Flexitime – A Low-Cost Perk For Your Business

Flexible time arrangement at work is a common practice in the Philippines. Working hours in the country can vary depending on the discretion of the employer (provided they fall under local labor laws and industry standards). Some companies require their employees to render work from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM while others grant their employees the freedom to come to work anywhere between 7:00-9:00 AM and finish work at 4:00-6:00 PM.  

While some employers prefer to administer the standard work schedule of 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, others utilize flexible rotating shifts to accommodate their round-the-clock operations or facilitate a healthy work-life balance for their employees. A night shift can run from 11:00 PM to 7:00 AM while a mid shift can commence from 1:00 PM until 9:00 PM or 2:00 PM until 10:00 PM.

What is Flexitime?

Flexible time, usually referred to as “flexitime,” is an alternate work arrangement that allows an employee to choose the start or end time of their workday. Flexitime employees render the same amount of time that fixed-time employees also render.  

Many employees seek flexible work schedules to attain a healthy work-life balance. Flexitime allows them to pursue other commitments outside of work. It also creates an adaptable work schedule and triggers workforce productivity.

Why Implement Flexitime?

According to a survey by Quill.com, the evolving modern workforce demands a modular approach towards work without the need to stay in cubicles every day. Many employees seek flexible work schedules to accommodate their lifestyle or commitments outside of work.

For example, working parents may require the entire evening to take care of their children. Instead of working at a fixed time of 12:00 PM to 9:00 PM, they can go to work as early as 6:00 AM and leave at 3:00 PM. With flexitime, parents will have more time to spend with their kids over dinner at home and take proper rest for the next working day.

Also, flexitime work arrangements are one of the few low-cost perks an employee usually seeks for during their job search. For employers, an adjustment in work schedules for each employee wouldn’t cost them money. As a matter of fact, it helps companies save money from overhead costs as it eliminates the need of some employees for overtime.

Benefits of Flexitime

Employees are entitled to many benefits offered by their employers. From competitive salary rates to additional incentives like healthcare and de minimis bonuses, flexible time schedules are among the highly sought benefits to date.

Investopedia also states that majority of employees consider workplace flexibility to be more important than compensation and advancement/promotion. We’ve also discussed earlier that employers implement flexitime to assist their employees in maintaining a work-life balance, but what exactly can this flexible, low-cost perk bring to companies?

1. Boost Employee Productivity

Flexitime gives employees the ability to control their schedules and the way they handle workloads. Employees can also select their start and end times to match the most productive time of their day. It wouldn’t come as an issue to the employer if employees will be able to accomplish their workloads within the given work schedule.

A fixed schedule may look routinary for some employees, especially if they’ve been in the same shift since the start of their careers. If employers hand over employees the benefit of choosing their own work schedule, there will be an increase in productivity for employees as they enjoy the convenience of flexitime.

2. Provide Ease of Commuting for Employees

For flexitime schedules during the morning (7:00 AM, 8:00 AM, and 9:00 AM), employees are less likely to encounter heavy traffic and longer lines during the afternoon. Less traffic means shorter travel times on the way home, and they’ll get to eat dinner with the family on an earlier time.

However, employees who choose to start and end their work during the afternoon or evening might run into delays. They can opt to stay for a while inside the office to wait for safer passage on the way home.

3. Score a Huge Win for Employment

Managers are eager to present the benefits and incentives of their company to applicants and potential prospects. As stated in Gallup 2017’s State of the American Workplace, 51% of American employees would change jobs “for one that offered them flexible work hours.” Since not all employers offer flexitime, it is a huge advantage for other companies seeking greater talent.

Employers can hire or retain top-tier talent by providing them with a flexible work schedule. Higher salary rates and additional incentives do mean a lot, but including flexitime can increase the management’s chances of scoring exceptional candidates from the labor pool.

4. Accommodate Peak Demand Times for Businesses

Peak hours and higher demands aren’t strangers when it comes to companies with a massive daily inflow of client inquiries and engagements. Calls generated by leads would skyrocket, employees must beat the deadlines for their workloads, and unexpected client meetings may arise. What can flexitime do for these situations?

The management can create different flexitime schedules suited for each employee. Through flexitime, businesses can cover all peak demand times without suffering from delays. Flexitime can ensure that every post in the workplace has enough human resources to operate continuously without any setbacks.

5. Reduce Overhead Costs

Overtime exhausts company resources and consumes enormous amounts of electricity and other utilities used during the evening because of employees doing OT (Overtime). Thus, overhead costs will increase faster. While some companies run their offices 24/7, others have to close during standard working hours to reduce operating expenses.

Companies implementing flexible work arrangements expect their entire workforce to accomplish tasks on-time within the span of their core hours. Once each shift manages to finish their workloads and commitments, the whole office remains vacant or only a handful of employees rendering the night shift will continue.

Have you considered implementing flexitime for your company? Or are you planning to implement flexitime for specific job functions or your entire workforce? Here at KC Global Talent Solutions, we can endorse the best performers in the Philippines to your enterprise and provide sound advice through our HR Consulting Services to help you identify the suitable employee benefits for your company.