To think this is a surefire way to insist that everyone comes back into the office?

[Pleasebeafleabite]

Latest BBC News link today. If I was an employer and I was forced into giving staff compulsory four day weeks based on compressed hours, I’m be making sure they were doing them in the office.

Yet more unintended consequences

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gl5w83z7do

Cant see a 4 day week being good for a lot of businesses who have customers who work 5 and 7 day weeks, The customers will look elsewhere and the business may go down the pan and people will ultimately lose their jobs.

Why don't you look at providing childcare? seems to me you must have a very male bias in your workforce or only employ older women.

though god alone knows what your views on the menopause is.

Yet again, we're not talking about your own organisation here. Because you went much more comprehensive than that. You spoke in generalities.

Do you not understand that there are loads of unfilled positions at the moment? You may very well work only with people who are easy to replace, but that is not replicated across the board.

The fact that you keep insisting this couldn't possibly happen is interesting, anyway. I'm not sure whether you know you've got this wrong and are trying to wriggle out of it, or you're genuinely in blissful, fingers in ears ignorance about the UK skills shortage.

You will always find someone else who can actually do the job they they are paid to do and not just “suck up” below par performance because people are too busy taking care of their kids on your buck.

The remark that poster made about how lockdown was fine because the other parent usually did the childcare was rather telling, I thought.

You realise that what the proposal is saying is that employees have the right to request a 4 day week with compressed hours?

It's not saying "let's all take Friday's off and sod the other industries".

Those companies could, rightly, refuse the request.

Helps to read the proposal first before posting

What, even in sectors where there are roles going unfilled? Righty ho. The wishful thinking is off the charts.

I employ a big mix of people. In lockdown I had 5 employees whose husbands took over the childcare and 2 employees whose wife’s took over. I am in menopause at the moment.. don’t recommend it.

Would like to work.from home at least one day a week. Unlikely as I'm.a teacher. Would not like it all the time. I hated lockdown, although I didn't miss the commute or discipline hassles.

It's all well and good if that's how it works, but the problem is, it seldom does.
For a start, annual bonuses depend on the company as a whole doing well. My husband used to work for a company that did performance based bonuses. People come to rely on it and expect similar figures each year. Downturns can and do happen in every company, sometimes owing to external factors. When you have to face your hard working staff who worked towards that nice bonus all year and say, 'The company didn't make enough to pay much, or any, bonus this year' it understandably feels like a slap in the face, especially when the employees working hard for it rely on it to pay for Christmas.
Yes, employees shouldn't be relying on it, but if it's their incentive to do their best, it's like dangling an imaginary carrot before them.
Companies can always retract annual bonuses precisely because it's a bonus. Some companies are not above inventing reasons for not paying bonuses. In my experience, bonus promises are a way of getting around poor pay for the sector you are in. The possibility of a big bonus keepers employees there and working hard.

I'd rather be paid for the work I am doing whilst I am doing it, personally, not in a big lump at the end of the year which is subject to being much lower/non-existent depending on factors outside of my control as an employee.
Bonuses aren't a wage. They are not reflective of individual output because they are subject to wider company factors. They can, in some companies, also be subjectively applied. Staff do talk about their bonuses, no matter how much you tell them not to, and with the best will in the world, management are human and good workers who perhaps don't shout it from the rooftops do get overlooked. The bonus culture can cause a lot of resentment and bad feeling amongst employees, rather than the intended incentive.

Well I can only speak for myself, I replaced the people I needed to replace with ease and now have a workforce that works for me, for them and for the growth of my business.

My employer allows us to have children around in the school holidays, providing we get our work done. Because they understand that not everyone has the family support to assist and that holiday clubs for the full six weeks is expensive etc etc.

If the children being around was impacting someone's work, they'd have a conversation with them about managing it better or not having the kids around.

I've been with this company nearly a decade and, to be honest, you'll have to pry me out with a crowbar. Because they actually care about their staff. And because they do, their staff care back.

Previous roles (with managers like you) I would log off/walk out on the dot regardless of what still needed doing or what issues arose. Not my problem once you stop paying me, because you don't see me as your problem.

Here, I don't clock watch. If some days I need to do an extra hour or so, I will do it. If I need to log on and check things on a non working day, I will. Because I know they have my back too. I would walk over hot coals for my line manager and our head of department. And they know that, so they won't ask me to.

@Sunnysideup34 I totally get that but I mean she actively reschedules appointments so they are on her working days & not just medical I'm talking hairdressers etc too

She's not very productive anyway so it's even more frustrating when she does the "oh the hairdresser can only do Tuesday so I'll need to leave at 2:30pm"

Sometimes my work is too flexible & accommodating & people take the piss.

You only really get the right to have a formal refusal or acceptance, nothing else. Any business geared around five day weeks for customers even if they are not present/front of house can find a reason to say no.

I think the only time it will make much difference is if you are saying yes to some and no to others, and cannot demonstrate why. Or say if managers have it and those who work for them don't.

So what you are saying is, let me get this straight.. an employer needs to suck it up and allow their employees to look after small kids at home when it affects their availability, productivity and ability to do the job well because there is a skill shortage?

We get paid for our input and get bonuses. The bonuses depends on the company hitting targets (all working to a common goal) and then can fluctuate depending on your performance (a reason to smash it out of the park individually).

That, on top of a fair wage for your contribution will keep people loyal and working for the company.

You can already request this, I have requested and been approved to do this. The article seems like scaremongering.

And I do half my days from home like everyone else in the team (so they do 2 days one week and 3 the next, and I do 2 days a week but in terms of hours I’m actually in the office slightly longer than them as my office days are longer).

Then if you're only able to speak for yourself, best not to make such wide generalisations about other people in other organisations.

A lot of the work my employees do is phone based, I cannot have screaming kids in the background or interruptions. How is that hard to understand?

So in your opinion what is an employer to do if they have someone looking after small kids at home and their performance is not up to scratch because of this?

Primary aged kids, not small kids is what we're talking about. And there's no guarantee that it would affect productivity. But sucking it up may well be their least worst option, yep. If there isn't childcare and the employer doesn't have the option of an equally skilled worker who doesn't need childcare, this brings us back to what alternative you think there is.

You don't have to be happy about this for it to be true.

Not all kids scream....

How is it hard to understand that all circumstances and people are different, so a blanket approach doesn't work?

A lot of our employees are also phone based. Many of them manage with kids around for a couple of weeks of the holidays.

The 'up to scratch' part is a new addition. I won't be answering any more questions until you actually answer mine, rather than swerving and trying to add extra conditions and amendments with every post.

I object to working in the office every working day just for the sake of it. It is a waste of fuel and causes pollution -which ultimately causes illness and deaths. Obviously not all are the congestion in peak hours commuting - but there is a lot and to reduce this and keep it reduced would be far better