These are the advantages for employers and employees that negotiating a flexible work schedule provides.
Employee Flexibility
With flexible work schedules, employees stand to experience a good number of benefits. One that many workers point to first is the flexibility to meet family needs, personal obligations, and life responsibilities conveniently. If you have a flexible schedule, you can go to a parent-teacher conference during the day, take a yoga class, or wait at home until the washing machine repair person comes.
Employee Commute
Flexible scheduling includes the ability to adjust the days and hours of being in the office and also allows workers to work remotely. Of course, with the commute to a home workspace, employees avoid the traffic and the stresses of commuting during rush hours. You might be amazed at how much faster a commute can be if you can drive to the office at 10 a.m. instead of at 8 a.m. during rush hour. Employees save money by having a reduced consumption of commuting time and fuel costs. In some areas, commutes of more than an hour each way are not uncommon. If these employees are allowed to work from home, that saves two hours of time, gas, and wear and tear on the road. Fewer people driving means the drive is easier for those people who are commuting.
Employee Empowerment
Employees get an increased feeling of personal control over their schedule and work environment. One reason people like to work for themselves is the control issue. By allowing employees to determine their own schedule and work environment, you appeal to the entrepreneurial spirit—which can be good for your employees. Built-in flexibility also reduces employee burnout due to overload. Flexibility means employees can take a break when they need it without incurring the wrath of a manager.
Employee Childcare Costs
Depending on the flexible work schedule chosen, it may decrease external childcare hours and costs. You need to make clear to employees that for all but a handful of jobs, working from home still requires childcare because you can’t work effectively while also entertaining a toddler. However, if a couple both have flexible schedules, one party can go into the office at 6:00 a.m. and the other can get the kids ready for school. One person’s 8-hour day is finished by 2:00 p.m. and can meet the bus at 3:00 p.m., while the other start their workday at 9:30 a.m. The result is two full-time jobs and incomes with no childcare costs.
Employers Gain Commitment
With flexible work schedules, employers experience benefits as well. Giving up some control of work schedules gives increased employee morale, engagement, and commitment to the organization. The option also reduces employee turnover, absenteeism, and tardiness by allowing workers to flex hours around home and family obligations. The flow of projects and work may increase as employees are able to work when they accomplish most, feel freshest, and enjoy working.
Employer Business Improvements
Offering flexible work schedules will increase your ability to recruit outstanding employees. You will develop an image as an employer of choice with family-friendly flexible work schedules. Providing options can extend your hours of operation which is especially important for departments such as customer service or technical support. Overhead costs may drop when you employ remote workers. You will reduce the square footage requirements of office space and the cost of desks, chairs, computers, and other necessary equipment.
Disadvantages for Employees
Employees who thrive in an office environment may find it difficult to work when colleagues don’t hold the same schedule. Team efforts may require advanced planning and coordination of the employee’s scheduled workdays and hours. This is why many employers require core days and core hours during which everyone is in the office or available for Zoom meetings. No clear delineation between work and home exists with a flexible schedule. When you use flexible schedules sometimes that means work all of the time. If your manager allows you the flexibility to go to your child’s soccer game, then the manager may not feel guilty about calling you at 9:30 p.m. Remote workers can make neighbors and friends think you aren’t actually working, thus causing problems with relationships. Family and friends can become upset when you say you can’t watch their child, or let the repairman into their houses—because, after all, you’re home all day.
Disadvantages for Employers
Some managers, who are used to seeing when their staff members come to work, watching what staff do all day at work, and knowing when people leave for home, have trouble adjusting to the new management style which requires trusting relationships. Also, in team-oriented departments, teams still need to meet, which requires set guidelines and the juggling of schedules. Some people take advantage of the flexibility and the ability to work from home. If an employee requires structure, they may find it difficult to focus on work and not the household chores and entertainment. Office-oriented people sometimes view their work-at-home colleagues as slackers because they can’t physically see their activity and productivity. Compressed workweeks can make client handovers complicated—clients expect service 5 days a week during business hours and can be fussy when a particular employee isn’t in on Friday. For this customer-centric reason, jobs that require customer-facing responsibilities only allow certain types of flextime. Whole days working from home are not an option. Other kinds of jobs such as assembly-line manufacturing and hands-on healthcare such as nursing share the same disadvantages. Employers struggle with fairness when only certain employees can work remotely.
