On 20 July 2023, the Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Bill received Royal Assent. This will result in several changes to the current flexible working regime through the Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Act 2023:
- An employee will no longer have to explain what effect, if any, their flexible working request would have on the employer and how this can be dealt with;
- An employer can no longer refuse a flexible working request unless the employee has been consulted, although there is no current guidance on what a reasonable consultation would entail;
- All flexible working requests have to be decided within two months of receipt, as opposed to the current three months. However, it will still remain open for both parties to agree an extension to this period;
- An employee will now be entitled to make two flexible working requests in any 12-month period as opposed to the current one request. It should be noted that any request made prior to the Act coming into force will be counted when determining an employee’s number of requests over a 12-month period.
Although this was not one of the amendments in the Act, the government did reference the right to make a flexible working request becoming a ‘day one’ right (currently eligibility requires an employee to have 26 weeks’ continuous employment). This 26-week requirement will be removed by secondary legislation in line with the Act.
None of the changes in the Act will prevent an employee from making an informal flexible working request. On 20 July 2023 the Department for Business and Trade issued a call for evidence on non-statutory flexible working. The government intend to use this evidence to support its approach to flexible working. The call for evidence closes on 7 November 2023 and we will be keeping a keen eye on the government’s response.
The government expects these changes to come into force approximately one year from the Bill being granted Royal Assent, so this should happen next summer. This will give employers time to consider how they can prepare for these changes. This may include updating policies and employee contracts and ensuring all members of staff are aware of the upcoming changes.
If you would like further assistance on the new changes to the flexible working regime, and how best to prepare for this as a business, then please do drop us a line.
Jones Chase is a specialist employment law firm based in the centre of London with an excellent track record of looking after those that we assist.