EXPERT HUB – RESEARCH: FLEXIBLE FUTURE
Striving for a flexible future: how a flexible mindset can help achieve equality
By Jane van Zyl, CEO of Working Families
Inequality laid bare
The last few years have been a challenge for all parents. But for those on a low income managing the spiralling cost of living, life has been especially tough. A lack of affordable childcare, soaring energy prices and other skyrocketing living costs have created a perfect storm, and in its eye are lower income families.
The Working Families Index Spotlight Report takes a look at the reality for families of household incomes of £50,000 or less. What we found is that many of these working parents have been drowning in stress and debt, struggling to make ends meet whilst balancing work and caring responsibilities. With four in ten parents on a lower income finding themselves in debt to pay for childcare, and lower income parents twice as likely to have their flexible working request rejected, families are struggling.
The findings suggest a two-tier parental experience at play. Working parents on higher wages enjoy more access to flex, more time with their child in the first year, and less debt and worry; whilst those on lower incomes struggle with little notice of work schedules, more rigid work patterns, and few realistic options for parental leave and childcare.
An escape route
Work should be a route out of financial instability, and yet for families who are caring for children, this is not necessarily a straightforward solution. For parents on lower incomes this route is being undermined by a lack of access to flexible working and affordable childcare, often forcing them to reduce their hours or give up their jobs altogether, trapping them in a precarious position. Research by the National Children’s Bureau found that 7 in 10 children living through poverty have at least one parent in work. We can’t presume employment in itself has the answer. Instead, we must think more pragmatically about what kind of work parents need in order to thrive – flexible, secure and decently paid.
A flexible solution
The solution to addressing the chasm that has opened has to start with flexible working. It can unlock the labour market for many, in particular women, and help families better manage childcare, freeing up valuable income. This is a story corroborated by our research which found those who were successful in requesting flexible working were a third less likely to have to quit their job to manage childcare, 25% less likely to fall into debt, and half as likely to have had their mental health negatively impacted due to the difficulty accessing childcare.
Opening up opportunities
Our research found nearly half of mothers, single parents, and parents who are working and on Universal Credit had not been able to apply for new roles due to childcare needs; and almost four in ten parents from minority backgrounds have had to forego a promotion or training opportunity due to issues with childcare. The implication is that, rather than enabling low-income parents to develop their careers and increase their earnings, the status quo is serving only to reinforce existing inequalities. Flexible working, alongside a Real Living Wage and strengthened childcare system, would enable people currently disadvantaged to take up career opportunities that will benefit their family circumstances.
Making flex fair for all
The research found that higher income households have greater access to home and hybrid working, while lower income households are much more likely to work reduced hours, part-time hours or term-time only. Although we can’t be conclusive, our research suggests that differential access to flex could be due to manager discretion as well as the widely held belief that flex is restricted to certain jobs or roles. But considering the myriad ways you can work flexibly, flex is possible in every role. And with flexible working leading to increased engagement, productivity and retention, it’s good for business too. Thinking more creatively about finding individual flexible solutions, not just about hybrid or remote working, and inspiring employers to have a flex mindset that approaches all requests with a ‘yes’ first will help normalise flex both practically and culturally.
Flexible by design
The shift towards a flexible mindset will be advanced by legislation coming into effect in 2024. The new law will make requesting flex a day one right and encourage employers to pay more attention to how to design flexible roles – an important step towards our goal of making flexible working the default in the UK. A universal approach to flex would level the playing field for people working in place-based roles – those needing to be done at a specific location – who make up 46% of the workforce, and have a higher proportion of lower-income families. By utilising other forms of flex, such as staggered starts, shift-swopping and job-shares, people who can’t work remotely can still tap into the benefits of flexible working.
Whilst new legislation introducing the right to request a more predictable working pattern is a step in the right direction by providing an option for more regularised work, it is still dependent on the goodwill of the employer. We advocate a stronger legal requirement to provide advanced notice on shift patterns to help those trying to manage the logistical nightmare of combining shift work with child caring.
The future must be flexible
Action is needed to close the gap between the flex haves and have nots, which is entrenching inequality along gender and racial lines. Flexibility has the potential to forge paths into the labour market and routes to better jobs and opportunities, as well as a more productive, engaged workforce. Until all parents and carers have access to the flexibility they need to progress in work—alongside decent wages and affordable, accessible childcare—the picture of inequality will persist.
You can read the research here:
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