Hiring employers ‘ignoring biggest shake-up of work seen in a generation’

Nearly three quarters of UK job vacancies make no reference to flexible working possibilities despite changes to work patterns during the pandemic.

That’s according to research by flexible working consultancy Timewise, which analysed keywords in more than 5million job vacancies.

At present, job vacancies are at their highest level since official records began in 2001 – yet the portion of jobs offering flexible options has grown by just four percentage points from 2020.

At present, half the UK’s employees work flexibly in some form and nine in 10 people say they want flexibility in their next job.

Just over 1 in 4 UK jobs are advertised with flexible working options (26 per cent).

Timewise has produced an annual snapshot of the UK labour market since 2015, to see if the portion of jobs advertised with flexible options is rising, what kind of jobs are being offered with flex and at what kind of salary level.

Vacancies are filtered using 17 keywords relating to different forms of flexible working, for example: ‘remote working’, ‘home working’ and ‘part-time’.

Other key findings include:

W Part-time work is the preferred working pattern for 20 per cent of UK employees, but is offered in just 10 per cent of job adverts.

W Home or remote working mentions are surprisingly low – they currently only appear in eight per cent of job ads.

This figure has actually reduced slightly in the period since lockdown restrictions were lifted in April 2021 (from 10 per cent during the JanuaryApril lockdown).

W There are disparities in how flexible working is offered across salary levels.

W Part-time work and low pay are still synonymous – 19 per cent of low paid jobs (up to £20k FTE) mention part-time possibilities. This is the highest ratio of any salary band.

W Conversely, home-working and flexible working are disproportionately offered at higher salary levels (14 per cent and 10 per cent respectively) and are rarely seen in low-paid vacancies.

Timewise co-founder Emma Stewart MBE said: “The way that employers are advertising jobs ignores the biggest shake-up of work seen in a generation.

“We know that candidates do not want to raise the question; we believe they shouldn’t have to.

“In the post-pandemic, postBrexit employment market, where vacancies far outstrip candidate supply, thousands of skilled candidates won’t move until they see that a job clearly offers flexible working from day one.

“With more than 3million people still economically inactive due to caring or health reasons, employers are missing out on attracting a wider pool of talent they desperately need.”

Lynn Rattigan, chief operating officer at EY said: “Timewise’s latest research shows that UK businesses have a real opportunity to attract soughtafter talent, particularly at a time when vacancies are at their highest.

“EY has championed flexible working for many years and all of our vacancies in the UK are advertised as being open to flexibility.

“The experience of the pandemic has also brought new perspectives and, like many organisations, we’ve been assessing the impact of changing work patterns on how, when and where our people work.

“That’s why we have introduced a new hybrid working model, enabling our people to split their time between their home, office and client site as appropriate.

“We believe this will maximise the benefits of both in-person collaboration and flexible remote working for our people and clients.”

Danny Harmer, chief people officer, Aviva said: “Offering flexible roles is essential to attract the very best, and most diverse, workforce so it’s good business sense.

“Flexible roles also support people with life’s changing demands so they can contribute, for example, to their families and communities while progressing their careers, which is great for society too.”