As a working parent it can be hard to find that perfect work/life balance. For some people a 40-hour five day working week is the norm. For others 12-hour shifts are a regular occurrence and for others working flexibly from home or shorter days is what they’re accustomed to.
It seems that there’s no consistency across the board when it comes to the hours we work, and that’s mainly dependant on who you work for and their business needs.
However, that could be about to change. On 16th July 2019, a flexible working bill was raised in Parliament. This proposed new law could see all employees being granted the legal right to flexible working hours.
The new law would mean employers would have to offer flexible working to staff in their contract by default.
Now employees who have been continuously with the same employer for six months can apply for flexible working, but whether they’re granted this is at the discretion of their employer.
For most people this can only be a good thing. Gone are the days where men are the breadwinners and women stay at home looking after their children. Today families are equal, and fathers are just as passionate about wanting to spend time with their children as mothers.
In addition, men aren’t the only ones who want a career. More and more women are climbing the career ladder and the pay gap is gradually decreasing.
Conservative MP Helen Whately, who raised the case argued that flexible working should be the default position for all employees and should be added to all job adverts. She believes that this move would help to close the gender pay gap, and assist parents in sharing childcare, plus help businesses to retain its staff.
Having previously worked for a private company, I can attest to the fact that staff turnover was high when it came to women not returning to work after maternity leave simply because the hours offered to them upon return did not suit new family life. Surely, it’s in the best interests of these companies to retain staff and if they can do this by offering flexible working then it must be done!
Whatley says: “The 40-hour five-day working week made sense in an era of single-earner households and stay-at-home mums, but it no longer reflects the reality of how many modern families want to live their lives.
“At the moment, too many women are reluctantly dropping out of work or going part-time after having children because their employers won’t allow them flexibility.
“This entrenches the assumption that men are the breadwinners and women are the homemakers.
“As a result, men don’t get to spend as much time as they might like with their children, women miss out on career opportunities, and the country loses out on the contribution they could and would like to make – if only they could do slightly different hours or work some days from home.”
I consider myself to be quite lucky. When I returned from maternity leave, I was able to work two days a week which meant I could spend most of my time with my children. I want to be able to watch them grow up, to spend time with them and to make memories with them. Working is important. I mean we all need to earn money, but nothing is more important than spending time with your children.
Does your workplace offer flexible working? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below.
10 Comments
My Amazing Ordinary World
August 9, 2019 at 7:18 am
Really interesting post. I’m really lucky and my work hours are flexible to fit around my children. I know that if this wasn’t the case I would be devastated and would have to find alternative employment x
#thatfridaylinky
Katie Davies
August 9, 2019 at 11:14 am
I didn’t know about this new law! It sounds great. We always struggle as we both work full time and all our leave is used up juggling the school holidays / inset days #ThatFridayLinky
Michele Morin
August 9, 2019 at 12:04 pm
I don’t work outside the home, but even so, I find summer to be the most challenging season to strike a balance.
Sally Cox
August 9, 2019 at 12:30 pm
Fascinating that a country might pass a law requiring every employer provide flexible work hours for their employees! I’m a teacher, so that wouldn’t be the case for me, unfortunately. I’d love to be able to choose the times I go in and come home!
#thatfridaylinky
Kate Holmes
August 9, 2019 at 2:51 pm
I think flexible working makes absolute sense for most employers and employees especially for parents and now with an increasingly elderly population with the care needs that come with that. Not enough offer it though and there should be far more opportunities for home-working in my view #ThatFridayLinky
Hannah
August 9, 2019 at 5:12 pm
I’m a teacher and have always failed to find a good work/life balance 😭 I’m going to try supply teaching in September when my twins start Reception as it will give me so much more flexibility 👍🏻
jeremy-thirstydaddy
August 10, 2019 at 5:17 pm
This is a great idea. I’d love to see something like this become common here in the States #tharfridaylinky
Lorna – The Writing Greyhound
August 11, 2019 at 9:32 pm
I really hope this new law comes into force – it would be a godsend for so many people! My current employer doesn’t offer flexible hours, so factoring in my commute, I’m out of the house for at least 11 hours Monday-Friday for work. It’s a long week and it makes it hard to fit life around work, so this sounds wonderful if they do bring it in! #thatfridaylinky
Jo (A Rose Tinted World)
August 12, 2019 at 10:02 am
I do hope that this all comes into force. It is hard in the holidays, even when one of us is a teacher. #ThatFridayLinky
Crummy Mummy
August 29, 2019 at 10:22 pm
Unfortunately there is zero work life balance in our house in the holidays as we both work from home…we’re surviving this year, just! #ThatFridayLinky