Professionals turning down jobs that fail on flexible hours

Four in ten professionals turning down jobs that fail on flexible working arrangements

40% of professionals say they would reject a job offer if it lacked flexible working opportunities, a new whitepaper from professional recruiter Robert Walters reports.

Yet despite this, barely a third of employers say they promote flexible working policies when advertising for new staff.

The whitepaper, which surveyed thousands of professionals and hiring managers from across Australia and New Zealand, also reveals that 88% of jobseekers are more likely to consider a role that allowed for flexible working.

James Nicholson, Managing Director of Robert Walters Australia and New Zealand, says:

“Organisations have sometimes seen flexible working as an employee perk, overlooking the link between the ‘loyalty gains’ generated and increased productivity levels.

“This approach also runs counter to a number of increasingly influential societal trends – a rise in the number of mothers returning to full time employment, the rebalancing of childcare responsibilities and an ageing population – all of which have pushed flexible working to the top of the jobseeker agenda.

“Flexible working is not only beneficial for wellbeing, commitment and efficiency in the workplace, it also lends a competitive edge to your recruitment strategies. Key to successful implementation is a culture of openness and consensus on measuring outcomes and success, so buy-in from the board level down is essential.”

Other conclusions from the whitepaper include:
• Contrary to common perceptions, family and childcare responsibilities topped the list of male drivers (cited by 38% of men), while women were more driven by health and wellbeing (41%) than any other factor.

• 64% of employers feel flexible working increases employee loyalty, yet just 26% say flexible working leads to productivity gains
• Professionals are most worried that flexible working will affect perceptions of their work ethic, while
employers are most concerned with treating workers equally

• One in four professionals say their organisation never promotes flexible work policies

Read the full whitepaper here.

-ENDS-

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