Flexible Working: Benefits, Demerits, and Cases for and Against in Relation to Diversity and Inequality at Work

This report discusses the concept of flexible working, its benefits and demerits, and two cases for and against it in relation to diversity and inequality at work. The report focuses on Tesco, a UK-based retail organisation, and explores the role of HRM in promoting diversity and addressing inequality issues arising from flexible working.

Flexible working
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Table of Contents
Introduction ....................................................................................................................................3
Main body .......................................................................................................................................3
Defining flexible working...........................................................................................................3
Benefits of flexible working.......................................................................................................4
Demerits of flexible working......................................................................................................5
A case in favour of flexible working in relation to diversity and inclusion...............................5
A case against flexible working in relation to inequality at work..............................................7
Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................9
References ....................................................................................................................................10
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Introduction
Flexible working refers to the concept where by employer and employees are indulged in
making work arrangements as per the specifications and convenience of staff members. The
emergence of the concept helps employees in finding work-life balance and high satisfaction
while working at an organisation. Flexible working has became a trend since the outbreak of
COVID as it emerged the working form policies which further enhanced the scope and
importance of flexible working. The purpose of the following the report is to develop
understanding on the concept of flexible working in context to an organisation. The chosen retail
organisation for this report is Tesco, a renowned market leader headquartered in UK majorly
dealing in supermarket industry. in this report, a case in favour of flexible working is discussed
in relation to diversity and inclusion at workplace and role of HRM in this. In addition to this, it
also discuss a case against flexible working in relation to inequality and the role of HRM in
addressing equality issues arising from flexible working.
Main body
Defining flexible working
The concept of flexible working arrangements helps in empowering employees through
allowing them flexibility in their job roles and responsibilities. The main idea behind this
concept to induce satisfaction and productivity of employees through offering them relaxation in
various aspects. In context to Tesco, the idea of flexible working helps the employees in
improving and maintaining their work-life balance and increase their overall satisfaction.
Flexible working provides numerous benefits to employees as it works as a incentive in
improving their performances and increase efficiency (Beňo, 2018). However, it also raise
various issues and concerns including impact of lack of visibility can have negative influence on
the careers of individuals.
Some common types of flexible work arrangements
Flexible working hours: It refers to the autonomy of employees which allows them to start and
finish their work as per their convenience. Unlike a typical conventional work routine, which fix
timings, it focus upon completion of work with flexibility in work timings.
Remote work: It refers to distance working where the requirement of physical presence in office
premises is been eliminated and it enables employees to work form home or anywhere.
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Part-time: This arrangement allows an employee to reduce its working hours to half or it can
take place in the form of compressed work week where they are only required to work few days
a week.
Benefits of flexible working
For employer of Tesco:
 The organisation would be benefited through adopting constructive practices of flexible
working arrangements as it would help the company in increasing productivity of the
employees. Remote working or flexible working hours would allow them to work as per
their convenience and use their calibre to maximum extent (Goswami, 2022).
 It would help the company in establishing core values and promote healthy and valuable
interpersonal relations as employees would feel valued. It raise their sense of
belongingness and it helps the enterprise in receiving positive views and appreciation
through understanding concerns of workers.
 It would benefit the company in reducing absenteeism in the premises of the organisation
as during flexible hours or remote work employees usually avails relatively less number
of leaves. Through agreeing with employees on various terms, it gives employer the
power to negotiate or convenience employees to promote presenteeism.
 The practices of promoting flexible working arrangements helps in reducing employment
turnover which is becoming a major concern of worry in most of the organisations
(Peretz, Fried and Levi, 2018). Through considering their issues and solving their
grievances through flexible working arrangements the organisation would promote
increased overall satisfaction of workers and thus prevents turnover.
For employees of Tesco:
 The practises of flexible working helps personnel in improving their work life balances
and allow them to maximise their potential and increase their productivity via working
according to their timings and place.
 It is the only option for those individuals who have family obligations and have to deal
with major issues such as any physical disability, child-care concerns etc. through the
practices of flexible working, employee are able to perform jobs while dealing with their
personal issues.
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Demerits of flexible working
For employers:
 It is argued that flexible working leads to unavailability of personnel when required
which leads to delay and burden on other employees. It leads to productivity of working
procedures and chaotic situations in many cases.
