How to the flexible work practices benefits towards workplace and employees

Laborers and contractors aren't the only ones who can work flexible hours; Many "traditional" companies now offer this benefit to their staff members as well. Many organizations nowadays may be wary of providing flexible schedules to their team. In this way, organizations have become profitable businesses after all. While it's true that flexible schedules benefit employees, savvy employers are aware of their own advantages. The benefits of work flexibility for organizations range from being a greener business to promoting recruitment and diversity to help the company stay ahead of the competition.

What Is Workplace Flexibility

The simplest approach to characterize flexible scheduling is to think of it as an agreement between an employer and an employee. Generally, the agreement consists of three parts.

-       Determining their place of employment

-       Designing a suitable working time for them

-       Being able to organize their workday in whatever way they choose.

This can identify you as a freelancer's schedule as an employer. Moreover, one form of flexible work is freelancing. However, flexible work may include:

-       Full-time remote teams; part time job

-       Flexible work opportunities

-       Alternate schedule jobs (working 40 hours over four days over five); (Second     or third shift)

-       Gig work; temporary jobs; Seasonal jobs

As an employer, can offer your staff one or more of these flexible work options, but keeping track of the different employment statuses and work schedules of entire staff may seem like too much work for very little return.

However, the benefit of flexible work for companies goes beyond happier employees. Employers that allow their staff the freedom to work a flexible schedule can also find themselves a greener, more profitable, and more desirable company that people want to work for.

Benefits of Flexible Work for Companies

The aforementioned elements of workplace flexibility are not as simple as they seem, to be sure. The truth is that even with a more flexible workplace, businesses may still want to set some limits on flexible employment.

Employees can be asked to set a set of "core hours" that coincide with other team members in the organization, to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to attend a team meeting once a week or access clients in a specific time zone. Flexible employees are able to work at any time that suits their work style and allows them to complete their tasks.

Having said that, there are five reasons why companies should allow flexible work schedules for their employees.

Improves Retention

Talent can be retained by enabling the company's current team to work flexible hours. Without a doubt, one of the most important benefits that workers expect from their respective companies is flexible scheduling.

According to a 2018 poll, 80% of employees would choose flexible schedules over other job benefits. In fact, 30% of respondents said they would prefer a flexible job over more vacation time. 35% of respondents said that having flexible work is so important to them that they would choose it over a more prestigious job.

If that's not enough, a 2017 survey showed that job applicants would accept up to 8% less income for the chance to work for an organization that supports flexible working hours.

According to the results of the 2019 poll, 16% of participants were looking for a new job due to a lack of flexible choices, and 30% of respondents left their job because of this.

More importantly, 52% of respondents said they had previously tried to negotiate flexible work schedules with their current employer and 80% of respondents said they would be more loyal to their employer if they offered it.

It is an attitude that he went to consider in terms of money. On average, it costs a company $2,000 to hire, hire, and train a new employee. Even with a flexible scheduling policy, long-term cost savings can prevent employee turnover and turnover.

Attracts Talent staff

Most job seekers engage in a flexible schedule over other perks, and workplace flexibility helps employers and employees alike by offering flexibility in the workplace to help attract top talent.

If the above arguments are not convincing that it is beneficial for the organization to offer employees flexible schedules, it can be noted that 83% of companies have done so or want to do so in the next 10 years, a trend that many multinational companies are experiencing.

Improves Diversity

If a company is limited to one location or a few regions while working for an organization, it will face the problem of accommodating employees. Also, if living in a homogeneous area, the staff will probably develop less diversity. If relocation is paid for, asking prospects to live in a less diverse location will turn them off and prevent you from getting the best candidates. According to a 2019 research, diverse workplace teams perform better than less diverse ones. Casting a wide and diverse net is more likely to find the best employees. Remote jobs will benefit the bottom line of the business as well as its diversity.

