flexible working: legal issues for employers

flexible working is on the increase

The Employment team in Oxford held its Thames Vally HR Forum on Tuesday 25 May 2010. 

The forum covered:

	guidance on the legal issues faced by employers Jim Whiter, Head of Oxford Employment team, Blake Lapthorn
	an interactive case study Alexandra Robinson, senior solicitor, Blake Lapthorn

Not only are millions more employees eligible to request flexible working arrangements as a result of the extension of the statutory right last year but there is also a growing awareness of the potential benefits to those employers that champion flexible working.  Furthermore, the current economic climate has resulted in many employers considering the introduction of flexible working such as reduced hours, sabbaticals and increased holidays in an attempt to reduce the numbers of compulsory redundancies.

The legal issues will differ depending upon whether it is the employee who takes the initiative and requests flexible working or whether it is the employer that is looking to take the initiative. We highlighted the main legal issues for consideration including an explanation of the statutory right to request flexible working and guidance upon the potential difficulties for employers in implementing changes to their employees' contractual terms.  We also provided practical guidance for employers on the procedures to be followed and look at some of the more common types of flexible working.

Alexandra Robinson led an interactive case study involving some of the issues mentioned by Jim in his talk. The session allowed delegates to discuss practical solutions, highlight problem areas in various scenarios, and provide feedback on their experiences.

seminar programme

Following the presentation, delegates had the opportunity to ask questions and to provide feedback on any issues that they have faced in the workplace in relation to these specific issues.

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