NHS North Somerset Clinical Commissioning Group HR Policies Flexible Working in support of Work Life Balance Approved by: Quality & Assurance Ratification date: November 2016 Review date: November 2019 1
Contents 1. Policy Statement 3 2. Principles 3 3. Legal Position 3 4. Summary of Flexible Working Options Available 3 5. How to make a Request 4 6. Appeal Procedure 6 7. Equality Statement 6 8. Monitoring and Review 6 2
1 Policy Statement 1.1 The Organisation is committed to valuing all of its employees and recognises the importance of helping its employees balance their work and home life by offering flexible working arrangements. However, the organisation needs to ensure that staffing levels remain in line with the demands of the business and not all options will be appropriate for all jobs. This policy should be read in conjunction with the Flexible Leave Policy. 1.2 This policy does not form part of any employee s contract of employment and may be amended from time to time. 2 Principles 2.1 This policy applies to all staff of the CCG. 2.1 Where a request for a permanent change to the employee s working pattern is agreed, the organisation reserves the right to impose a trial period, the length of which will be at the line manager s discretion but will normally be between three and six months. The purpose of the trial period will be to establish from a business and operational perspective, whether or not the new pattern of working is in fact workable in the longer term, taking into account the responsibilities and duties of the employee s job 3 Legal Position The right to apply to work flexibly has been a statutory right applies to all employees who have been in employment for 26 weeks or more. The organisation will therefore consider requests for flexible working from any member of staff. All requests will be dealt with sensitively and where possible your needs will be met. However in balancing the needs of the service and organisation it is likely that not all requests will be able to be accommodated if this is the case a compromise will be sought. Employees are eligible to request flexible working if they have worked for the CCG continuously for a minimum of 26 weeks at the date that the application for flexible working is made. Employees are eligible to apply for flexibly working once during every 12 month period. 4 Summary of Flexible Working Options Available Requests for flexible working can include (but are not limited to) requests for: Brief definition Part Time Working less than full time with an agreed pattern of hours. 3
Different start or finish times Flexi-working An arrangement where an employee starts later or earlier than the usual office hours and consequently leaves later or earlier. Working your contracted hours on a flexible basis. In a flexi scheme core hours are covered but start and finish times of the day can be varied. Hours can be credited or debited within an agreed period and time off can be taken in lieu of hours worked. Flexi-working arrangements need to take account of the needs of the business Occasional Homeworking Career Breaks An arrangement whereby the employee carries out a proportion of his/her duties from home rather than on the working premises. Where an employee takes an extended unpaid break from work. Contractual benefits are suspended and there are implications for NHS. Pension arrangements. Employees are advised to consult the Agenda for Change handbook which details in greater detail the considerations to take into account. 5 How to Request Flexible Working 5.1 A request to change the contracted hours of work must be made by the employee in writing, by completion of the Flexible Working Application Form, available on the NSCCG ConsultHR portal, to their line manager and must:- be dated and submitted allowing sufficient time between the submission of the request and the proposed start date for the application to be considered; state whether a previous application has been made and, if so, the date on which it was made; include the reason the request is being made and whether or not it is being made under the statutory right to apply to work flexibly; include details of the proposed change, and proposed start date, and an explanation of the employee s view of the effect on the Organisation s business and how this may be dealt with; relate to hours, times or place of work; 5.3 The line manager will acknowledge the request and will arrange a meeting with the employee to discuss the application, to be held no later than 28 days after the date of application. 5.4 A decision will be made within 14 days of the meeting and the employee notified in writing. The notification will either:- 4
accept the request and establish a start date and any other action or confirm a compromise agreed at the meeting or reject the request, detailing all of the facts and demonstrating the business rationale behind the decision and include details of the appeals process 5.5 Should the application be approved, the change will be made on a permanent basis, unless all parties have agreed at the outset that the arrangement is time limited. A trial period may be agreed 5.6 Applications for flexible working arrangements will be refused only for one or more of the following reasons: the burden of additional costs; detrimental effect on ability to meet customer demand; inability to reorganise work among existing staff; inability to recruit additional staff; detrimental impact on quality; detrimental impact on performance; insufficiency of work during the periods the employee proposes to work; planned structural changes. 5.7 If the proposal is refused, the employee will be allowed another 14 days in which to appeal to the second line manager. 5.8 Your manager should arrange to meet with you to discuss your request within 28 days of receiving your written application. 5.9 They will consider your request in light of your needs, the departmental needs and any legal requirements, and will assess how best to accommodate your needs without impairing the needs of others and the service. It is recommended your manager consults with your department to ensure any decision is fair, equitable and owned by the team. Your Human Resources representative will offer advice and support in determining suitable flexible working options and you will also be able to bring a workplace colleague or a trade union representative to this meeting if you wish. 5.10 Following your meeting your manager will write to you within 14 days confirming the outcome of your discussion. This notification will clearly state your new working pattern if it has changed, when this will commence from and any salary changes if applicable. Should your request be rejected your manager should clearly outline the specific reasons for this and inform you of your rights of appeal. Your application for flexible working may be refused on the following grounds: Detrimental effect on the ability to deliver the required service. The inability to reorganise work among existing staff The inability to recruit additional staff The burden of additional costs Detrimental impact on quality and performance. Please note that the list above is not exhaustive. 5
5.11 If your hours and/or work situation does change you will be required to complete a change of conditions form. Your Line Manager is responsible for compiling the change of assignment form. 6. Appeal Procedure 6.1 The employee must submit their appeal in writing within 14 days of being informed of the decision 6.2 The appeal will be acknowledged in writing and an appeal meeting arranged 6.3 The appeal meeting must take place within 14 days of the notice of the appeal and will be heard by the line manager of the manager who made the original decision, or someone at an equivalent level. 6.4 The employee has the right to be accompanied by their trade union representative or a work colleague at this meeting 6.5 The decision on the appeal must be given within a further 14 days and is final. 7 Equality Statement In applying this policy, the Organisation will have due regard for the need to eliminate unlawful discrimination, promote equality of opportunity, and provide for good relations between people of diverse groups, in particular on the grounds of the following characteristics protected by the Equality Act (2010); age, disability, gender, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, and sexual orientation, in addition to offending background, trade union membership, or any other personal characteristic. 8 Monitoring and Review The policy will be reviewed by HR at least every three years or earlier if statutory changes. 6