Increases Productivity

Employers often prohibit flexible scheduling because many believe that if they cannot closely monitor their workforce, they will not show up for work. But flexible scheduling can actually boost employee productivity. According to a 2019 poll, remote workers spend an average of 1.4 days more each month than office workers. That equates to 16.8 extra working days per year. Also, compared to remote workers, office workers deal with interruptions at work for an average of 37 minutes each day.

In addition, working in a flexible workplace requires employers and managers to assess what is more important than where their staff are physically located. This encourages a culture that focuses strongly on performance and supports the company's growth.

These findings are confirmed by a survey of personnel at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). In a two-year study, USPTO employees who were given the freedom to work from anywhere, including their homes, were shown to be 4.4% more productive than their office-based counterparts.

Enhance the Employee Engagement

Engaged employees are people who are aware of their responsibilities and how what they do helps the business succeed. Companies can foster a culture of engagement by giving their employees autonomy and respect in the workplace.

Also, allowing flexible working hours is a great way to empower staff and show the organization's value for them. When people are allowed to work flexibly, they feel they are trusted to do their jobs regardless of how, when, or where they do it.

Over time, this investment pays dividends. Employees who are passionate about their work generally perform better than employees who are disinterested.

The following benefits can be expected from having engaged employees

Fewer missed days of work. Sometimes a staff member is too sick to go to the office but not sick enough that they can’t get some work done. Allowing them to work from home in those circumstances means more work gets completed.

Less turnover. Staff who work flexible hours are more likely to stay loyal employees because they can balance work and home without feeling like they are letting one or the other (or both!) down.

Career longevity. Staff who have been around for a long time possess institutional knowledge, but they may no longer want to work full-time or live in a harsh climate. Allowing flexible work means the employee may continue working for you while you retain that “historical” data.

Provides a Cost-Efficient and sustainable Choice

In addition to saving money for the business and employees, implementing flexible schedules also contributes to the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals.

Employees with flexible schedules may not need to travel to work every day. Because of this, they spend less on transportation, business attire and daily lunches. Employers reduce their overhead costs to save money. By renting a small workplace, companies can spend less on water and electricity.

Also, these adjustments reduce the carbon footprint of the company and employees. Regardless of how staff members arrive at the workplace, they do not contribute as much harmful pollutants as they do not travel frequently. Also, companies can reduce their negative environmental impact by renting smaller office space and using less water and electricity.

Work Smart, Work Flexibly

Flexible working hours provide several advantages to the company and the employee. Today's flexible scheduling can help achieve the future, and it represents a significant change from how it behaved in the past. Since 2007, Flex Jobs has been offering career guidance and advice on flexible working to businesses of all sizes and shapes.

Conclusion

In this study, I hope to highlight the importance of flexible work for business and its main benefits, the concept of workplace flexibility has become well popular in many organizations around the world with a number of benefits. Workplace flexibility benefits the employer and employees in a number of ways from the employer's perspective, including attracting and retaining skilled service staff, increasing efficiency, increasing workplace diversity, increasing productivity and improving employee engagement.

Reference 

Giannikis, S.K. and Mihail, D.M., 2011. Flexible work arrangements in Greece: A study of employee perceptions. The international journal of human resource management, 22(02), pp.417-432.

Ciarniene, R. and Vienazindiene, M., 2018. Flexible work arrangements from generation and gender perspectives: Evidence from Lithuania. Engineering Economics, 29(1), pp.84-92.

Čiarnienė, R., Vienažindienė, M. and Adamonienė, R., 2018. Implementation of flexible work arrangements for sustainable development. European Journal of Sustainable Development, 7(4), pp.11-11.

Papalexandris, N. and Kramar, R., 1997. Flexible working patterns: towards reconciliation of family and work. Employee relations, 19(6), pp.581-595.

Mache, S., Servaty, R. and Harth, V., 2020. Flexible work arrangements in open workspaces and relations to occupational stress, need for recovery and psychological detachment from work. Journal of Occupational Medicine and Toxicology, 15(1), pp.1-11.