Research by Phoenix Insights, Phoenix Group’s longevity think tank, has found that fewer than half (44%) of UK workers say that their manager has discussed flexible working arrangements with them. This comes months after the right to request flexible working on day one of employment became law in April 2024.
Based on a survey of 1,200 UK workers, the figure has risen slightly from February 2024**, before the statutory right came into force, when 39% of workers said their manager had discussed flexible working with them.
Over 55s were the least likely age group to say their manager has discussed flexible working with them prior to the introduction of the legal right to request it (26%), and this has not risen subsequently (24%). By contrast, over half (54%) of 18-34-year-olds said their manager had discussed flexible working with them as of August 2024, as did 46% of 35-54-year-olds. This is in spite of the fact that Phoenix Insights’ research has previously found that options for flexible working become more important to employees with age, with 73% of over 55s prioritising flexible working hours in their job, compared to just 57% of 18-34-year-olds and 60% of 35-54-year-olds.***
Three quarters (74%) of workers feel confident to some degree discussing flexible working arrangements with their manager, a slight increase compared to earlier this year (67%). However, only 36% feel very confident, with little change from before the right came into law (33%).
Additional Phoenix Insights’ research has shown that flexibility is particularly important to women, with two thirds (67%) saying that flexibility over their working hours is an important consideration, compared to only 56% of men ***.
Sara Thompson, Group HR director at Phoenix Group, the UK’s largest long-term savings and retirement business, comments:
“It’s encouraging to see some improvement in the visibility of flexible work arrangements following the introduction of the right to request it earlier this year, with more people discussing these options with their managers, and feeling comfortable doing so. However, it’s clear the impact has not been as significant as it might have been. There are still far too many people who are not having these conversations in their workplaces, particularly among the over 50s age group, and who do not feel comfortable in engaging in them, potentially harming their ability to remain and thrive in good work.
“The right to request flexible working, although a positive step, is not enough by itself – employers must go further to make sure employees are fully aware of their rights and offer as much flexibility in working arrangements as they can”.
Phoenix Group’s Cath Sermon, Head of Public Engagement & Campaigns at Phoenix Insights, Phoenix’s longevity think tank, comments:
“Flexible working can be a game changer for workers enabling them to balance work alongside caring responsibilities, or to better manage their physical and mental health. Flexible hours are also particularly important to employees aged 50 and over, playing a vital role in helping them think differently about when and how they work, earn, save and retire.
“However, we know that making flexible work operate in practice needs planning, trust and good conversations between managers and employees. The concept of the eight-hour working day is over 200 years old so now is the time for employers and managers to be more imaginative about how to flex requirements and ensure that the legislative change makes a meaningful difference to their employees. That’s why it’s crucial for employers to do more to equip and encourage these important conversations to happen and to share best practice from across their organisations to help normalise and empower employees to stay in work for longer.”
Phoenix Group offers all roles as flexible from day one, with options for part-time working, job-shares, and other types of flexibility.
To help with conversations around flexible working, Phoenix Insights has also recently partnered with the flexible work experts and social enterprise, Timewise to create a podcast series that builds understanding and celebrates part-time working through informative and interesting discussions of people’s experiences of part time work. The full podcast series is available publicly and can be accessed here: Part-time works: The podcast | Phoenix Group (thephoenixgroup.com) as well as being used with colleagues internally to help them increase and improve conversations about flexible working at Phoenix Group.
