Flexible working

• Remote working is when an offsite location is the place of work.
• It may include flexible remote working where time is split between the place of work and another location (e.g. home).
• Many administrative functions are to be suitable for home working, as well as some primary care and outpatient-facing roles, which may be able to conduct clinical consultations remotely.

   

It allows for a greater work/life balance for the employee, there is no need to take time commuting to and from work.

• A part-time worker is someone who works fewer hours than a full-time worker (37.5 hours).
• Part time workers receive the same pay rates (including sick pay, maternity, paternity and adoption leave and pay), pension opportunities and benefits, training and career development, selection for promotion and transfer and opportunities for career breaks.

Part time employees can retain existing workers who are not able to work in a full-time contract.

• Term time working allows employees to remain on a permanent contract and gives them the right to both paid and unpaid leave during school, college or university holidays.
• Unlike job-sharing or career break schemes, which can be undertaken for a range of reasons, term time working is normally much more focussed specifically to accommodate out-of-term periods. The scheme is often used by both male and female employees who have direct caring responsibilities for young people and can also be utilised where a service operates on a term time only basis.

Allows flexibility for the individual who has direct caring responsibilities

• A form of part time employment whereby two people do one job and split the hours.
• Pay, benefits and leave entitlement for job sharing are allocated on a pro rata or proportional basis 
• There is joint responsibility for the job and there is a high level of communication and interaction.

A job share can increase employment opportunities for people committed to caring for children, partners, or other relatives and helps the Trust retain the benefits of their skills and experience.

• Employees work their total agreed hours over the same days.
• The employee chooses when to start and end work (within agreed limits) but works certain ‘core hours’, for example 10am to 4pm every day.
• Allowing employees to choose start hours allows avoiding busier commute times and can get to work faster and easier.

An employee benefit, and pay are not affected as there is an agreed total work hours. This grants flexibility for the individual and allows a better balance for other work responsibilities.

• Compressed hours allows the individual to work longer hours in a shorter day period than the standard Monday to Friday. These additional hours over the span of this shorter period should make up for a day of work.
• Hours worked in a shorter period than would be considered normal e.g., full time hours worked over a 9-day fortnight rather than a 10-day fortnight.
• Pay and benefits are not affected as all full-time hours have been worked, just in a shorter period of days.

Allows for a greater work/life balance for the individual.

• Staggered working hours is when the employee has different start, finish and break times from other workers. For example, working 10am - 6pm rather than from 9am - 5pm.
• Working hours may be staggered on a permanent or temporary basis, throughout the week or just on one or two days of the week.
• Pay and benefits are not affected on the basis that the full-time hours for the job are worked.

Staggered working can allow for greater coverage of the working day by the department and provides flexibility for the individual.

• Annualised hours are when employees work a certain number of hours each year. Hours are then worked flexibly and according to the needs of the service. Regardless of what hours you work each month you will be paid the same each month (a twelfth of your annual salary).
• The balance of hours may be held in reserve and the employer may ask the employee to work additional hours to meet the needs of the service, for example, during school holiday periods.

Annual hours schemes aim to achieve a more even match between supply and demand for staff, by distributing hours worked to coincide with actual levels of need.

• Employees can work flexibly from different site locations.
• Gives employees and employers the opportunity to work smartly and take advantage of the opportunities available as a result of technology.
• The potential to improve the trust and empowerment felt throughout organisations, impacting levels of productivity, wellbeing and retention.

Can reduce costs for the employer and allows employees to work at a site which is convenient for them.

• Self-rostering allows staff to choose their own upcoming work schedules. Blank rosters are released, and employees bid for the shifts they would like to work.
• Encourages a sense of collective responsibility and cooperation.

Employees have more control over when they want to work.

• Retirement flexibilities allow staff to access their pension benefits while remaining in, or returning to, the NHS workforce, with the option to build up further pension if they wish.
• Staff can retire gradually and work flexibly for longer, passing their skills and knowledge to colleagues, aiding succession planning and ensuring high quality care for patients.
• Working flexibly improves work life balance for staff, while accessing pension benefits supports financial wellbeing. This in turn can bolster staff health and wellbeing, reduce sickness absence and the risk of burn out, while strengthening retention and staffing levels over time.

Helps staff to continue working in the NHS for longer, by varying the nature or pattern of work in the lead-up to retirement. Assists succession planning by retaining valuable skills and experience which can be passed on to other staff.