Responding to requests to work compressed hours

There are many different types of flexible working and it can have lots of benefits. To help us improve GOV.UK, we’d like to know more about your visit today. This is known as ‘making a statutory application’. You can change your cookie settings at any time.

Working time rules

Aside from the legal risks, there are obvious employee relations concerns with rejecting any flexible working request. So employers will need to act swiftly and in line with their own internal flexible working policy. These can be sensitive arguments for employers to run without any objective evidence. The Acas Code of Practice suggests a trial period may be appropriate to assess the feasibility of an arrangement and a trial period will allow both parties to test the proposed working arrangement before committing to it permanently. In some industries, employers should also consider carrying out a risk assessment for such working patterns, particularly if the role involves an element of manual or monotonous work. Employees could also work a combination of compressed hours and part time working.

• Flexible working can bring benefits in workplaces of every size and in all sectors.
• If the member of staff is responsible for a number of teaching hours that only they can teach it is likely to be difficult for the timetable to accommodate this request.
• The stakeholders can also influence the decisions that a business makes.
• This is known as ‘making a statutory application’.

The legal obligation to make reasonable adjustments is separate to the legal obligation to consider a request for flexible working. A request must be in writing and state that it is a statutory request for flexible working. Every employee has a statutory right to request flexible working.

A written record of the appeal meeting should be kept which provides an accurate reflection of the discussion that has taken place. The person holding the appeal meeting should have sufficient authority to make a decision. These may be, for example, that there is new information they wish to be considered, or they believe the employer has not handled their request in a reasonable manner. This includes explaining how to appeal if the employee wishes to do so, and the timeframe for submitting any appeal. The written decision should make it clear that the employee has the option to appeal the decision.

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The manager could ask the team to discuss the request and the increased need for cover together and come up with a possible solution themselves. There are many considerations the manager will need to make including the individual’s role, the level of cover required in the office and the hours of cover required each day. The manager considering this request needs to think about many things including the hours of coverage required on the reception and likely future demand. This page gives you examples of requests for flexible working and the considerations that may be made by a manager when dealing with the request. Acknowledging a statutory flexible working request. Making a statutory flexible working request.

Employers must deal with requests in a ‘reasonable manner’. Employees can make a request for flexible working from their first day in a job. All employees have the legal right to request flexible working. As with any flexible working request, we would urge employees to consider each request on a case-by-case basis. Rejecting a request could 4rabet official in login result in disgruntled and unmotivated employees, which could lead to grievances or resignations, as well as impacting team morale.

This should include carefully assessing the effect of the requested change for both the employer and the employee, such as the potential benefits or other impacts of accepting or rejecting it. Employers must agree to a statutory request for flexible working unless there is a genuine business reason not to. This Code of Practice must be followed where an employee makes a statutory request for flexible working.