As an employer, you should create a policy for working from home or hybrid working. A policy can help you to consider requests and explain the process to your employees.
The statutory right to request flexible working applies to anyone with the legal status of employee.
Someone is not likely to be an employee if they're:
- an agency worker
- a casual worker
- on a zero-hours contract
What a policy is
A policy is a document that:
- outlines how things work
- sets flexible limits
This allows managers and employees to discuss and agree specific arrangements.
Outlining how things work
You should explain how someone can request working from home or hybrid working, and how you will respond.
You should include in your policy how you will set up home or hybrid working, and how you will support these employees.
Setting flexible limits
A policy should say what types of working from home or hybrid working are available in your organisation.
It should also say how:
- roles will be assessed
- you will consider employee needs
- decisions will be made
Review and consultation
You might need to review things because of changes to the needs of:
- the organisation
- individual employees
You might also be reviewing the outcome of a trial period.
You should:
- update any related policies or procedures
- regularly review your policies and check if they can be improved
- consult your employees and their representatives
- discuss how things are going and if any changes could be made
- check whether you need to make changes to employment contracts
Find out about consulting employees and their representatives
Making changes to employment contracts
When you're creating or updating a policy, you should check whether you'll need to make a change to employment contracts.
Things to check in a contract include:
- where it says employees work
- what hours employees work
- how employees will be managed
Find out more about making changes to employment contracts
If you do not need to change an employment contract
If you do not need to change a contract, you should:
- agree any arrangements with staff
- put in writing what's been agreed, for example in an email or letter