Public and Commercial Services Union

27 January 2009

Flexible working in defence estates

Over the past few months our union has been contacted by members and branches across Defence estates (DE) seeking advice and guidance on flexible working.

Many PCS members in DE have been told by their line manager that they cannot work flexibly despite requesting to do so. In other areas management replicate the system operated by relevant, local TLB's despite this not being fit for purpose for DE staff. Finally, some branches have seen requests to negotiate improvements to their own system rejected by the employer.

We are aware that these responses are not acceptable to members and branches and they are not acceptable to our union either.

PCS first raised our members concerns about flexible working with the DE chief executive in the summer of 2008. We asked for a TLB wide policy on flexible working to be agreed with PCS.

As a result of our demands a meeting was set up with HR staff from DE to discuss such a policy. In advance of the meeting we provided management with examples of how other TLBs have agreed such an approach with PCS. DE could simply have rebranded this work for there own staff.

Incredibly, DE management informed us at the meeting that they were ‘too busy’ to reach an agreement with us on flexible working and that local managers were best placed to make decisions on requests from staff (despite evidence that in some areas flexible working requests have been refused).

MOD policy

MOD has clear policy, rules and guidance on flexible working - The important documents are “Working Patterns” and also “The Statutory Right to Request Flexible Working Arrangements”. These documents are available on the MOD intranet and are attached below as Annex A and Annex B.

The guidance is very straightforward and makes clear that “All MOD civilian staff may request a non standard working arrangement via the established MOD policy and requests should be agreed where the proposal enables the business needs to be met”. In other words all DE staff have the right to request flexible working and management must grant this unless they can evidence why it won’t meet local business needs.

Flexible working can include – part time work, part time irregular hours, job share/job spilt, flexible working hours, compressed hours, home working and other variations.

Take action

PCS is asking every member to help us win the right to work flexibly across DE.

You have the right to request to work flexibly, and if management refuse to discuss this with us then we should demand the right to work flexibly formally. We are asking all members of PCS in DE who want to work flexibly, or change their flexible working arrangements to:

1. Contact your union. Please email Paul Barnsley, the PCS lead in DE at paulba@pcs.org.uk or call Paul on 0207 801 2645
2. We will work with you to put in a written application to your line manager for flexible working for the pattern you wish to request.
3. Your line manager must consider your request carefully and look at what arrangements can be put in place to meet your request.
4. Your line manager should meet with you to discuss your request. PCS will arrange for you to be accompanied to this meeting by one of our representatives if you wish.
5. If your request is not upheld we will help you to lodge a formal grievance against DE.

Please note that this process can be followed individually, PCS can work with you and your colleagues to undertake this process collectively.

Time to take a stand

It is incredible that DE believes that it can dismiss the rights of staff to request flexible working. It is appalling that they refuse to even discuss seriously this issue with our union.

We cannot sit back and let senior management treat us in this way. You have the right to decent terms and conditions, and you have the same rights as other civil servants in MOD to work in a way that helps you balance work with the rest of your life.

We can do something about this – together. Let’s make 2009 when we all enjoy the right to flexible working!

Keeping members informed

The active engagement and support of members is critical. All of us need to play our part in developing a strong and healthy union in DE.

We need fellow members to help us distribute leaflets other members in DE and to help out in other ways too! The time involved is as much as you wish to spare. Please also get in touch with your local branch rep if you wish to receive future copies of this bulletin or wish to get further involved in our union.

Annex A - PRG, Working Patterns

Description

The Policy, Rules and Guidance (PRG) for you as a manager or as an employee on managing working patterns, explaining the hours you are expected to attend and what to do if you cannot attend, and how to apply for and authorise an alternative working pattern if applicable.

Equality and diversity impact

This policy has been equality and diversity impact assessed in accordance with Departmental Equality and Diversity Proofing Tool against;
Part 1 screening only completed (no direct discrimination or adverse impact identified). This policy is due for review in July 2011.

Overview

The MOD provides a range of working patterns that support the matching of business needs with those of the individual.

Working Patterns are categorised as either full time standard or alternative. It is departmental policy that both categories of working pattern are to be supported where the nature of your business allows.Referring to them by different terms simply recognises that alternative working patterns need additional processes to establish and maintain them that are not needed for a standard working pattern.

All staff can request an alternative working pattern, and managers are encouraged to meet requests from staff whenever possible. Some staff also have a legal right to make a request for an alternative working pattern: please refer to The Statutory Right to Request Flexible Working Arrangements. However staff do not have a right to work an alternative working pattern.

A full time standard working pattern covers someone working their full time conditioned hours on a fixed basis spread over a five day week, normally Monday to Friday or for shift workers, in accordance with how their conditioned hours are rostered.

An alternative working pattern covers:

• Part time.
• Part time irregular hours.
• Permanent part year appointment
• Job share or job split.
• Flexible working hours (FWH).
• Staggered hours.
• Alternate weeks.
• Compressed hours.
• 9 day fortnight.
• 4 day or 4.5 day weeks.
• Home working.

Whether a full time standard or alternative working pattern is being worked, individuals and managers have obligations that must be adhered to in terms of attendance and absence record keeping; notifying the workplace when they are late for work or absent; taking rest breaks and meal breaks; and complying with The Working Time Regulations policy.

Who does this apply to?

The following are not covered by this policy although individual areas may have alternative patterns:

• Former MOD employees, pensioners and dependents.
• Prospective employees.
• Fee earners and contractors.

The following analogue grades have significant policy variations

• Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA)seagoing personnel see RFA sea going appointments - working patterns & leave and RFA shore appointment - working patterns & leave.
• Defence Fire & Rescue Service (DFRS) see DFRS Working Patterns.
• Teaching grades see Attendance Policy for Teachers.

