Surely my employer is being unfair? Is this quite common?!

[Hallaer]

I’m a (newly) single parent to an 8 month old. I’m due to go back to work in two months and have been discussing my return to work with my employer. I work in an office and sometimes from home. My child’s nursery closes at 6 and there is no way I can leave work at 5:30 to get there in time. I have asked to leave at 5 and start earlier and it’s been rejected. Is this normal? I don’t know what I’m supposed to do, just give up work?!

If that's the reason they've given, they are edging towards sex discrimination, which is illegal of course.

Is there another nursery offering a later finish or a nursery close to your work?

Put in a formal flexible working request. They have to make reasonable adjustment or explain the operational difficulties it causes if they refuse. If you’ve been there a few years they need to watch their step because they could end up facing a case of constructive dismissal.

HR professional here, as many others said, have you submitted an official flexible working request?

if so and they are rejecting it then they need to sit down and arrange a meeting with yourself and discuss reasons why and offer any possible alternatives. There is a few reasons why they could reject it but just saying because no one else does it is not valid.

Make sure to follow up with your HR team and ACAS.

YANBU. This is a simple and very common adjustment. They have failed to demonstrate the business impact, 'nobody else does it' isn't a valid excuse

This. Make the request officially if you have not already done so.

Its whatevers in your employment contract.

Therein lies your answer. It's them, not you. Look for another job.

What CatiaR said!

I did this when I returned to work in the 70s. Lots less protection back then but my boss was happy to extend hours the office was covered. I think it is something that can be looked at as a positive, you aren't there for close down but you get things up and running in the morning which isn't a bad thing. I hope they reconsider.

It doesn't sound like an unreasonable request. Could you start looking for a new job? Would you have to pay them back any maternity money (I'm not in the UK so I've only vaguely heard of this)

It sounds crap but you will figure it out, this doesn't mean you need to quit work all together

https://maternityaction.org.uk/advice/child-friendly-working-hours/

It’s an absolutely reasonable request so fight for it if you have to.
Another option might be to cut your hours by day 2 per week, and then leave at 5pm. That way you’re not rushed and they save a bit of money.

Agree with above …
Have you considered a crèche/nursery close to your work?
Most at my previous work did this, have child near work yk take pressure off commute and could visit on lunch breaks.

Employers often get many requests for changing hours to accommodate, if turned down others who want early start and accepts yours, then it causes many unfair issues.

Does anyone else in the company have flexibile working hours due to child care?! If they do it sets a precedent within the organisation.
Get some legal advice/ union about maternity rights/flexible working as so many places either don't have a clue or just ignore it and hope for the best!

Lots of mums who return to work following maternity are met with these out of date ideas.

You can state they're discriminating against you because of your protected characteristics.

If you contact working families and pregnant then screwed they will give it to them straight.

Yes, you can leave earlier.

I wouldn't do this - it's a nightmare drop off & pick up on your work from home days and a nightmare further down the line when you change jobs and need to move your child out of the nursery where they are settled.

Everyone I've known to put their child in a nursery close to the office came to regret it post Covid once working from home became a thing.

Employers have to think of the business and should be able to run it to the best of their ability within the contracts held by their employees.
Going back quite a few years, I was working with a colleague whose job was being covered by a temporary contractor. She had already made it clear that she wanted to return part time - no issue with that except that she wanted to dictate her hours and have the temp fit in around 'her' hours. As her supervisor, I said to my boss that this obviously was not fair on the temp or the rest of the team come to that - he offered her two and half fixed days and offered the same conditions to the temp. Cue said employee storming out of the office - she returned a few days later trying to make him change his mind. He was never unsympathetic to her request but just said that her demands did not work for the business and her suggested hours would result in less hours being effectively worked by her and the temp - not something that the business could afford. Many employers will be flexible if they can but you may need to make concessions. You have offered an earlier start to offset the earlier leaving time - has she said why this is unacceptable? If you had to, could you reduce your contracted hours by an hour per day? Work a longer day on your WFH day? Just trying to think of possibilities you could offer - hope you can work something out.

I came up against this kind of archaic attitude as a single mum with a baby. There was no attempt to make an adjustment to my job so to head off a legal challenge, I suggested a pay off to let me go. They took it and I walked out financially better off with a negotiated settlement agreement. I took the money and started a business, something I have never regretted.

I had some business training admittedly but I started a simple buy from a wholesaler, and then sell to the customer business. I work my time around my now much more independant child and have been able to negotiate the many ups and downs of single parenting.

If that's something that appeals, there's plenty of help for new business available from financial to mentoring. Likewise the single parent charity, Gingerbread is a tremendous source of help.

Have they given an actual reason which makes practical sense? If not, then they SHOULD honour your flexible working request. If they aren't doing, put some pressure on and get your union involved if needed. I'd say the only way they could get round this would be if there were timings in your job that were time critical and couldn't be changed.

@Razorwire @Rainbow1901 Nobody is saying that business needs shouldn't be met but the issue here is the reason given by the employer. The reason they have given has nothing to do with the needs of the business. Merely that nobody else has it.

Also a request approved for one person doesn't mean blanket precedent or policy for everyone else again, depending on business need.

This isn’t a valid reason to decline your request -just because no one else does ! Suggest you approach HR directly with your request.

They have statutory obligation to consider reasonable requests (yours sounds reasonable) and if they are not able to accommodate it they need a better reason then “no-one else does it”. Go back to them for written reasons. Meanwhile if you can’t change nursery, change job - they may end up grudgingly agreeing to avoid legal grief but could try and push you out for another reason as an example to others.

Whilst it can be more productive and better for the business if everyone is on the same hours
that alone is not a good enough reason to refuse a flexible working request

With your preferred work hours can you still be productive and work with minimal impact in the business

by this I mean if someone on the help desk who wanted to compress hours and do 4 long days starting at 7 but the people they were helping didn’t start till 8
that would be a reason to reject it

check company policy on flexible working and any request make sure there done formally so there’s a paper trail

Give pregnant then screwed a call