A survey carried out by Acas has found that seven out of 10 employees are unaware that, from 6 April next year, they will have the right to request to work flexibly from the first day of their employment.
Currently, only employees who have worked for their employer for 26 weeks or more can do so. In other words, the Flexible Working (Amendment) Regulations 2023 remove the requirement to have 26 weeks’ service.
Acas is also working on a new statutory Code of Practice for handling requests for flexible working (ELR 831). The draft code includes information on:
- who should be allowed to accompany an employee at meetings to discuss a flexible working request,
- the need for transparency about reasons for rejecting a request, and
- making it clear that employers should proactively offer an appeal where a request has been rejected.
In addition, two other pieces of legislation are coming into force on the same day. The Maternity Leave, Adoption Leave and Shared Parental Leave (Amendment) Regulations 2024 extend the period of special protection from redundancy for employees on maternity leave, adoption leave or shared parental leave to 18 months after the birth or placement of a child. Currently, someone on maternity leave is only entitled to be offered alternative employment in the event of being made redundant. Other regulations extend similar protections to those on adoption leave and shared parental leave.
The third piece of legislation due to be introduced on 6 April next year is the Carer’s Leave Regulations 2024 giving employees who have a dependant “with a long-term care need” and who want time off work “to provide or arrange care for that dependant” the right to one week of unpaid leave within a 12-month rolling period. The leave can be taken in blocks of half or full days which do not have to be consecutive.
To read the Flexible Working (Amendment) Regulations 2023 in full, click here.
To read the Maternity Leave, Adoption Leave and Shared Parental Leave (Amendment) Regulations 2024 in full, click here.
To read the Carer’s Leave Regulations 2024 in full, click here.