Alternative working patterns do not apply to the following groups:
 

• Graduate Engineers &Scientists (managed by Defence Engineering Science Group (Technicians & Maritime Engineers).
• Apprentices.
• Locally engaged civilians.
• Staff on personal contracts.
• People seconded or on loan to the MOD from Other Government Departments (OGDs), industry and academia or on work experience placement.

Ta 1 – policy that applies to working patterns

- for you as an employee or line manager

What you need to know

Attendance

1. Your attendance must be in accordance with the arrangements applying to your work area and you must work your conditioned hours. If you do not attend regularly, you may be liable to disciplinary or restoring efficiency action and pay may be deducted. Full details are contained in Minor Discipline Offences and Restoring Efficiency - Sick Absence. Ministry of Defence Police (MDP) officers should refer to MDP Conduct regulations, see - Statutory Instrument 2004 No. 653: The Ministry of Defence Police (Conduct) Regulations 2004 and Statutory Instrument 2004 No. 654: The Ministry of Defence Police (Conduct) (Senior Officers) Regulations 2004.

2. If you have an emergency that keeps you away from work, you must let your line manager know within 2 hours of your normal start time or arrange for someone else to do so. Shift workers must notify their line manager before the start of the shift. Then, if need be, your line manager can arrange extra cover and moreover does not assume you are absent without authorisation. Please refer to Reporting and Certifying Sickness Absence.

Sick Absence

3. If you are absent from work for longer than 14 days, unless you are a new starter in your first year, you are considered to have had excessive sick absence and an automated 'Managing Sickness Absence Report' will be sent to your line manager. In such circumstances restoring efficiency procedures may be started. Please refer to the Restoring Efficiency - Sick Absence

4. You must comply with any rules in force at your place of work for entering and leaving the establishment and for recording your time of arrival and departure. The place for recording time whether by clock cards or by other means, should be as near to your normal place of work as is practicable. Payment for “walking time” - that is to say the time it takes for you to walk from the entrance of the establishment to the time recording point at the beginning of the day, or at the end of the day, is not usually given and is only allowed in exceptional circumstances with the prior agreement of the Head of Establishment.

Conditioned Hours on Change of Work Location

5. When you change your work location – or transfer – within the UK or to/from overseas, you will adopt the conditioned hours (and working times) of your new establishment. This applies whether your transfer is permanent or temporary.

Liability to Work Extra Duty at Times of Operational Crisis

6. All staff are liable to work extra duty at times of operational crisis if needed, except those less than 18 years of age, who should normally work only the conditioned hours for their grade. However, if they wish to work overtime or undertake other additional duties, including night duty at times of operational crisis, they may do so provided there is suitable supervision. Please refer to Working Time Regulations.

7. Overtime working at times of operational crisis should be done by volunteers as far as possible but whenever the need to work overtime cannot be met by volunteers, staff required to work overtime are, wherever possible, to be given at least 48 hours notice. This may not be applicable to certain groups of Industrial staff or MDP officers. MDP officers should also refer to MDP Overtime. Defence medical grades should refer to Overtime for National Health Service (NHS) Grades. Please see Working Time Regulations.

8. The compensation arrangements for these duties are set out in the Pay Details and Enquiries. (Defence medical grades should refer to the Overtime PRG for NHS grades.) You can choose between payment for the hours worked or Time Off in Lieu. (This also applies to MDP officers.) Heads of establishments must review arrangements that incur this expenditure to make sure they are essential. Please also refer to the School Children’s Education (SCE) Soulbury Pay and Additional Hours.

Industrial Action

9. If you are absent from work because you are taking industrial action that time does not count towards the completion of your conditioned hours. Please refer to the guidance in Other Special Leave and Absence and Our approach to Employee Relations.

Unauthorised Absence

10. This refers to any absence that is without your line manager’s prior authorisation, or when you return from a period of unauthorised absence and cannot give a satisfactory explanation for it. In these circumstances your pay will be stopped for the period of the absence or a deduction made from your Annual Leave. Procedures for dealing with this are set out in Unauthorised Absence From Work. MDP officers should refer to MDP Conduct Regulations, see Statutory Instrument 2004 No. 653: The Ministry of Defence Police (Conduct) Regulations 2004 and Statutory Instrument 2004 No. 654: The Ministry of Defence Police (Conduct) (Senior Officers) Regulations 2004.

Late Attendance

Transport Disruption

11. You may have to travel some distance either by public or private transport which may at times be subject to delays which are beyond your control – for example: traffic congestion, signal failure, unfavourable weather conditions or industrial action by transport providers. In such cases your line management should take a sympathetic approach, while satisfying themselves that the reasons you have given are genuine. The distance involved does not excuse lateness, irregularity of attendance or justify adjusting hours of attendance. If you are working a Flexible Working Hours (FWH) pattern the rules provide for such eventualities so that you are not disadvantaged when compared with colleagues who are not on FWH. Please refer to Flexible Working Hours.

12. When faced with any of these situations you are to consider the following:
 

• Hazardous weather conditions can have a serious effect on public and private transport. When it occurs overnight, you should do all you reasonably can to attend work either by making use of any public transport it is practicable for you to do so, or by using your own transport if that is possible. You are expected to walk up to 3 miles each way from home to office, depending always on weather conditions and on your state of health. If you arrive late because of these conditions, you may be paid at the appropriate rate for those hours, provided the Head of your Establishment is satisfied that you have made every effort to attend on time; flexi-credit may be given to you if you are on FWH to bring you up to your standard conditioned hours.
• If hazardous weather conditions develop during the course of the working day, you may be sent home early without loss of pay. If you are on FWH, flexi-credit may be given.
• Transport affected by Industrial Action. You will normally be given warning through the media of industrial action by transport workers. You are expected to make use of alternative methods of transport where available. If you live 3 miles from your place of work or less, (depending on your state of health) you will be expected to walk to work. If you cannot travel to work, you will be encouraged to take suitable unclassified work home with you.

