Today, the House of Lords Home-based Working Committee publishes
its report, ‘Is working from home
working?' The Committee concluded that home working
could support the Government's plans to get people back into
work, by enabling people to work who might not otherwise
be able to do so.
The Committee investigated the effects and future development of
remote and hybrid working in the UK and also found that:
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Hybrid working can be the “best of both worlds”
compared to fully remote or in-person work, but only if done
well;
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Not everyone can work from home and access to it is
unequal, with levels higher among professionals, university
graduates, and those living in London;
-
Many return-to-office mandates amount to formalising
hybrid working, rather than a return to full-time office
attendance;
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Remote and hybrid working can help employers with
recruitment and retention, but can present challenges for
collaboration and management;
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Changes to flexible working requests under the
Government's Employment Rights Bill could risk “years of
litigation” at employment tribunals, unless the legislation is
defined clearly and effectively;
-
There is no “one-size-fits all” answer
to the question of working from home and productivity.
The Committee has recommended that the Government:
-
Set out whether remote and hybrid
working are being considered as part of existing initiatives to
support people with disabilities and long-term health
conditions back into work;
-
Promote and incentivise employer investment in
management training to support effective remote and
hybrid working, including by reconsidering its proposed cuts to
apprenticeship programmes focused on leadership
skills;
-
Review the relationship between its 60% office
attendance policy for civil servants and cuts to government
office space;
-
Avoid major further regulation or legislation on home
working, but publish updated guidance to help
employers;
-
Implement its changes to flexible working requests
under the Employment Rights Bill in a way that considers the
impact on employment tribunals;
-
Assign ministerial responsibility for the gathering of
more detailed data on remote and hybrid working.
The report also includes
additional recommendations on increasing investment in
broadband, addressing the shifts in demand for
transport created by hybrid working, and
tackling the risks AI may pose to remote jobs in the
future.
, who
chaired the Home-based Working Committee, said:
“The extraordinary circumstances of the pandemic transformed
working from home into a “new normal” for many workers. Our
report represents a comprehensive examination of all aspects of
home working based on a thorough consideration of the available
evidence.
“Effective management of hybrid working is key in allowing
people to reap the collaborative benefits of attending the office
as well as the flexibility to work from home. If it is done well,
hybrid working has the potential to be the best of both worlds.
However, due to under-investment in management training, the
skills needed to successfully manage hybrid working are lacking.
We've asked the Government to address this by reconsidering
current cuts to relevant apprenticeship training, or coming up
with a suitable alternative to encourage training
investment.
“The increased flexibility of remote and hybrid working can
be especially beneficial to people with disabilities and to
parents or carers, and may help them to work where they couldn't
previously. If the Government wants to encourage more people back
into work, then it should look into the potential of remote and
hybrid working alongside existing back to work initiatives.
“While we don't expect the Government to legislate further on
a subject that is best handled by employers and workers, it
should provide relevant guidance and promote already existing
guidance more widely. As it implements the Employment Rights
Bill, it should ensure its changes to flexible working requests
do not put undue pressure on the employment tribunal
system.
“The recommendations in our report are practicable and
deliverable and we look forward to receiving the Government's
response in due course. We urge the Government to work towards
implementation, including cross departmental data gathering so
that current trends can be tracked, analysed and put to good use
when developing policy in the future.”