Flexible Working and Working from Home – Good or Bad?

Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, it is probably fair to say that it was more common to have employees in the office rather than working from home. From an Employment Law point of view, flexible working was dictated by the Flexible Working Regulations 2014 which set out who could make flexible working requests (employees who have been employed for at least 26 weeks) and how the employer should consider the request (reasonably and make a decision within three months). Some flexible working requests may have related to working from home. In some professions, prior to the pandemic, the idea of working from home seemed alien but when the pandemic hit, businesses had to adapt and it became clear that in fact employees could work well from home, sometimes more productively. Teams and Zoom meetings became the norm. As new employees began work post March 2020, contracts of employment could often be noted as including a paragraph to say that the employee’s normal place of work would be at home.

Post-pandemic, the picture is quite mixed. Some employees still work exclusively from home, but for others, their employers (sometimes notwithstanding the terms of the contract of employment) have insisted upon employees being in the office for at least part of the week. This has led at times to disputes and grievances being raised and we are at times seeing some of those cases now reach Employment Tribunal.

The question posed at the beginning of this blog is loaded and can be answered differently depending on your perspective as employee or employer or indeed depending upon your particular profession. In many ways the answer depends on what output is being sought after. Is it productivity? Is it a loyal and hard-working employee? What about building a team, can that be done remotely? Both the question and answers are subjective, although can anything top a face to face meeting to build a relationship with a colleague or client? Possibly not. These are interesting times, particularly for those with management responsibility. What is the best way to maintain a healthy culture and work-life balance for employees? One thing is certain, many of the dogs bought during the pandemic may now be a little stouter as their walking time has been reduced.