Essential Staff

13. You may be designated by your line manager as “essential staff”. If you are, and you are unable to attend work due to a transport emergency, you should wherever possible stay in private accommodation e.g. with relatives or friends so that you will be able to attend work. If this is not possible you may have to sleep at the office overnight or be given authority by line management to stay in hotel-type accommodation at public expense.

Subsistence Allowances

14. If you find yourself affected by any of the circumstances described above, you may be able to claim necessary additional costs – see Civilian Detached Duty Expenses for details. You are not eligible for reimbursement if you get shift allowance which takes account of irregular attendance of hours (unless you work an extra shift over and above that rostered).

Task 2 – understand full time working patterns, for you as an employee or as a line manager

What you need to know

Arrangement of the working week

1. For most staff, pay is linked to a specified number of hours of attendance spread over a 5 day week, known as “conditioned hours”. Although the MOD has the right to call on staff at any time, this must comply with the Working Time Regulations - see Working Time Regulations.

A culture of working long hours, above and beyond conditioned hours and particularly on a regular basis, is discouraged by the Department. As a line manager, you should discourage staff from working beyond their conditioned hours to provide staff with an opportunity to balance their commitments at work and outside work.

2. Where staff work weeks of unequal length, for example on shifts, their weekly average hours worked over a period should equal their conditioned hours. Before departing from the normal 5-day week, line managers should consult their Top Level Budget holder (TLB), Trades Unions and the staff affected. See Our approach to Employee Relations and Pay Details and Enquiries for more information.

3. Unless there are core hours of business specified by the nature of the business, there are no definite start and finish times within the conditioned hours, but where there are, for example, pressures on public transport, as a line manager you may wish to allow staggered starts/finishes. It is the responsibility of individual units to specify standard starting and finishing hours in consultation with the Trade Unions. For defence medical grades conditioned hours see Working Time Regulations within the Defence Medical Service.

4. Full time conditioned hours are expressed as:

For non-industrial staff:

A gross figure, which includes meal breaks; or a net figure, which excludes meal breaks;
Weekly conditioned hours are 41 gross in the London pay area (inner and outer London Weighting zones), 42 gross elsewhere;
Operational theatres - in all operational theatres the conditioned hours are 42 hours gross and 37 net;
Non-Industrial Meal breaks - all full time non-industrial staff are entitled to a 1 hour meal break and it is mandatory that you take a minimum of one half hour break. Line managers are to make sure that the meal break is normally taken. This may be varied where:
 

• shorter periods are taken to meet the requirements of management or staff;
• there are patterns for FWH;
• transport facilities are limited. A shorter period may be allowed to fit in with the transport service.

If there is no management requirement for staff to work through their meal break, then they should be discouraged from doing so.

For industrial staff:

36 hours net in the London pay area, 37 hours net elsewhere; on US bases certain 39 hour working week arrangements apply to some staffs who receive additional leave entitlement to compensate for extra hours worked.

Industrial lunch breaks - industrial staff have no paid lunch breaks but must take at least ½ hour unpaid break. Hours of attendance are normally spread over 5 days of the week (Monday to Friday). Exceptions may occur in the case of employees who, by the nature of their duties or because of the function of their establishment, provide a service outside normal working hours;

Industrial tea and meal breaks - special conditions apply to meal breaks at certain establishments and, where these apply, the employees concerned will be advised accordingly. Any additional meal breaks which may be taken, for example prior to or during overtime working, must be unpaid. See Working Time Regulations for more information.
Timetables of daily working hours and meal breaks must be fixed at each establishment in consultation with the local industrial Whitley Committee. These will be determined by the needs of the establishment, taking into account local transport systems;

Apprentices (Craft and Technician) - are required to work normal industrial hours except when receiving training in for example drawing offices, laboratories, Integrated Project Teams, or placements in industry or when attending academic courses at Further Education colleges. On these occasions staff are expected to conform to the hours of those organisations. This will not alter your rates of pay.

Shift working – Non-industrial and industrial

Arrangement of the working week: Shifts can be arranged over a 5 or 7-day week and wherever possible shift rosters should be arranged so that staff have a minimum of 104 rest days each year in addition to their annual leave, public and privilege holiday entitlements. If you are an MGS Shift worker it may become necessary to alter your rostered shift for operational reasons. A minimum of 48 hours notice must given. Should you be required to work on a rostered Rest Day, an alternative Rest Day will be given.

Rest days should be given in pairs wherever possible. See Annual Leave, and Working Time Regulations.

Change of Shifts

5. Employees whose work involves continuous shifts must remain at their place of work until a replacement arrives, except where they have been given special permission to leave by their supervisor.

6. The introduction of shift working in an area where it was not previously undertaken is subject to joint consultation with the Trades Unions concerned. See Our approach to Employee Relations. Details of shift agreements can be found in Permanent Allowances.

MDP officers Shift Working – MDP Officers

7. Full time Constables and Sergeants are conditioned to 40 hours in any 7 day period or, where Variable Shift Arrangements (VSAs) are operated; 160 hours aggregated over a 4 week roster period. See MDP shift working. Inspectors and above have no formal conditioned hours and are required to attend for such hours, and on such days, necessary for performance of duty. Refreshment breaks are 45 minutes and 60 minutes for 8 and 12 hour shifts respectively.

Variable Shift Arrangements (VSAs) - MDP Officers

8. VSAs may be introduced with the consent of at least 75% of both full and part time officers, in a ballot, who are members of the Defence Police Federation (DPF) at the station concerned. The Senior Police Officer (SPO) should ensure that non member views are considered. Full details are contained in MDP shift working.
Shift Working – Defence Medical workers
See Implementation of Working Time Regulations within the Defence Medical Service.

