Flexible working - 6 Minute English

Hello. This is 6 Minute

English from BBC Learning

English. I'm Georgina.

And I'm Neil.

In this programme, we're

going to be talking about

the world of work.

Ah yes, travelling to an office

five days a week, sitting at a

desk all day, and then

going home.

Neil, it's not always like that.

Office work doesn't have

to be such a routine - the

usual, fixed way of doing

things - it is much more

flexible these days.

That's true. During the

pandemic, we've all

had to have a more flexible

approach to work.

Yes, we have. And it

has, perhaps, changed

our attitude to working

flexibly. But even before

coronavirus, there was

an opportunity to work

flexibly, and we'll be

discussing that soon.

But there's one thing that

can't be changed and

that's you setting a

quiz question for me!

Ah yes, I hadn't forgotten.

So, Neil, I know you work

very hard. But according

to data from the

Organization for Economic

Cooperation and Development -

the OECD - workers from

which country work

the longest hours?

Is it... a) South Korea,

b) Germany, or

c) Mexico?

Well, as I'm not on

the list, let's go

for c) Mexico.

OK, Neil, we'll find out

if that's right at the end

of the programme.

But let's talk more about

flexible working now.

Different countries have

different laws about

working flexibly... but

here in the UK, for last

14 years, employees -

workers - have had the

right to request

flexible working.

But what does it mean

to work flexibly?

Sarah Jackson is a workplace

consultant and visiting

professor at Cranfield

University School of

Management. She spoke

to BBC Radio 4's

Woman's Hour programme

about what it means exactly...

Because of the pandemic,

now everybody thinks

flexible working means

working from home - it

doesn't, it's about common

sense, what does the job

need in terms of when

where, how long, and

what do you need and

what does your family

need - and how do the

two match? So, flexibility

really means having choice

and control over when,

where and how long you

work, and agreeing

that with your manager.

So, flexible working

is not just working from

home - something we've

got used to during the

pandemic. It is about

common sense - using

our judgement to make

sensible decisions.

So, requesting to work

for two hours a day is

not sensible - but being

able to work from 12

until 8 instead of 9 to

5 might be. Of course,

this depends on the

needs of the business.

And as Sarah said, you

need to match your needs

with that of the business.

Match here means to

work equally on

both sides.

Getting the working

conditions that suit

you does require some

negotiation with your

manager. You need

agreement from him or

her - and that can be

difficult if your manager

is inflexible - not willing

to change.

But of course, in the

UK at least, an

employee has a right

to request flexible

working, and this

must be considered

by the employer.

This law initially was

just for parents with

a child younger than

6 years old - or a

disabled child

less than 18.

But since 2014,

everyone has the right to

request flexible working.

And that includes men.

Which is an important point,

as Sarah Jackson explains.

Fewer men seem to have

their requests for flexible

working accepted - let's

find out why

Men, when they do

ask, are more likely to

be turned down, so

there's a real bias

there in the system

and the most important

thing that needs to

happen here, I think,

is for employers to

really actively say to

their men, 'we know

you want to be

active fathers' - because

there's a whole

generation of young

men who do want to

be active fathers -

'please use the right

to request flexible

working, work flexibly

if you can - because

until men are enabled

to be active fathers,

we won't get equality

at home and we

certainly won't get

equality in the

workplace either.

OK, so men are more

likely to have their

request turned down -

or rejected. And Sarah

says there is a bias

in the system -

unfairness, treating

one group of people

more favourably than another.

And this is unfair because

it can prevent some

men being active fathers -

actually being involved

with childcare. But

having more active

fathers can lead to

equality - or fairness -

at home and in

the workplace.

It sounds like something

that needs to be looked at.

But now, Neil, let's get the

answer to my question:

According to official data,

in which country do

workers work the

longest hours?

And I said Mexico.

Which is correct,

well done! According

to the OECD, the average

Mexican spends 2,255

hours at work per year -

the equivalent of

around 43 hours

per week. Germans,

on the other hand,

clock up the fewest hours.

Well, my working

day is nearly over,

so let's just recap

some of the vocabulary

we've discussed.

Starting with routine -

the usual, fixed way

of doing things.

Common sense is our

judgement to make

sensible decisions.

When you need

something to match

it has to work equally

on both sides.

And when someone

is inflexible, they are

unwilling to change -

sometimes we say they

won't budge!

Bias is unfairness,

treating one group of

people more favourably

than another.

And being active

with something means

being involved with it.

Well, there's no

flexibility in our 6

minutes so we're out

of time. We have

plenty more 6 Minute

English programmes

to enjoy on our website

at bbclearningenglish.com.

And check us out on

Facebook, Twitter

and Instagram.

Don't forget that

we have an app too,

which you can download

for free from the app

stores. We help you

learn English on the

move! Grammar,

vocabulary, and

interesting topics - we

have them all!

Bye for now.

Goodbye.