IDS Study 822, May 2006

Flexitime schemes

• Discusses the pros and cons of flexitime arrangements and looks at incidence by occupation and industry group
• Looks at practical issues employers face when implementing a flexitime system
• Examines how hours carried over can be converted into flexi-leave
• Includes details of the schemes in operation at 30 named organisations

Formal flexitime schemes allow the working day to be split into two distinct time periods: flexible time and core time. Employees have some freedom to vary their starting, finishing and lunch times, but they are expected to be at work in the nominated core periods. Hours are formally recorded and over the course of a set accounting period individuals must balance their actual hours worked with their total contracted hours. Schemes usually allow a small number of credit or debit hours to be carried over into the next accounting period and, in many cases, these credit hours may be converted into extra leave.

Around 2½ million employees are covered by formal flexitime schemes in the UK. Flexitime is particularly suited to office-based employment and more than one in five administrative and secretarial staff have such an arrangement. A high proportion of employees in public administration (more than four in ten) are also covered.

This Study highlights the pros and cons of flexitime for employers and employees. It goes on to examine practical issues that organisations face when implementing a flexitime system, including which employee groups to cover, how to record hours worked, how much flexibility to grant staff and circumstances under which credit is permitted for absence.