Full Time Irregular Hours (Annualised Hours)

9. Annualised hours appointments are a type of contract whereby conditioned hours are worked over a year rather than week. This means people can work according to the peaks and troughs of activity over the year. This is often linked to changing day length and seasons of the year e.g. hang gliding instructors, who work mainly long days in the summer months. Leave entitlement is converted into hours and deducted to reflect the days of work missed. Payment is for net hours worked.

Descriptions of alternative working patterns

Part time

1. Part time is where staff work a number of hours less than conditioned hours, as agreed with line management. This arrangement can be very flexible and therefore be used to cover a wide range of needs both for the individual and the Department e.g. Term Time Only Working.

2. If this working arrangement is adopted you will require a change to your terms and conditions of service and a new contract will be issued to you by the People Pay and Pensions Agency (PPPA) to reflect changes in your hours worked and new leave arrangements.

3. Part time staff are not entitled to a paid meal break (except MDP part time officers). If you work over 6 hours in a day you must take an unpaid break of at least 20 minutes in accordance with the Working Time Regulations. See Working Time Regulations for further details. MDP part time officers are entitled to a paid refreshment break determined by the length of shift worked. See MDP shift working.

4. MDP officers who work part time will have Duty Days, Public Holidays, Rest Days and Free Days shown on their rosters. A Free Day is defined as any day on which a shift is not rostered to begin and is not a rostered Rest Day or Public Holiday. Compensation for working on a Free Day can be found in the MDP Overtime PRG.

5. Your leave will be converted into hours as will your privilege, (where there is an entitlement), public and bank holidays. See Annual Leave and Annual Leave - Public and Privilege Holidays.

Part time irregular hours

6. Staff may be employed on an “irregular” basis (e.g. a contract which
specifies up to, say, a maximum of 50 days or hours equivalent in any one year). This situation arises when it may not be possible to specify the weekly or monthly hours which the individual will be required to work. Instead, the individual agrees to be present as required or the hours they can commit to.

Permanent part-year appointments

7. Permanent part-year appointments are a type of part-time work in which staff are appointed to work less than 52 weeks a year. The arrangement can be used, for example to recruit people for seasonal work where staff are not required to be in attendance for the whole year. The number and arrangement of the weeks of attendance are for the manager and the prospective employee to agree.

Job share or job split

8. This arrangement of work is one way in which part-time staff often work to share the duties of a post with another individual. It is preferable that jobs are defined as a collection of individual tasks which are allocated on that basis, rather than allocating an element of every task to the individuals. You will agree between yourselves and your line manager how the work will be divided to meet your needs and the needs of the business. You and your line manager may decide to split the work into two separate sets of duties with your job share partner.

Alternate weeks

9. This is where staff can work one week on and have the second week free: usually used by part time staff or job sharers.

Partial retirement

10. Partial retirement is intended to enable staff to prepare for full retirement by allowing them to reduce their working hours and to take some or all of their accrued pension benefits. Your leave entitlement will be converted into hours as will your privilege, (where there is an entitlement), public and bank holidays. See Annual Leave and Age Retirement.

Compressed hours

11. There is the opportunity to compress hours into a shorter working week. As conditioned hours are normally worked, pay is unaffected. MOD operates the following types of compressed hours but line managers should be willing to consider other patterns:
 

• Nine day fortnight – this is where you work your conditioned hours spread over two weeks. During the two weeks you will work longer days as agreed with line management, so that you will have worked all your conditioned hours over nine days allowing you to have one day off every two week period.
• 4 day working week – this is where you work your conditioned hours spread over four days instead of five.
• 4 ½ day working week – this is where you can work your conditioned hours over 4 ½ days, therefore working longer days from Monday to Thursday and then half a day on Friday. By Friday at 13.00hrs you should have worked your weekly conditioned hours allowing you to leave work. Individuals working a 4 ½ day week must convert leave, including public, privilege (where there is an entitlement), and bank holidays into hours. See Annual Leave.

12. Business Units wishing to implement a collective agreement to work a 4½ day week should refer to Guidelines for the Collective Introduction of 4 ½ day week.

NB: Part time rules will apply for all the above alternative working patterns and your leave, public, privilege (where there is an entitlement), and bank holidays will be converted into hours. See Annual Leave and Annual Leave - Public and Privilege Holidays

Home working

13. This is an arrangement where you use your home as a regular place of work most of the time or part of the time on a regular basis. See Home working for more information.

Staggered Hours

14. This arrangement is where you work a normal five day week but stagger your start and finish times by arrangement with your line manager.

Flexible working hours

15. This is where you can arrange to work hours to suit your individual needs. This should be recorded appropriately, either manually on a FWH sheet or mechanically by means of an installed Flexi machine at your establishment. FWH may be used in conjunction with several other working patterns. See Flexible Working Hours. Please note that FWH does not apply to MDP Officers.

What you need to do

1. Identify which working pattern you wish to request.
2. Investigate the impact of your proposal – on other colleagues, your pay, the budget and on the workload.
3. Check that your work tasks are suitable to the proposed working pattern.
4. Approach your line manager with your business case, which should include the above.
5. Be prepared to discuss and reach a compromise if necessary.
6. If your proposal is agreed, make the necessary arrangements with your line manager, including the completion of PPPA Form 080 Notification of Change of Working Pattern if there are implications for pay or a change to your terms and conditions.
7. If your proposal is refused discuss with your line manager whether there are any alternative solutions.