 It leads to inefficiency in communication and thus overall efficiency in job roles is being
compromised in various cases. The problems in communicating properly with employees
working remotely would leads to undesirable outcomes.
 The practices of flexible working leads to inequality among employees which negatively
impact upon the workplace environment (Weale, Wells and Oakman, 2019). Sense of
dissatisfaction is raised among the employees who cannot access remote work or flexible
working.
 The flexibility working leads to procrastinating attitude of personnel in many cases as
their performances is not being constantly reviewed and monitored and due to
communication barriers, managers are often not bothered to check upon them whether
they have completed the task or not except in some cases.
For employees:
 Individuals who works remotely could be negatively impacted by the lack of visibility
and they remains unknown and unfamiliar by their staff members in many cases.
 While working remotely, employees are not able to interact with their peers and
colleagues which leads to isolation and overall impacts upon personality and confidence
levels of individuals.
 Problems often arise in communication which also serves as a great hindrance and
obstacle in completion of assigned tasks (Seal and et.al., 2021). Remote work often leads
to negligence of queries by management as they have to make extra efforts to resolve
queries of personnel who is working from home and work according to their timings.
A case in favour of flexible working in relation to diversity and inclusion
The concept of flexible working helps in creating inclusion and promoting diversity in
the workplace through a range of factors. Flexible working plays a major and crucial role in
employees accessibility to equal opportunities and allows them to avail facilities of working
within an organisation and showcase their talents. In some cases, individuals can only work in a
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company or enterprise if they are offered any flexible work arrangements. For instance, single
mother, disabled individuals, older workers, people with mental issues, these group of people
can only work if they are allowed to work flexibly or remotely with some flexible work
arrangement. In context to Tesco, the establishment of flexible working policies would enable
the organisation in promoting diversity as through allowing remote work it can recruit people
across various boundaries and provide a range of individuals with various job opportunities.
Tesco would be benefited from promoting flexible working via work from home, part-time and
flexible work hours arrangements through maximising satisfaction of employees and thus reduce
employment turnover (Erden Bayazit and Bayazit, 2019). Moreover, it would reflect certain core
values through creating an inclusive environment where opportunities are given to less fortunate
individuals or workers having certain issues. The role of flexible working arrangements in
promoting diversity and inclusion is of great significance. In context to Tesco, the human
resource management of the company can encourage hiring and retention of a diversified
workplace through establishing constructive work from home policies.
The concept of flexible working is emerging as a significant concept after outbreak of the
pandemic. The human resources department in organisations are creating more opportunities in
order to execute the process of talent acquisition in a constructive manner. In context to Tesco,
the human resource manager of the organisation can promote a range of employment
opportunities through providing candidates with various flexible options. The availability of
various options would assist hiring of talented employees from a diverse range. The human
resources of the company would be able to hire individuals from different age groups as well as
from various backgrounds and geographical territories. Through establishing the work form
practice as a core factor of the process of talent acquisition, the human resources manager would
be able to hire individuals across various territories as it eliminate the requirement of physical
presence within premises of organisation (Bales, Bogg and Novitz, 2018). It helps in ensuring
an inclusive environment where opportunities are made available to a diverse range of
individuals. The HRM of the company can understand the concerns of those individuals who
cannot perform full day working or working from organisational premises due to a range of
issues.
The practices of flexible working helps in stating values and build an inclusive
environment through encouraging talents and allowing them with opportunities to use their
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calibre through offering convenience. For instance, individuals like single mother, disabled
candidates and older personnel can manage to perform their job roles if they are enable to enjoy
some flexibility either in working hours or workplace practices. Work from home is a highly
attractive features for mothers, specially single mothers to take care of their kids. Tesco has
various job positions which can be executed while working from home as the company also
owns an online market place and various operations regarding them can be supported through
anywhere with proper accessibility to technical assistance. Moreover, part-time is also a great
option for women having kids where their working hours can be reduced to half and they would
be paid accordingly (Oludayo and et.al., 2018). The rigid practices in timing structure often
restrict the calibre of individuals and they have to turn to small organisations paying them less.
