With Britain having the longest working hours in the EU, and the link between long hours and ill-health firmly established, we need to ensure that as many people as possible have access to better ways of working in the future.
Rather than working longer hours we should be working more flexible hours – and reaping the rewards of the productivity and efficiency gains this can bring. And as technology increasingly allows many of us to work away from the office – why not? That’s why I’m glad to hear that organisations that support flexible working are receiving the recognition they deserve. The Working Families charity has launched the ‘Top Employers for Working Families award’ for organisations that encourage flexible working, paternity leave, carer provision, emergency childcare and other innovative type of policies. As 40% of the workforce have responsibilities for dependents (children, elder parents, etc.), the importance of these initiatives should not be underestimated.
I also think this approach can and should be adopted even more broadly. The evidence from the government’s Foresight report on ‘mental capital and wellbeing’ indicated that because of the benefits to the health and efficiency of individuals it is cost-effective for the ‘right to request’ flexible working to be open to all, rather than just those with children. By providing their support, employers can promote greater work-life balance, which in turn enhances the productivity and health of UK Plc. Our productivity as a country, both now and in the future, depends on our ability to ensure better balance in life by working smarter and not longer.
If your organisation would like to enter the award scheme you can contact Working Families via the link below, the closing date is the 16th July. If you win the award it could do wonders for your employer brand and, in turn, your employees will benefit.
http://www.workingfamilies.org.uk/
Interesting post Professor Cooper.I think the news today from the new coalition transport minister Norman Baker urging employers to give staff the opportunity to work from home once a fortnight is a positive step in the right direction. However if we want our employees to attain a greater work-life balance and our workforces to become more productive in the UK as you discussed, then such ideas need to be acted upon immediately. We must remember that whilst we do have the longest working hours in the EU, we also lag behind the other G7 countries in terms of productivity.