What you as a manager need to know

1. The Department provides and supports a range of working patterns and expect managers to carefully consider any requests
2. There is a statutory right for staff with young or disabled children or who have caring responsibilities, to request the right to work flexibly and the Department has a duty to consider such requests. The Department strongly encourages individuals to consider using the MOD’s policy before using this right as this procedure is bound by legislation and is therefore much more formal. See the Related Links – Find Out About The Statutory Right to Request Flexible Working Patterns.
3. The benefits of alternative working patterns can include:

 

• Reduced absenteeism
• Improved staff retention
• Higher productivity
• Increased/new talent pool
• Increased staff morale
• Elimination of punctuality problems
• Ability to match working hours with “peaks and troughs’ of work
   

What you need to know

1. Carefully consider all requests – including looking at what organisational changes can be made to meet requests.
2. Fully discuss the request with the individual and if necessary your own line management.
3. If the proposal is not entirely acceptable, you may wish to consider an alternative proposal.
4. Ensure consultation with Trade Unions is undertaken where required. See Our approach to Employee Relations.
5. If you agree a working pattern which changes pay and/or, terms and conditions you must complete PPPA form 080 Notification of Change of Working Pattern (see Related Documents) and send it to the PPPA to make the changes. Give a copy to the employee and set a review date with the employee (at least 6 months).

Tips for the employee

Q1. What happens if I am absent because I go on strike?

If you are absent owing to industrial action, the absence will not count towards the completion of conditioned hours. See Other Special Leave and Absence and Our approach to Employee Relations.

Q2. If I am on detached duty to another station, which conditioned hours do I work – my usual station or my temporary work station?

If you are away on detached duty (formerly “short term detached duty”) you should keep to the conditioned hours of your home duty station. The exception to this is if the working practice of the temporary station means that the establishment closes before your conditioned hours are met. For example, a business trip from London (41 conditioned hours) to Saudi Arabia (37 conditioned hours). See Changing Work Location to or from Overseas Areas for more information.

Q3. What should I think about before putting in a request to work an alternative pattern?
 

• The business case
• The effect on your colleagues
• How a possible change in pay might affect you
• How your pension might be affected
• How your Annual Leave might be affected
• How your work objectives might change
• What effect any change will have on your family
• Are there any other cost implications
• Will you need any additional training
• What are the health and safety and security implications
   

Q4. Can I ask to revert back to my original working pattern?

This is an agreement between you and your line manager so if things are not working or your circumstances have changed, you can request either to revert or to adopt a different working pattern.

This request may not necessarily be granted but you should be told the business reasons why this is so.

If you adopted this working pattern as a result of a statutory rights request, your contract will have changed and so reversion to your original working arrangement may be more difficult although not impossible.

Q5. If I change jobs can I keep my alternative working pattern?

When applying for an internal job, you are given the opportunity to state your preferred alternative working pattern. You cannot be sifted out for requesting an alternative working pattern.

You and the prospective line manager must be flexible in seeking to reach an agreement on working hours and patterns, but you should not assume you have a right to your preference.

Meeting the business needs is the key factor but this must not assume that only standard hours are appropriate. See Internal Recruitment and Moving Posts Internally.

Q6. Can I apply to work part- time via the Job Search Update?

Yes. All job requisitions are required to be open to part-timers unless an exemption is given from the PPPA.

The advert in the job search update should state that it has an exemption and that the post is not open to part-timers.

While a post may be available for part-time work, accepting the post does not mean automatic approval of part time employment. You will still need to make application to the line manager.

Q7. If I am in a job-share and I want to apply for a Job Search update post or MDP advertised post which is a full time post will I have to find a job share partner?

No. It is the line manager’s duty to find someone else, but you are not prevented from doing so.

Q8. If I work part time, when should I take my 20 minute break?

You may work up to 6 hours per day without a break. If you work over 6 hours, you must take your break during the working day and then resume work.

The 20 minute break is designed with your health and safety in mind to give you adequate rest in accordance with The Working Time Regulations. Please see Working Time Regulations. The break should not, therefore, be taken at the end of the working day.

Q9. If I am refused the alternative working pattern I have applied for? Can I appeal?

No. There is no appeal system. If your line manager has refused the pattern of work you have requested there should be sound business reasons, and your line manager will be prepared to discuss your needs and where possible will offer you an alternative working pattern which also meets the needs of the Department. If still not satisfied you can raise a grievance - see Handling Grievances and Complaints.

Q10. I have a part-time irregular hours contract. How do my leave entitlement differ to full time staff?

Your entitlements are the same but proportionate to the number of days or net hours you work in the week and to the length of your qualifying service. Your leave is calculated in hours. See Annual Leave and Annual Leave - Public and Privilege Holidays.

Q11. I am a probationer Constable, are there any other issues I need to consider?

Before submitting an application, probationers are reminded there is a requirement to complete a Personal Development Portfolio (PDP) within a two year period from the date the officer joined the MDP. Probationers must also undertake mandatory training and be exposed to a full range of shifts, including nights.

If you wish to apply for flexible working you must give full consideration as to how these requirements will be met. Details should be included in your application.

Tips for the line manager

Q1. What are the consequences of unauthorised absence?

In the case of unauthorised absence without a satisfactory explanation, pay must be stopped for the period of the absence or a deduction made from the employee’s annual leave. See Unauthorised Absence From Work for more details.

Absences as a result of being sent home:

In all other cases, there may be consequences for an individual’s

• entitlement to leave;
• allowances;
• FWH;
• overtime;
• voluntary deductions from pay;
• probation and trial service;
• superannuation – whole days of unauthorised absence will not count
• as qualifying or reckonable service.

See the Major Discipline Offences for more guidance.

Q2. A storm has just hit and transport is a mess. What do I do?

If hazardous weather conditions develop during the course of the working day, you may send your staff home early without loss of pay. If they are on FWH, you may give a flexi-credit.

Q3. A member of my staff has asked to be released from shift work as they say it is becoming too difficult for them as they are getting older.