Through offering various flexibility options during the time of recruitment and at any time
during job period, the human resources managers can promote acquisition of personnel a diverse
range. It creates pool of talent and numerous opportunities for those who otherwise cannot work
as they have serious concerns regarding health and personal family reasons. The concept of
flexible working magnified the scope of jobs for individuals and enhance the scope of talent and
employees for human resources management. Moreover, through practices of flexible working
employment retention is promoted and thus it would allow the company to increase number of
its workforce from various age groups and backgrounds and promotes diversity in long run.
A case against flexible working in relation to inequality at work
Along with the various benefits that flexible working offers to individuals, there are also
various arguments that are claimed against such practises. Whereas flexible working practices
are very much significant in promoting diversity and inclusion in the workplace, it also creates a
range of inequality issues within the workplace and promotes partial behaviour and
discrimination in many cases. It is very obvious that in a retail industry or normally any other
organisation, complete flexible working practices are not possible and thus it is implied that not
everyone can avail the benefits of flexible working. Those who are not accessible to avail
flexible working practices often complains about in-equal access to opportunities and partial
behaviour among employees (Bastida, Marimon and Carreras, 2018). However, it is deemed and
applicable that employees who are working part time will be paid accordingly based upon their
working hours. But practices such as remote working; work from home and flexible working
hours may cause high levels of dissatisfaction among employees and leads to inequality.
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The practices of flexible working are highly offered and promoted to women and elder
groups of people creating discriminatory attitude on the grounds of gender. It is often observed
that female candidates are provided with more flexible hours as well as they can easily avail
remote working as well. In addition to major demographic aspects such as gender and age, the
concept of flexible working is also discriminated on the basis of skills. In some cases, those who
have more skills and are familiar with the work environment are often wanted in the premises as
they don't need much supervision and they can provide effective guidance to others as well. It is
also claimed that in some cases workers who are less skilled cannot avail flexible working
options due to their lack of competence (Göçer and et.al., 2018). The differentiation of
opportunities creates biasness and chaotic situations within workplace and thus creates
inequality. Flexible working practices cannot be availed by everyone within Tesco and defining
criteria for such practices is quite difficult. The company needs sales executives in their offline
stores and remote working is not an option for many employees. However, part time working on
some weeks can be executed where the job roles of two salesman could be divided into three
days a week.
The concept of flexible working has also promoted inappropriate approach of employees
to request and grant such practices without any genuine reason. The emerging trend of flexible
working practices induce employees to avail the facility of remotely working from anywhere and
it is not possible for a retail organisation to establish roles with the helps of such practices.
Therefore, HRM has to establish a set of rules and conduct as on who can avail such options
within the workplace. The flexibility working creates inequality as these cannot be accessed
through everyone which promotes partial behaviour. The HRM managers should ensure that they
are providing flexibility working only to those who have genuine reasons. There are a variety of
factors which leads to inequality and to prevent and avoid partial behaviour HRM have to
develop plans and mark criteria of flexible working practices (Păunescu and Mátyus, 2020).
Some standards and set of rules must be defined in relation to flexible working practices
in order to eliminate partial behaviour. For instance nobody should be allowed for flexible
working during initial stages of joining or during probation period. Proper training is required to
accomplish job roles properly specially in the case of remote working. However, individuals
having serious concerns such as health issues must be considered for hiring on part-time basis
but it must be only applicable in case of any major issues. Flexible working hours is another
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major concern and it often creates challenging situations for HRM as on how to decide whether
an employee should be allowed for availing the relaxation of flexible working hours. Those who
proves their credibility through accomplishing tasks on time can be allowed flexible working
hours. The criteria for defining such things should be marked after carefully analysing the job
roles and positions (Howcroft and Rubery, 2019). The emergence of flexible working is
associated with job roles and sometimes it leads to inequality because some job roles cannot be
executed with practices of flexible working. The HRM of the company must raise awareness
among employees on such practices and ensures clarity on a eligibility criteria.
Conclusion
From the above report, it has been concluded that flexible working is a significant
concept which can provides various advantage to both employer and employees as well.
Flexible working has became an emerging trend within organisations as it helps in improving
productivity and efficiency of employees. The human resources management plays a crucial role
in promoting diversity and inclusion through practices of flexible working as discussed in the
above report. It also raise concerns and issues of inequality and creates dissatisfaction among
those who cannot access these facilities. It is recommended for HRM to construct effective
policies with clear marking criteria as on how these practices could be availed and by whom.
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