Acas consults on code of practice on the extended right to request flexible working

The Government intends to extend the right to request flexible working to all employees with 26 weeks' service. Acas is consulting on a draft code of practice, setting out principles for employers to follow when managing requests under the extended right. 

Currently the right to request flexible working is limited to qualifying parents and carers, and employers are required to deal with requests in accordance with a statutory procedure. Under the proposed new system, contained in the Children and Families Bill, the detailed statutory procedure will be replaced with a requirement for the employer to "deal with the application in a reasonable manner". The draft Acas code sets out principles for employers to follow to enable them to manage requests in a reasonable manner. 

Acas will produce a separate non-statutory guide that will provide good practice guidance for employers, beyond the scope of the statutory code. 

In the consultation, Acas is asking for views on the draft code of practice (which is only 13 paragraphs long) and responses to three questions:

  • Does the code give enough information on the principles involved in managing the extended right to request flexible working?
  • Does the code allow employers to use their existing procedures to handle requests from employees who ask to work flexibly?
  • Are there any aspects of the code that respondents to the consultation would like to see discussed in more detail in the good practice guide?

The consultation will close on 20 May 2013. 

Also

Right to request flexible working to be extended The forthcoming changes to the right to request flexible working are explained in the XpertHR forthcoming law section. 

Right to request flexible working The XpertHR employment law manual explains the current statutory procedure for dealing with requests for flexible working. 

Line manager briefing on handling requests for flexible working This line manager briefing looks at the current law and best practice on the right to request flexible working available to parents and the carers of certain adults.