Yesterday I was rambling about the environmental (and social) benefits
of flextime, and we already know that there are many good reasons to telecommute.
Nearly all employees at this company also take advantage
of flextime or telecommute on a monthly basis.
Not exact matches
Percentage
of this year's companies that offer full - time employees Health insurance: 97 % Retirement plan: 84 % Life insurance: 72 % Disability insurance: 71 %
Flextime: 64 % Telecommuting: 51 % Tuition reimbursement: 45 % Job sharing: 23 % Sabbaticals: 16 % Child - care services: 3 %
Workloads, vacation and
flextime policies, lines
of reporting, office design, access to fitness programs --» everything» affects an organization's overall health, he explains.
What to do if you're an employer with
flextime workers: Instead
of removing that flexibility, use HR software and tools to accurately track employee hours.
A Gallup study on benefits and perks finds that 51 %
of employees say they would switch to a job that allows them
flextime, and 37 % would switch to a job that allows them to work off - site at least part
of the time.
Environmental benefits
of telecommuting are a reason that companies should incorporate telecommuting and
flextime into their environmental policies.
They found
flextime helped boost the profits
of firms whose corporate strategies were based on investing in employees.
A study by researchers from the universities
of Texas, Harvard and Yale published in June found that
flextime requests were most likely to be granted to senior male employees who were using the time to take professional development courses.
In one
of the few studies that has examined
flextime's effect on company profits, last year, researchers from the University
of Toronto's Rotman School
of Management and China's Renmin University studied the 35 per cent
of Canadian firms with
flextime policies.
In a study published this year that tracked Best Buy's ROWE program, researchers at the University
of Minnesota found that, while it had helped reduce employee turnover, women who took part still spent 10 hours more on child care per week than their male
flextime colleagues.
For us,
flextime has meant that we can be a little less reliant on childcare, thus avoiding one round - trip car journey to our house a week, and
of course it has also meant that I can spend time with my daughter — which makes my life a more rewarding, richer experience.
Repeatedly,
flextime and telecommuting are among the most cherished benefits that give a company high marks among recruiters, industry watchers, and,
of course, current and prospective employees.
The firm is recognized among the 100 Best Workplaces for Women by FORTUNE magazine; one
of the Best Law Firms for Women by Working Mother /
Flextime Lawyers; and as a top - ranking firm in the Corporate Equality Index by the Human Rights Foundation.
The firm's women's initiatives appeared the most visible to our sources: a Women@Weil task - force monitors issues such as «
flextime and the percentage
of women pitching to clients.
Special thanks to Stephen Seckler at the Counsel to Counsel blog for drawing our attention to a recent article by
flextime consultant Deborah Epstein Henry that explores job sharing as an arrangement that can help lawyers gain greater work / life satisfaction while meeting the demands
of law firms (and their clients) for full time availability.
More recently, PAR has recommended that firms offering
flextime arrangements monitor the quality
of assignments being given to part - time attorneys.
Flextime, telecommuting and reduced - billable - hour schedules are supported by a network
of sponsors, mentors and administrators; special subcommittees tackle work life issues.
Since most law firms march «lockstep» in terms
of compensation, this leaves areas such as work life balance programs (e.g.,
flextime arrangements, telecommuting, sabbaticals, etc.) as an area where firms can stand out from the pack.
They are specifically looking for the professional, legitimate jobs that offer some kind
of flexibility — telecommuting, part - time or
flextime schedules, or freelance contracts.
Another 33 percent
of professionals are bagging
flextime, with 30 percent telecommuting from elsewhere.