'

The TUC's academic study says that that the UK has much to learn from elsewhere in Europe where flexible working is more heartily embraced by employers, and is something that all employees, and not just those with small children, can consider applying for.

'Out of time' says that the changing nature of modern work means that there are increasing pressures to alter the way work is organised. People need to adapt the way they work as they go through different periods in their lives. This might mean working flexibly when their children are young, or when they want to take time out to learn a new skill, or as they approach retirement and want to gradually reduce their hours before stopping work altogether. A greater degree of flexibility for businesses can best be delivered by partnership working with unions and staff, says the report.

It says that the UK has an extensive long hours culture, with around 3.6 million employees regularly working more than 48 hours per week, and almost five million people working on average an extra day a week in unpaid overtime (7 hours 24 minutes).

'Out of time' makes a number of recommendations for how changes in the way work is managed in the UK could improve the efficiency of UK businesses and help curb our obsession with long hours working:

• The right to request flexible work in the UK should be extended to all workers, including older employees approaching retirement and those wishing to learn new skills
• Employment tribunals should be given more powers to encourage employers to trial new working practices with a greater emphasis on forms of flexible working which do not involve a cut in pay, such as flexitime and working time accounts
• The UK's 48 hour opt out of the Working Time Directive should be ended, and employers should be encouraged to give staff better notice of shift changes or irregular working
• Unions and employers should make working time a central concern of their negotiations, and look at ways of removing inducements to long hours working and the gender impact of pay structures linked with different working time practices
• Government, employers and unions should develop training packages for managers to help them better manage workloads, and encourage the take-up of flexible working throughout their organisations.

NOTES TO EDITORS:

A copy of 'Out of time' is at http://www.tuc.org.uk/extras/outoftime.pdf

Case studies are available from the press office.

In Germany and the Netherlands, the right to request flexible working applies to all employees, except those employed in small firms. In the UK the right is limited to the parents of children under six, and disabled children under 18 years old, and from next April, employees caring for adults. In Germany and the Netherlands, flexible working rights are enforceable in court, whereas in the UK it is limited to a right to request to work flexibly. The UK right to request was introduced in April 2003.

Contacts:

Media enquiries: Liz Chinchen T: 020 7467 1248; M: 07778 158175; E: media@tuc.org.uk

Press release (1,100 words) issued 15 Mar 2006