Demystifying the Pros and Cons of Flextime in the Workplace. – HR Affiliates Blog
Flextime is becoming more and more popular among a diverse array of industries. By definition, flextime allows employees to complete their 40-hour work week through an alternative, sliding, or compressed schedule. In this blog post, we discuss some benefits and drawbacks of implementing flextime from a human resources perspective.
Pro: Flextime can draw talent to your company
More and more employees, both prospective and current, are drawn toward the possibility of having flextime in their work weeks. Implementing this kind of scheduling technique will help attract a stronger talent pool because, as Lori Darley states, “workers are attracted to flexible arrangements because they believe the freedom will help them stay motivated, save their company money and let them get more done.” Additionally, your longtime employees are more likely stay at your company if offered the option to utilize flextime.
Con: Flextime can hurt communication among employees and management
As Fast Company reports, the number one problem with flextime is its negative effect on communication. Time conflicts will inevitably arise when arranging meetings, interviews, and training. To address this problem, HR should establish specific core hours of the day for employees to be present as well as communication protocol.
Pro: Flextime increases job satisfaction among employees
Employees tend to have a greater rapport if offered the opportunity to have flextime. As Entrepreneur states, employees “tend to work harder and in a more dedicated fashion to hold on to their now-perfect schedule and re-balance their lives.” With this improved work-life balance, it’s possible that employees will be more likely to have increased job satisfaction and productivity.
Con: Some employees will not know how to use or take advantage of flextime
Flexible and alternative schedules can only function if all parties make it work. Again, companies can best approach this issue through HR policy, where both the employee and management will stay on the same page and there will be no room for confusion. Separately, tensions could arise between employees who utilize flextime and employees who don’t. HR can help in this capacity, too, by intervening to ensure everyone is offered flextime benefits and to maintain clear communication between all employees.
Flextime could be just what your employees need. For more information on other alternative work environments, check out our blog post, “Adapt your approach: HR in the age of remote work.”
If you want to talk more about human resources, give us a call at 502-215-0561. We’re always happy to help!