The Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Act 2023 (“the 2023 Act”) received royal assent in July 2023. It is anticipated that the updated rules on flexible working will become active law at some point in 2024 and therefore there is plenty of time for businesses to prepare by reviewing their policies surrounding flexible working, and noting where the policies should be changed to remain compliant when the 2023 Act comes into force.
The changes which will come into force under the 2023 Act and how they differ to the current law is demonstrated below:
Current law on flexible working |
Amendments due to come into force with the Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Act 2023 |
| An employee is only permitted to make one flexible working request in a 12-month period. | An employee is allowed to make two flexible working requests in a 12-month period. |
| An employer has three months to respond to the flexible working request | The employer has two months to respond to the flexible working request. |
| The employer must deal with the application for flexible working in a reasonable manner. | An employer cannot reject a flexible working request before consulting with the employee |
| The employee must explain what effect, if any, the changes could mean for their employer if approved and give their opinion on how the effect could be dealt with. | The employee is no longer required to outline the effect the changes the flexible working request could have on the company or make suggestions on how that change could be dealt with. |
It was also expected that the right to make a flexible working request would become a day one right. The current law only gives the right to make flexible working request to employees once they have 26 weeks of continuous service. The 2023 Act was unexpectedly silent on this point.
However shortly after the 2023 Act received royal assent, the Government did issue a press release stating that flexible working will become a day one right despite this not forming part of the legislation. Therefore, we consider that it is likely that the Government will further legislate to deal with this point and flexible working will become a day one right in the near future.
If you would like our assistance to ensure that your flexible working policy remains legally compliant once these changes have come into effect, please do hesitate to contact us.