Although age is not a barrier to employment on shift work, consideration must be given to an individual’s physical ability to perform their duties, and request from older staff to be taken off shift work should be considered sympathetically. Similarly requests from those with caring responsibilities or who are ill or pregnant, should also be considered sympathetically provided that there is a genuine medical reason backed up by Occupational Health advice and management’s consideration of the needs of the business.

Q4. How often should work patterns be reviewed?

You should review alternative work patterns at least 6 monthly. You should discuss this when you do your half yearly performance review.

If the working pattern no longer meets the needs of the business, then there should be sound business reasons, and you should be prepared to discuss the individual’s needs and where possible offer an alternative working pattern which also meets the needs of the Department.

Q5. What are the differences between the MOD policy and the Statutory Right To Request Flexible Working Arrangements policy -which should I use?

The key differences are:
 

• The MOD policy is open to all staff.
• The MOD policy is an agreement between the line manager and the individual and is not permanent. There is therefore no need to make a change to individual’s contract unless the number of hours worked are affected. The change to an individual’s working patterns can therefore easily be changed if situations change. This is generally the most flexible and easy to use policy and applicable to most situations.
• The MOD policy has no appeal process although line managers must give a justified business reason for denying a request and wherever possible find an alternative solution to meet the needs of the individual and the business. Individuals can, if still not satisfied, raise a grievance using MOD policy. See Handling Grievances and Complaints.
• The Statutory Right applies only to staff with young or disabled children or who have caring responsibilities and you can only make one application per 12 month period
• The Statutory Right is underpinned by legislation and any change to the individual’s terms and conditions of employment, resulting from an application, will become permanent with no rights to revert back to the original working arrangement (unless otherwise agreed). However, there is no automatic right to flexible working and requests can be refused if there are clear business reasons for doing so. The Statutory Right has an appeal process which could result in Employment Tribunals.

Annex B - The statutory rights to request flexible working arrangements

Description

The policies and rules that apply when, as an employee, you wish to apply for flexible working using The Statutory Right, and, as a line manager what you must do when responding to requests.

Equality and diversity impact assessment

This policy has been equality and diversity proofed in accordance with the Department’s Equality and Diversity Proofing Tool against
Part 1 Assessment only as this policy is a reflection of legal requirements and has been cleared by a Legal Adviser. This policy is due for review on 31 March 09.

Overview

The Employment Act 2002 establishes a statutory right for eligible employees with children under the age of six or children who are disabled under the age of eighteen to request a flexible working pattern and it places a duty on employers to consider such requests following set procedures.

From 6th April 2007 the law will extend the right to request flexible working to carers of adults under the Work and Families Act 2006.

The statutory right is underpinned by a right to complain to an employment tribunal in the event that the Department fails to comply with the duties imposed on it by the legislation or bases a rejection of an application on incorrect facts.

Who does this apply to?

All MOD Civilian employees. This guidance is for use by staff who are eligible to apply under this statutory right.

For you as an employee - what you need to know

1. All MOD civilian staff may request a non standard working arrangement via the established MOD policy and requests should be agreed where the proposal enables the business needs to be met.

2. If you are an employee who cares for a child under six, a disabled child under eighteen or an adult you are eligible to make a request for a non standard working arrangement under the statutory scheme described in this guidance.

3. All staff (apart from a few non standard occupational groups) are entitled to request alternative working patterns under existing MOD arrangements. See under Related Documents - Working Patterns.

4. Since any change to the terms and conditions of your employment resulting from an application under the statutory right will be permanent (although there would be no obstacle to agreeing a further variation of those terms with the Department at a later date), you may wish to pursue your request for a non standard working arrangement via the existing MOD contractual arrangements as, depending on your circumstances and the nature of your request, it may be possible to accommodate the flexible working pattern you seek under existing arrangements without the need for a formal variation of your contractual terms.

5. The statutory right to request flexible working is only open to eligible staff who care for a child under six years of age or under 18 if the child is disabled i. e. entitled to Disability Living Allowance or an adult. An application can only be made in order to help a member of staff to care for the child or adult in need of care. Applications cannot be made for any other purpose.

To be eligible employees must:

• Have been continuously employed by the Department for a period of no less that 26 weeks at the date the application is made
• Have a child aged under six, or under 18 in the case of a disabled child
• Be the mother, father, adopter, guardian or foster parent of the child, or are married to or the partner of the child’s mother, father, adopter, guardian or foster parent
• Have or expect to have responsibility for the upbringing of the child and making the application to enable them to care for the child
• Make the application before the child’s sixth birthday or 18th birthday in the case of a disabled child
• • Be or expect to be the carer of someone who:

- Is your spouse, partner or civil partner

- Is your relative

- Lives at the same address

• Not be agency workers or members of the Armed Forces
• Have not made another application to work flexibly under the right during the past 12 months, regardless of whether it was made in respect of a different caring responsibility

6. If you are not eligible from the above list remember you can still request a non standard working arrangement under existing MOD arrangements. See under Related Documents - Working Patterns.

7. Any request that is made and accepted under the statutory right will be a permanent change to your contractual terms and conditions (unless other wise agreed). You have no right to revert back to the previous working pattern.

8. There is no automatic right to work flexibly. The right places a legal duty on the Department to consider all applications and establish whether the desired work pattern can be accommodated within the needs of the business. However, an application may only be refused where the Department has clear business reasons for doing so.

9. You do not have to specify in your application the reason you require a change in terms and conditions.

10. You are limited to one application per year using this right.

11. Should the Department subsequently discover that an employee who has made an application has misled the Department and never intended to use the flexible working pattern to enable him/her to care for the child, then the Department may take disciplinary action. See under Related Links Conduct and behaviour.

