Flextime in the Workplace

Friday, March 29, 2013

Columbia University defines “flextime” as:”…a scheduling arrangement that permits variations in an employee’s starting and departure times, but does not change the total number of hours worked in a week.” Columbia goes on to define variations in flextime schedules which include: fixed and variable starting/stopping times, variable workday lengths, workweek compression, customized work schedules, and even part-time employment. All of which are more or less focused on assisting the employee to balance their personal and work-life needs. An addendum to the more tradition flexible work arrangements is, of course, telecommuting. The Mid-American Regional Council based in Kansas City touts flextime as a competitive advantage for employers to increase their operational hours without adding staff while reducing traffic congestion.

While flextime sounds like a win-win for employers and employees, however, not every job situation or employee can accommodate a high degree of flexible work arrangements. Some positions and employees are tied to a customer’s operating hours, locations which are in different time zones or demands that changing shifts must overlap. For hourly workers under the Fair Labor Standards Act and state-local equivalents, tracking hours worked may become more complex. If accrued paid-time-off benefits are tied to daily hours worked, policy changes may be required. Employees who did not opt for flextime may feel resentment towards those who elected a flexible schedule. Business cycles and emergencies may require the cancellation of some or all flextime schedules thus disrupting employee commuting and dependent care arrangements.

A 2010 study by Brigham Young University of 24,436 IBM employees located in 75 countries, found that telecommuting employees were able to average the equivalent of two additional work days per week before their work interrupted their personal and family lives. The study’s primary author, E. Jeffrey Hill, found that most flexible work arrangements often include both traditional office time as well as telecommuting from the worker's home or other remote location.

As the US economy continues its slow recovery, organizations are gradually adding jobs. However, many smaller employers are faced with the uncertainty of the cost of additional workers in light of the 2014 deadline that mandates health care coverage for most employees. While flextime will not eliminate this uncertainty of future costs, it is a tool that may assist organizations in attracting, retaining, and motivating top talent. Faced with small to nonexistent salary budgets, flextime can add to a specific employer’s attractiveness to the top performer it will need to grow and prosper. Increasingly, young workers entering today’s labor force are seeking flexibility in their relationship with their employers. Many new graduates simply do not buy into the traditional 9 to 5, Monday - Friday, corporate cubicle work style that is found in many of today’s organizations.