Employment Solicitor Alice Townley-Smith comments.
Under the previous legislation employees were only eligible to make a request in relation to a child under six years old (or 18 years old if the child is disabled). The extension of the child age limit follows the recommendation of an independent review carried out last year which found that in practice many businesses are already operating ‘open to all’ flexible working policies.
Eligibility
The Flexible Working Regulations 2009 do not alter the eligibility criteria that employees must meet to make a request for flexible working. An employee will still need to have 26 weeks’ continuous employment and must not have made another application to work flexibly in the preceding 12 months to making a request.
It remains the case that an employee can only make a request if they are either:
o
The child’s mother, father, adoptive parent, guardian or foster parent; or
o
The spouse, civil partner or partner of the child’s mother, father, adopter, guardian or foster parent.
Procedure
The procedure to be followed by parties in making or handling a request remains the same:
o
The employee submits a written application to request flexible working setting out their entitlement to make the request.
o
The employer must respond to the request within 28 days and arrange a meeting with the employee to discuss the application.
o
The employer must write to the employee within 14 days of the meeting confirming whether the request has been accepted or rejected and on what grounds.
o
The employee has a right to appeal within 14 days of a request being rejected.
Comment
Employers may receive more requests for flexible working as a result of this extension as it is estimated that an additional 4.5 million parents will be eligible for the statutory right as a result of the change. Employers should ensure that the correct procedure is followed in handling any requests to minimise the risk of any claims being brought against them.
For enquiries regarding this article or to discuss any other employment matters please contact Alice Townley-Smith at Steeles Law on 0207 421 1720 or employment@steeleslaw.co.uk.