What you need to do

1. You will need to apply in writing and your application must:

• State clearly that it is being made under the statutory right to request a flexible working pattern.
• Confirm that you have responsibility for the upbringing of a child in line with the eligibility criteria.
• Set out your flexible work pattern proposal.
• Explain what effect, if any, you think the proposed change would have on your employer and how, in your opinion, any such effect might be dealt with.
• State the date on which you would like the proposed changes to come into effect.
• State whether a previous application has been made to the Department and, if so, when it was made.
• Be dated and then sent to your line manager.

2. Within 28 days of receipt of your application by your line manager you must meet to consider your request and explore alternative solutions. (It is your line manager’s duty to organise this meeting. The meeting need not take place where the proposed variation is agreed.)

3. You have the right to be accompanied at the meeting by a Trade Union representative, staff association representative, friend or colleague. You will therefore need to make arrangements if you wish to exercise this right. The meeting will be held at an appropriate time and place that is convenient for both parties.

4. If your proposal is approved your line manager will notify PPPA of your change and PPPA will arrange for a new contract to be prepared for your signature. PPPA will need to advise pay/pension for any necessary action.

5. If your request is refused you are entitled to appeal against a decision within 14 days of your receiving written notice of the decision. The notice of appeal must be in writing, must set out the grounds for making the appeal and must be dated. There are no constraints on the grounds under which you can appeal. You may wish to bring to attention something your line manager was not previously aware of or challenge a fact your line manager quoted to explain why a business reason applies. Your appeal must be submitted to your Countersigning Officer who must hold a meeting with you to hear your appeal. This should take place within 14 days of the date on which you gave notice of your appeal. You have the same right to be accompanied at that meeting as you did on the initial meeting.

6. A meeting need not take place where, within the 14-day period, your Countersigning Officer upholds the appeal and notifies you of his/her decision in writing. The notice must specify the contract variation agreed to and the date from which it is to take effect.

7. When a meeting is held, your Countersigning Officer must inform you of the outcome of the appeal in writing within 14 days of the meeting. Again if your appeal is upheld the notice must include a description of the new working pattern, state the date from which it is to take effect, and be dated. If your appeal is dismissed, the notice must state the grounds for the decision and provide an explanation as to why the grounds for refusal apply in the circumstances, and be dated. A copy of the decision will be placed on our Personal File.

8. If, even after an appeal, you feel that your application has not been dealt with to your satisfaction, you should consider firstly speaking to your line manager informally and secondly using the MOD grievance procedure. See under Related Links – Handling grievances and complaints.

9. You may only make a complaint to an employment tribunal or to the ACAS Arbitration Scheme where;

• The Department has failed to follow the prescribed procedure properly, or
• The Department’s decision to reject your application was based on incorrect facts.

For you as a manager - what you need to know

1. All MOD civilian staff may request a non standard working arrangement via the established MOD policy and requests should be agreed where the proposal enables the business needs to be met.

2. Any change to the terms and conditions of employment resulting from an application under the Statutory Right will be permanent, although there would be no obstacle to agreeing a further variation of those terms with the individual at a later date.

3. However individuals may wish to pursue their request for a non standard working arrangement via the existing MoD arrangements; depending on their circumstances and the nature of their request it may be possible to accommodate the flexible working pattern they seek without the need for a formal variation of their contractual terms. See under Related Documents Working Patterns.

4. The statutory right to request flexible working is only open to eligible staff who care for a child under six years of age or under 18 if the child is disabled i.e. entitled to Disability Living Allowance or an adult. An application can only be made in order to help a member of staff to care for the child or adult in need of care. Applications cannot be made for any other purpose.

5. To be eligible employees must:

• Have been continuously employed by the Department for a period of no less that 26 weeks at the date the application is made
• Have a child aged under six, or under 18 in the case of a disabled child
• Be the mother, father, adopter, guardian or foster parent of the child, or are married to or the partner of the child’s mother, father, adopter, guardian or foster parent
• Have or expect to have responsibility for the upbringing of the child and making the application to enable them to care for the child.
• Make the application before the child’s sixth birthday or 18th birthday in the case of a disabled child.
• Be or expect to be the carer of someone who:

- Is your spouse, partner, civil partner

- Is a relative

- Lives at the same address

• Not be agency workers or members of the Armed Forces
• Have not made another application to work flexibly under the right during the past 12 months regardless of whether it was made in respect of a different caring responsibility.

6. If they are not eligible from the above list remember they can still request a non standard working arrangement under existing MOD arrangements.

7. Any request that is made and accepted under the Statutory Right will be a permanent change to their contractual terms and conditions (unless other wise agreed). There is no right to revert back to the previous working pattern.

8. There is no automatic right to work flexibly. The right places a legal duty on the Department to consider all applications and establish whether the desired work pattern can be accommodated within the needs of the business. However, an application may only be refused where the Department has clear business reasons for doing so.

9. Individuals do not have to specify in their application the reason they require a change in terms and conditions.

10. Individuals are limited to one application per year using this right.

11. Should the Department subsequently discover that an employee who has made an application has lied and never intended to use the flexible working pattern to enable him/her to care for the child, then the Department may take disciplinary action.

What you need to do

1. It is important that you keep a full record of the right to request process to be able to demonstrate that the correct procedure was followed. At the start of the process PPPA should be informed and will issue you with a case number. This number should be used on all related paperwork. When the final outcome is decided the paperwork should be submitted to the PPPA to be kept as the official record.

2. You must acknowledge receipt of the request in writing, including the case number given by PPPA, on the day that the request is received. Within 28 days of receipt of an application you must hold a meeting with the member of staff to consider the request (unless you agree with the proposal). If the first date you propose is not acceptable for your member of staff you must rearrange within seven days of the initial date.

