There’s been a lot of buzz lately about flexible workplaces. But what is a flexible workplace, exactly? And why should we care?
Workplace flexibility means a lot of different things, but at its core it is an idea about restructuring how we work to fit the current reality of people’s lives. It is a dynamic partnership between employers and employees through which they – together – define how, when and where work gets done in ways that work for everyone (including families, clients, coworkers, and communities). Flexibility includes a wide range of strategies like compressed workweeks, alternative and predictable work schedules, individual start & stop times, telecommuting, part-time work with equitable pay and benefits, phased-in retirements, and on-site or nearby childcare. It also includes paid time off that allows people to attend to personal and family matters without incurring financial hardships or disciplinary action.
The Workforce is Changing, Flexibility Helps You Keep Up
According to the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, 85% of workers in the U.S. have day-to-day family responsibilities. And compared to 30 or 40 years ago, there are more women, including mothers and single parents, in the workforce. More workers are providing day-to-day care for their own parents, and more and more men are taking on child care and elder care responsibilities. But child care is extremely expensive, school schedules don’t match work schedules (kids are out of school about 18 weeks per year and schools let out hours before most workplaces do), and caregiving can not always be planned around a 9-5 workday.
Traditional work schedules tend to be either overly rigid (think factory or receptionist) or constantly varying (think retail), which makes it hard for people to plan for things like child care and doctor visits. And people are working longer hours than they did 30 years ago. All of this leads to a great deal of work/family conflict among workers – and studies show that this is affecting more and more workers, including men, especially as our population ages.
The Bottom Line
Work/family conflict is not just a personal problem; it’s also a business problem. It leads to lower productivity, lower levels of performance, and lower commitment and job satisfaction. It also increases absenteeism, burnout, on-the-job accidents, and turnover. All of which hurts the bottom line. According to research from When Work Works, the cost of replacing a worker is 150-200% the cost of that worker’s salary. Compare that to a study showing that a one-year parental leave costs only 32% of that year’s salary and tends to happen infrequently over an individual’s employment.
A growing body of research is showing that workplace flexibility can and does make a difference – for workers, their families, and employers. Study after study has shown that flexibility reduces turnover and absenteeism, and improves commitment, productivity and performance.
Q: There’s been a lot of buzz lately about flexible workplaces. But what is a flexible workplace, exactly?
ANSWER: Workplace flexibility means a lot of different things, but at its core it is an idea about restructuring how we work to fit the current reality of people’s lives. It is a dynamic partnership between employers and employees through which they – together – define how, when and where work gets done in ways that work for everyone (including families, clients, coworkers, and communities). Flexibility includes a wide range of strategies like compressed workweeks, alternative and predictable work schedules, individual start & stop times, telecommuting, part-time work with equitable pay and benefits, phased-in retirements, and on-site or nearby childcare. It also includes paid time off that allows people to attend to personal and family matters without incurring financial hardships or disciplinary action.
Q: I hear people say that flexibility is a way to adapt to the changing workforce. What changes are they talking about? How does that relate to flexibility?
ANSWER: According to the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, 85% of workers in the U.S. have day-to-day family responsibilities. And compared to 30 or 40 years ago, there are more women, including mothers and single parents, in the workforce. More workers are providing day-to-day care for their own parents, and more and more men are taking on child care and elder care responsibilities. But child care is extremely expensive, school schedules don’t match work schedules (kids are out of school about 18 weeks per year and schools let out hours before most workplaces do), and caregiving can not always be planned around a 9-5 workday.
Traditional work schedules tend to be either overly rigid (think factory or receptionist) or constantly varying (think retail), which makes it hard for people to plan for things like child care and doctor visits. And people are working longer hours than they did 30 years ago. All of this leads to a great deal of work/family conflict among workers – and studies show that this is affecting more and more workers, including men, especially as our population ages.
Q: Aren’t work/family issues personal issues? Why is this a business matter?
ANSWER: Work/family conflict is not just a personal problem; it’s also a business problem. It leads to lower productivity, lower levels of performance, and lower commitment and job satisfaction. It also increases absenteeism, burnout, on-the-job accidents, and turnover. All of which hurts the bottom line. According to research from When Work Works, the cost of replacing a worker is 150-200% the cost of that worker’s salary. Compare that to a study showing that a one-year parental leave costs only 32% of that year’s salary and tends to happen infrequently over an individual’s employment.
A growing body of research is showing that workplace flexibility can and does make a difference – for workers, their families, and employers. Study after study has shown that flexibility reduces turnover and absenteeism, and improves commitment, productivity and performance. As one small business owner says:
“Flexibility is how the market is evolving. It’s how you keep the best people on your team.”
Q: So, what makes a flexible, family-supportive workplace?
ANSWER: There are two key factors:
- Formal Policies. This includes – but is not limited to – allowing alternative work schedules, self-scheduling, compressed workweeks, telecommuting, paid sick leave, paid vacation, job-protected and/or paid longer leaves for family and medical reasons, phased-in retirements, and more. Formal policies are in your employee handbook and are recognized as official options that employees aren’t penalized for requesting or using.
- A Supportive Culture. Formal policies, unfortunately, don’t mean much without a supportive culture. You can have a telecommuting policy in your handbook, for example, but if people who telecommute are seen as less committed and possibly not really working, then it’s not actually a viable alternative for people. In a supportive culture, management will ask employees what their needs are, proactively inform them of their flexible work options, and find ways to address them. Managers will be expected (and trained how to!) manage flexibly, because there is a workplace understanding that treating people well is not only the right thing to do, but also yields business results. As one business owner describes how flexibility works in her business:
Not everyone gets exactly the same accommodations, but everyone knows they will get what they need. They know that the company has their back. And we [the owners] know that our employees have ours.
Over and over, people at flexible, family-friendly workplaces talk about a few key ingredients: teamwork and communication. Teamwork allows people to fill in for each other and keep the work moving forward at all times. Communication ensures that people stay on the same page, know what’s going on with each other, and don’t make uninformed assumptions.
Q: How can we get started?
ANSWER: As with any change, it helps to start with small steps.
- Share this article with a colleague.
- Ask your employees what their work/life challenges are and what changes in the workplace would be useful to them.
- Take a close look at your employee handbook and see what you’ve already got in place, and what’s missing.
- Ask. Talk. Experiment. Try some things and see what works. Remember, there is no single cookie-cutter recipe for flexibility – you’ll get to decide what works best in your workplace.
And remember these words from an Oregon business owner:
“It pays you back, double. The more you care about people’s lives, the more they give to you.”
Q: Where can I learn more?
ANSWER: Here are some helpful resources and tools:
- Family Forward Oregon’s Employer Resources Page: https://familyforwardoregon.org/for-employers/employer-resources/
- When Work Works Guides and Tools: http://www.whenworkworks.org/guides-tools/page/3
- Work Life Fit, a web site dedicated to work-life business strategies from respected expert Cali Yost: http://www.worklifefit.com/
- The Custom Fit Workplace: Choose When, Where and How to Work and Boost Your Bottom Line, a book by Joan Blades and Nanette Fondas: http://customfitworkplace.org/