How flexible working and family-friendly legislation affects salon businesses

The Children and Families Act 2014 received Royal Assent on 13 March 2014 and implements a number of government measures designed to make the UK’s employment practices more flexible and family friendly. But what does this mean for salons? We investigate... Flexible working One of the main changes brought in as a result of the Act is the extension of the right to request flexible working arrangements. Previously the right to work flexibly under the statutory flexible working regime was only available to parents of children under 17 or under 18, if they were disabled or caring for an adult. Since 30 June 2014, however, the right is available to all employees with 26 weeks’ service or more and employees will not now need to prove they have caring responsibilities as was the case under the old regime. In addition, the government has also made the procedure for making a flexible working request easier for both employers and employees. The strict statutory timetable for setting meetings and responding to requests will be replaced with a new broader duty to deal with requests reasonably and within three months of the employer receiving it. ACAS’s code of practice on flexible working procedures refers to following a “reasonable procedure”. Effectively this means that once a written request is received, an employer should arrange a meeting with the employee as soon as possible to discuss the request and remind them that they have the right to be entitled to be accompanied at that meeting by a colleague. The request should be discussed with the employee to establish what changes they are looking for and how they may affect your business. It should then be given fair and reasonable consideration and any outcome confirmed in writing with the right to appeal. The business should weigh up the pros and cons for both the company and the employee and if the request cannot be met, a compromise should be considered. If, however, after careful consideration, the request cannot be accommodated, it is crucial to ensure that any refusal is for a business reason. There are eight statutory business reasons for refusal which are the same as the previous statutory flexible working procedure and these include the burden of additional costs; an inability to reorganise work amongst existing staff; an inability to recruit additional staff; and whether it will have a detrimental impact on performance. Employers must be mindful that they do not inadvertently discriminate against an employee when refusing a request. For example, refusing a flexible working request made by a mother with childcare responsibilities, could amount to sex discrimination as, statistically, more women than men have childcare responsibilities. It is possible that a business may receive multiple flexible working requests at the same time. The ACAS code suggests that you consider the first request in the normal way and thereafter when considering the next request, you take into account the changes in the business context since granting the first request. Each case needs to be dealt with on its merits and it may need further discussion with the employees requesting to work flexibly, as there may be room for compromise or adjustment, particularly where knowledge of other requests is known. While the initial reaction to the legislation by some employers may be to decline, but it’s worth stating there are clearly advantages of flexible working to consider including a better work life balance which can lead to a better motivated and productive workforce. Flexible working was previously seen as a perk, but it is now very common in the modern workplace and easier to accommodate given the advances in technology. In advance of 30 June 2014, you may wish to review your flexible working policies or indeed introduce such a policy if you do not have one in existence. Shared Parental Leave To further establish the government’s intention to create a more flexible working environment for working parents, shared parental leave will be implemented on 5 April 2015. This will introduce a new system whereby eligible employees will be entitled to a maximum of 52 weeks’ leave inclusive of 39 weeks’ statutory pay, upon the birth or adoption of a child, which could be shared between parents. The new system of shared parental leave will be available for parents of children expected to be born or placed for adoption from 5 April 2015. However protection from unfair dismissal or detriment in relation to the exercise of the proposed right to shared parental leave is expected to be in force from 1 October 2014. From a new parent’s perspective the introduction of shared parental leave may be welcome, as it will allow families to be more flexible, as women will have the option to go back to work earlier and for fathers to spend more time at home with their new born baby. The new system will allow parents to choose how they share a year’s worth of leave after the birth of the child. Unless, however, you are a generous employer and pay enhanced maternity pay, statutory maternity pay will only be payable for the first 39 weeks and prospect of low or no pay may put fathers off, unless the mother is the breadwinner. While the choice will turn on personal circumstances, finances and personal preference of new parents, many will be grateful for the choice itself. Antenatal appointments and fathers Finally the government has also given recognition to the importance of fathers attending antenatal appointments by introducing the right for eligible fathers (employees and agency workers included) to take unpaid time off to attend up to two antenatal appointments up to the maximum of 6.5 hours each per appointment. Similarly, in an adoption situation adopters will be able to take time off to attend appointments to meet the child that they intend to adopt. This new right is due to come in on 1 October 2014. The changes are coming and employers would be advised to understand what is happening and prepare for the new rights that are being granted.   Ami Naru, an employment law expert at law firm Irwin Mitchell.