3. The purpose of the meeting is to provide both sides with the opportunity to explore the desired work pattern in depth and consider how it might be accommodated. It will also be an opportunity to consider whether there are any alternative working arrangements which may be appropriate if there are problems in accommodating the proposed pattern. You must therefore become familiar with other work patterns before you meet the member of staff.

4. If you do not intend to call a meeting because you agree with the new proposed pattern, you must notify the member of staff, in writing, within the 28-day period. The notice must specify the variation agreed and the date from which it is to take effect. The PPPA must be informed by the line manager and PPPA should make arrangements for a new contract to be sent to the individual and advise pay/pensions.

5. If you have held a meeting you must inform the member of staff of your decision, in writing, within 14 days of the meeting. If you accept the request, the notification must specify the variation agreed to, state the date on which it will start and be dated. If you reject the request, the notification must state
business ground(s) for refusing the application, provide a sufficient explanation as to why the business ground(s) for refusal applies in the circumstances, provide details of the right to reply request and be dated. PPPA should be informed.

6. If an individual appeals against your decision, you should notify the countersigning officer who will now need to be involved. The individual will write to the countersigning officer with the appeal.

What you need to do as a countersigning officer

1. If you receive a letter appealing against a decision for non standard working arrangements you must arrange a meeting to hear the appeal. This must take place within 14 days of the date on which the appeal notice was given. A meeting need not take place where within a 14-day period, you uphold the appeal and notify the individual in writing of your decision. When a meeting is held you must inform the individual of the outcome of the appeal in writing within 14 days of the meeting. In either case the notice must be dated, specify the contract variation agreed to, a description of the new working pattern, and the date from which it is to take effect. PPPA will need to be informed and will need to take necessary action.

2. If you decide to dismiss the appeal you must state the grounds for the decision and provide an explanation as to why the grounds for refusal apply in the circumstances, and be dated. PPPA will need to be informed of the final decision and the details of the process to show that it was adhered to correctly.

3. You should inform the individual that if they are still unhappy with the decision that they can use the MoD’s grievance procedure and that if they want to make a complaint to an employment tribunal or the Advisory, Conciliation & Arbitration Service ACAS that they can only doso (once they have used the Departments grievance procedure) where:

 

• The Department has failed to follow the prescribed procedure properly,or
• The Department’s decision to reject the application was based on incorrect facts

See under Related Links – Handling grievances and complaints.

Tips/hints for the individual

Make sure you are eligible to apply under the statutory right before using this guidance.

Q1. What if I or someone accompanying me cannot make the date of the meeting set to discuss my request?

Your line manager will seek to rearrange the meeting for a time convenient to all parties, but it should take place within seven days of the initial proposed meeting. If this cannot be achieved then you should consider making yourself available and/or finding an alternative individual who can attend the meeting.

Q2. Can I withdraw an application?

Yes. An application for flexible working may be treated as withdrawn when you have:

• Indicated, either orally or in writing, that you are withdrawing the
• application,
• Failed to attend two meetings without reasonable cause,or
• Refused without reasonable cause to provide the Department with the information it needs in order to assess whether the flexible working variation should be agreed Where you decide to withdraw your application, you should notify your line manager in writing as soon as possible. If you inform your line manager verbally you will be asked to confirm your intentions in writing.

If you fail to do this then your line manager will confirm the withdrawal in writing. If you do withdraw you will not be eligible to make another application. A copy of the withdrawal will be placed on your personal file.

Tips/hints for the line manager:

Make yourself familiar with the appeals process and inform your line manager of their potential involvement.

An application can be withdrawn. An application for flexible working may be treated as withdrawn when the individual has: 

• Indicated, either orally or in writing, that they are withdrawing the
• application
• Failed to attend two meetings without reasonable cause, or
• Refused without reasonable cause to provide the Department with the information it needs in order to assess whether the flexible working variation should be agreed.

Where they decide to withdraw their application, they should notify you in writing as soon as possible. If they inform you verbally, they should be asked to confirm their intentions in writing. If they fail to do this then you will confirm the withdrawal in writing.

If they do withdraw they will not be eligible to make another application within the next 12 months. A copy of the withdrawal will be placed on the Personal File.

Frequently asked questions

Q1. How do I determine what are good business grounds for refusing an application?

The business ground(s) for refusing an application must be from one of the following:

• Burden of additional costs
• Detrimental effect on ability to meet customer demand
• Inability to reorganise work among existing staff
• Inability to recruit additional staff
• Detrimental impact on quality
• Detrimental effect on performance
• Insufficiency of work during the periods the employee proposes to work
• Planned structural changes

Q2. What if I cannot for some reason meet the timings for the procedure?

Management and qualifying staff can agree to extend any of the time limits referred to above. This agreement must be recorded in writing, be dated and be sent to the member of staff. It must specify the period the extension relates to and the date on which the extension is to end.

Where the individual who would normally consider an application is absent from work on annual leave or on sick leave when the application is made an automatic extension applies. The period that the individual has to arrange the meeting will commence either on the day of his/her return or 28 days after the application is made, whichever is sooner.

Q3. Who counts as a relative?

Relative means your mother, father, adopter, guardian, special guardian, parent-in-law, son, son-in-law, daughter, daughter-in-law, brother, brother-in-law, sister, sister-in-law, uncle, aunt, or grandparent and step-parent, step-son, step-daughter, step-brother and step-sister. Half-blood relatives are also included as are adoptive relationships and relationships which would have existed but for an adoption i.e. your natural relatives.

Q4. Where can I find further information?

For further guidance regarding the existing non-statutory arrangements and the variety of working patterns available within the MOD under the Related Link –Working Patterns. Use the Related Link - Department for Business Enterprise & Regulatory Reform for further information regarding the statutory right to request Flexible working arrangements.