Work-Life Balance Study (Hansard, 12 May 2004)

§ Mr. Sutcliffe

"The Second Work-Life Balance Study (WLB2): Results from the Employees' survey" was published in March by my Department as report number 28 in the Employment Relations Research Series. It is based on a survey carried out by MORI in January and February 2003. Key findings from the study are as followThere was a high leve1 of support for work-life balance amongst employees with 95 per cent. agreeing that 'people work best when they can balance their work and other aspects of their lives'. However, they were also clear that business considerations should still come first with three-fifths (60 per cent.) agreeing that employees should not expect to 'change their working pattern if to do so would disrupt the business'. Reported availability of work-life balance practices appeared to have increased since 2000 for several arrangements, but varied considerably from 67 per cent. of employees who said part-time working was available to only 20 per cent. who said that working from home on a regular basis was available. There has also been an increase in take up of several flexible working practices since 2000. Where employers provided flexible arrangements, take up among employees in the previous year and with their current employer was highest for flexitime (55 per cent.) and working from home (54 per cent.), but lower where hours of work (and thus pay) would be reduced such as for job-sharing (15 per cent.). A sixth of employees (17 per cent.) had approached their employer in the last two years to make a request to change how they regularly work For a sustained period of time, and 77 per cent. said their request had been agreed. Almost one-third 447W (29 per cent.) of mothers had requested a change in how they regularly worked from their employer in the last two years, compared to only 12 per cent. of fathers. However, there was some employee concern, particularly among men, about the consequences of adopting flexible working practices in terms of their job security and career prospects. Although when asked about various working patterns and leave arrangements, only in the case of working reduced hours (such as part-time working) did more employees consider that adopting this way of working would negatively affect their career (51 per cent.) than those who stated that it would not (38 per cent.).

The findings indicate strong support for work-life balance among employees. The increases in provision and take up indicate a shift towards improved work-life balance for employees, and the Department has encouraged this trend through the new employment rights introduced in April 2003. This legislation gives new rights to parents including introducing paternity and adoption leave for the first time, and the right to request flexible working for parents of children under six-years-old and of disabled children under 18-years-old (with a statutory duty on the employer to consider the request), as well as increasing maternity pay and leave.

The report is available free from publications @ dti, or can be downloaded from the DTI website.