Working a very flexible job where you can make own hours?

[Rainydays11]

I have been offered a job with a US company. They won’t allow me to work part time but allow me to be very flexible. They said I can work in my own time and decide hours myself etc. I am just wondering how true this is and if I can keep my children off nursery on the Friday. Which I currently have off.

How could we possibly know….? You’ll need to ask them!

@peakygull was wondering if there was someone in a similar boat who makes it work and can offer eye opening feedback. They told me it would be absolutely fine to have kids while working but I just don’t know whether to believe them

Be wary that US companies sometimes don’t have a great view on life/work balance and fail to understand time zones. DH has flexible hours but in return is expected to answer the phone at literally all hours if the bosses decide to call!

Can you describe the type of work/role/seniority this is?
Unless you have quite a rare niche skill, it seems quite unusual to be given complete free rein over your time like this, due to staffing needs, timezones, employment law etc.

In addition, this comment "They told me it would be absolutely fine to have kids while working" is actually raising red flags rather than being a good thing. Reputable companies everywhere are crystal clear on how parents must have childcare and that working is not compatible with minding kids.

Tread very carefully here, something just doesn't smell right.

Even if someone else works remotely and flexibly for a US company they still can't tell you if this is going to work! Every company is different and it will depend on the type of work you do too. I would also doubt very much that you will be able to work while trying to presumably look after your children on Fridays, how will you manage calls, periods of concentration etc?

Singthing has expressed it more eloquently than me! Are you sure this is a legitimate job offer?

I would also be suspicious of this, it’s not showing much regard for your wellbeing or their own company. If your children are nursery age, as a parent you should know this is not appropriate, and most reputable companies have policies against this, never mind verbally endorsing it.

@singthing dont want to be too outing but yes, it is a niche specialty I am in. Jobs specifically for what I do are quite rare.

I am thinking I need to have a level of this flexibility reflected in the contract if I am to move. So I need to at least have remote-working as primary location on contract

When you say move, are you UK based and planning on moving to the US for the role?

US companies expect a lot more from you hours wise. Friday morning youll be ok, but doubt any afternoon or evening will go well. Also make sure you get UK holiday in the contract.

i work in a global company HQ in the US and the leadership layer are all US based. I would say it is definitely more flexible,I can work whatever hours as long as I get the job done BUT their work style is very different and they don’t think anything is wrong about jumping on a quick call at 10pm or pulling a report together over the weekend. If it’s ‘urgent’ and their threshold is lower then it takes priority.

one thing to be very aware of is that most US employees are employed on an ‘At Will’ basis. This means that for both the employer and employee they can leave or be told to leave immediately. There isn’t a redundancy or 4 week notice period. It makes them more sensitive to pressure and more willing to go above and beyond to stay off the fire list.

Are you also thinking about how it will work for your children?

I can work entirely flexibly but the reality is the job still needs to be done and I still need to be available for meetings etc and i tend to work many more hours than my contracted hours. So I can't imagine trying to do that without childcare for young children

Why not just have it written into your contract that you will have Fridays off? You could either do compressed hours or just a part time contract.

Agree re UK holiday. Most of my family are in the US and their holiday allowance is dire

I have fairly flexible hours but I am expected to be around for core hours between say 10 and 5, but I can disappear for an hour for a medical appointment in the day as long as I book it in advance and don’t have calls. The downside is that I am expected to work outside my timezone a fair bit so it’s not unusual to have 10,11pm calls, sometimes even midnight. I am expected to be available so I couldn’t just block out my calendar for hours. I also have childcare every day ever since my child was born. I never work without it unless my husband is taking care of her. If she is sick, I’ll book time off or negotiate shifting my hours so I can do a half day (usually in the morning when the US isn’t online) and then work later in the evening. My husband will then take a half day.

I already work for a US company and know what the culture is like. However, I don’t atm have full flexibility. I am expected online during my core hours so I was curious to know if there are people out there who make it work. In any case, I have requested a fully remote contract for me to accept position. I hope IANBU but I heard many stories of major companies revising policies from flexible working to full office based. I definitely cannot make that work if that happens

I agree that you should get everything you negotiate down in your contract. If you are the niche skill they need and all is in good faith, then they should be willing to accommodate it.

I would consider using Claude or ChatGPT as a starting point to brainstorm the things you should factor in to your negotiations, using careful prompting and framing. Then apply your own research and knowledge to refine that into a firm set of requirements you want written in to paperwork. Make it as easy as possible for them to say yes.

Do it all upfront now, later on will be too late. You might want to even rank them and/or add 1-2 items you'd be happy to bin to appear like you are being flexible.

I think you also need to think much you need a “fresh head” to do your job.

No one does their best work on Friday evening after kids in bed. It is one thing if you can do your job with the eyes closed, and another if you need some thinking and concentration. Beat in mind also the older the kids the latter the bedtime is.

@singthing I did this. I sent an e-mail saying I can only accept if the level of flexibility I'm offered is also reflected in the contract. Now I am overthinking my wording. Hope I don't come across as too assertive.

Don't apologise for asking for what you want!

In this case, if they can't agree, you can't take the job anyway, so...