Nikki Slowey explains why flexible working can help create a better work-life balance for staff in third sector organisations
Third sector organisations need to up their game if they want to attract and keep the best people.
The sandwich generation isn't just that bunch of colleagues gumming their keyboards up with crumbs from their desk-bound lunching, they are the future. More and more of us are caught between the needs of growing children, ageing parents and inflexible employers.
That is why Family Friendly Working Scotland is hosting an event at the Gathering to explore and promote better ways of working to ensure third sector employers lead the way in supporting modern families.
I am the mum of three boys; I work hard and care passionately about the work I do, and I want to balance a fulfilling career with family life. Fortunately, I think I might be one step closer to achieving this ideal work-life balance.
This is not just a woman’s issue, men are also looking for greater flexibility at work and those who are denied this are becoming increasingly dissatisfied
Nikki Slowey
In the autumn I was job hunting and saw a post advertised which looked interesting and challenging. But I was looking to work flexibly, and ideally for an employer who had an interest in employee wellbeing. With most job adverts you have no idea if flexible working is an option but in this case five words jumped off the page that sold it to me – "Happy to talk flexible working".
Right away I knew there were options for me. It made me think – why do more employers not proactively advertise jobs in this way? Why not let people know from the outset there is an option for flexible working.
Many progressive organisations are embracing flexible working, so why not cast the recruitment net wide and make these five words part of the job advert. Doing this would increase the quality and quantity of applicants and potentially solve problems for organisations that experience skills shortages.
Research shows that one of the main business benefits of being a flexible employer is improved recruitment. There is also strong evidence that retention improves and absenteeism reduces. Other business benefits include increased employee engagement and motivation along with increased productivity.
Survey after survey tells us that flexibility and work-life balance are of increasing importance to workers of all ages and gender. This is not just a woman’s issue, men are also looking for greater flexibility at work and those who are denied this are becoming increasingly dissatisfied.
Expectations are changing amongst workers. We know that work-life balance is one of the main drivers for millennials, the 20-somethings who started to exert media power around the turn of the century and are now beginning to move up the ladder in workpaces. No longer does one size fit all when it comes to how we work.
Of course a slogan isn’t enough. Working Families have produced some really good guidance about job design to help employers who are not yet flexible to consider what the job really needs and what type of flexible working might work best.
There are simply too few good-quality part-time or otherwise flexible jobs. Many skilled people are looking for work which could be available part-time or flexibly but which is not advertised as such. We need to make it easier for people to see what is available to them, and for employers this means widening the talent pool they are fishing in.
Flexibly is a vital tool for organisations that are seeking to recruit and retain the highest calibre staff and become employers of choice.
Come along to our lively seminar at the Gathering and join the discussion about flexible working and the benefits this could reap for third sector organisations, employees and wider society.
Find out more about the Happy to Talk Flexible working recruitment tagline.
Nikki Slowey is project co-ordinator at Family Friendly Working Scotland. It aims to promote a family friendly Scotland in the field of employment.
