Flexible Hours, Your Secret to Effective Employee Management

Flexible working hours is an idea that has been around for a while, but it only just now really started to take off around management and HR departments. There are pros and cons to offering flexible working hours to employees and there are also important laws and regulations that must be followed. These requirements and procedures outline what can and cannot be done when an employee asks for changes to their working hours, times, and work load.

What exactly are flexible working hours?

There are several ways they can be defined, depending on the situation at hand. Flexible working hours could mean that an employer allows some of their workers to work from home with no set office hours. As long as they get a set amount of work done each day during the operating hours, they can work whenever they want. For example, they could start at 6 a.m. and be done by noon, or start at 2 p.m. and work till 10 p.m. Flexible hours can also apply to an employee’s schedule when it changes week to week or when an employee has the option to adjust their working hours from one week to the next. Finally, this concept can apply to office work being done remotely without big expensive conferences and meetings and utilizing free conference call services like UberConference and Skype to hold meetings.

How can free conference call services help?

Some benefits employers can enjoy when they replace the traditional idea of face-to-face conferences and meetings with free conference call audio conferences are:

• Cost savings – You can save a great deal of money for you and your employees by eliminating the need for long drives, hotel rooms, conference room rentals, and other expenses associated with big meetings and workshops.
• Time savings – Stop wasting time getting to and from hotels and airports and setting up conference rooms. Everyone can attend from the comfort of their home office or meeting room.
• Productivity boost – Conference call systems can help you be more productive when meeting with employees in your area by cutting down drive times and letting everyone instantly meet and discuss plans.
• Lower stress levels – Employers and their staff can be happier at work, and they can enjoy a better quality of office life and personal life without all the stress that can come from out-of-town meetings.

What can flexible working hours do for me?

A recent assessment done by several mental health and employee focus groups has found that as many as 1 in every 5 employees took a sick day because they were stressed out at work. Similar studies have also shown that 1 in 10 workers had actually resigned due to the stress levels of their job and as many as 1 in 4 were actively thinking about quitting for the same reason. It is obvious that failure to take care of employees will lead to a large turnover rate, poor performance, and a host of other issues within any business structure. Employess will act differently if they are constantly stressed and feel like they have no say or control over their lives. In order to sustain employee performance and morale and to reduce stress levels, it is in the best interest of managers to ensure employees are not overworked and are happy with their jobs. Offering flexible working hours can help give employees that feeling of control over their work schedule and environment. It can be an adjustment for both employers and employees, but with both sides working together and making use of the resources available, flexible working hours can be a viable solution for everyone involved.

Flexible working hours are being considered by management departments more and more. There are pros and cons and certain regulations and procedures that must be followed, just like with any working arrangement, but there are many great benefits that can be gained for both the employer and employees.

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