A new report has revealed inequalities around who can access flexible working.
The survey of 2,806 parents and carers, the Working Families Index 2022 finds that there has been an overall increase in the number of parents and carers working flexibly in the UK: 70 per cent of respondents reported working flexibly compared to just 55 per cent in 2019.
However, the report, authored by from work-life balance charity Working Families and professional coaching organisation Talking Talent, found that those earning over £60,000 a year, and those in knowledge-based industries are most likely to be working flexibly, leaving many parents and carers on lower incomes and in ‘place-based’ roles behind.
Over 80 per cent of respondents in a number of sectors, including: marketing, business consulting, not for profit and finance, reported working flexibly.
In industries such as healthcare, retail, education, transport and engineering, under 65 per cent of respondents in these sectors reported working flexibly.
The five industries with the least flexibility are clearly those in which roles are less suited to homeworking. Three of them (healthcare, retail, and education) overwhelmingly employ women, disproportionately affecting women’s access to flexible work.
Looking at workplace culture, the Index has found that employers who support family life can expect more loyalty from the parents and carers on their staff. Respondents who felt confident their family responsibilities wouldn’t affect how fairly they were treated were twice as likely to see themselves staying in their role for the next two years compared with those who didn’t feel this way.
Jane van Zyl, chief executive of Working Families, said: “The Working Families Index emphasises that now more than ever, we need to ensure that flexible working is accessible to all. It’s vital to enabling working parents and carers to access and stay in employment, which is a matter of survival amidst the current cost-of-living crisis.
“At the moment we are seeing huge growth in home and hybrid working. While we can celebrate this, it’s leaving a lot of working parents and carers behind in sectors where home and hybrid options are less possible. Millions of these are our frontline workers, people who kept vital services going throughout the pandemic. Flexible working should not just be the preserve of those who work at a desk—and working from home is just one of many types of flexible working. We encourage employers in every sector to take a look at all of the ways in which they can make flexible working possible. If employers get this right, they will reap the benefits of increased loyalty and retention.”
The index was based on a survey of 2,806 parents and carers in late 2021, it examines finances, working arrangements, managing and sharing childcare, and personal wellbeing – and tracks their development over time.
