Flexible working is not a new concept. However, with the unpredictable nature of 2020 and 2021, many companies have had to adapt and adopt new ways of working that they previously had never considered or not wanted to implement.
In most countries, staff in the veterinary industry—like most of the healthcare industry — were considered essential workers when countries went into lockdown. In the UK, urgent and emergency veterinary services were operating and, due to the nature of the work, were required to continue to attend work in person.
Over time, general veterinary practices in the UK transitioned towards opening to ensure that essential animal healthcare was available. Normal ways of working were adapted to ensure that social distancing practices were carried out. This may have included alternating working shifts (team bubbles) or consulting and assessing patients in car parks.
Prior to COVID-19, there was minimal research on the veterinary industry and flexible working. However, from a healthcare industry perspective, there is now further insight into how this has been implemented in practice.
Introduction to flexible working
Flexible working legislation allows an employee to make a request to change their way of working (such as hours, days or location), as well as the introduction of flexitime, compressed hours or phased retirement to name a few (Table 1). Previously in the UK, flexible working has only been made available to those undertaking the role of ‘parents and/or carers’ (GOV.UK, 2021). In recent years, the ability to make a flexible working request has been made available to all employees who are wanting flexible work for personal reasons or to enhance their work–life balance.
Table 1. Flexible working arrangements
| Type | Example |
|---|---|
| Flexitime Most contracts will have a standard clause which refers to the start and finish times and the days the employee must work. Flexible hours and days allow the employee to adjust their contracted hours or days while still ensuring they are meeting their contractual obligations | Courtney puts in a Flexible Working Request to change her hours of work from 9:00 am–5:00 pm to 7:30 am–4:00 pm to avoid traffic |
| Reduced or increased hours The employer and employee may agree on the hours that they need to work to complete their role. This will have an effect on the employee's total fixed remuneration as they will only be paid for the hours that they actually work | Courtney puts in a Flexible Working Request to reduce her hours from 40 to 32 hours per week for a temporary period of time while she transitions back to work after returning from parental leave |
| Compressed hours An employee who completes their contracted working hours but over a shorter period of time. For an employee who is contracted for 40 hours a week this could mean 4 days working 10 hours a day or a 9-day fortnight | Courtney puts in a Flexible Working Request to work a 9-day fortnight. She works:
|
| Job-sharing Two employees complete one full-time equivalent position and split the hours between them | James has just returned from parental leave and Courtney is caring for her elderly parent.
|
| Flexi-location An employee works from home or another location outside of the workplace. Depending on the Company policy and legislation this may require a health and safety assessment to ensure that the working space is safe and ergonomic | James's position allows him to work from home 5 days a week and he attends the workplace on an ad-hoc basis when required to |
| Hybrid An employee who splits their time between their workplace and working remotely from home or another location | Courtney works 3 days a week in the workplace and works from home 2 days a week |
| Phased retirement An employee has specified a date that they are intending to retire in the future and progressively reduces their hours over a period of time | John turns 65 in 12 months' time; he has requested the following:
|
Source: Employment New Zealand, 2020; GOV.UK, 2021. Hours are based on the employee working an 8-hour day plus a 30-minute unpaid meal break.
An employer has a duty of care to reasonably consider a request for flexible working, to ensure that it is mutually beneficial to all parties involved, and must respond in writing within 3 months of the request being made (GOV. UK, 2021). If an employer is unsure whether the flexible working arrangement will have an impact on the business, a trial can be considered with a review period at an agreed on point in time. If an employer is declining a flexible working request, they must have reasonable grounds as to why they are unable to accommodate, whether it be because of difficulty reorganising work among existing staff, the potential impact on quality or performance of the work, or additional costs to the business (Employment New Zealand, 2020).
If an employee is not satisfied with the decision that has been made or the process that has been followed, they should discuss this with their human resources practitioner, manager or appropriate governing body for resolving a workplace dispute.
Benefits of flexible working
According to Employment New Zealand (2020), flexible working can help with retention of staff, which in turn may reduce recruitment costs, raise staff morale and reduce absenteeism. Previously, employers have thought that flexible working could have a negative impact on productivity growth; however, research shows that it can improve individual and/or organisational growth (Wiatr, 2021). An employer with a flexible working policy and perceived flexibility is likely to increase the employee's commitment to the organisation (Choo et al, 2016).
Flexible working patterns and approach
The approach a company takes to adopting flexible working is always going to depend on a number of factors, such as the industry, the type of request the employee is making and whether their position allows for that level of flexibility. Veterinary roles involving minimal administration tasks (such as phone calls, postoperative checks, writing notes) may be more restricted in the ability to request flexi-location. However, the employer can always work with them on alternative flexible working arrangement options. It is important to ensure that the flexible working request is managed jointly between all parties to ensure that the request remains mutually beneficial.
Impact of COVID-19
A study completed in 2018 showed that only 67% of employees surveyed in the European Union had access to flexible working arrangements. This also considered the accessibility and use of flexible working (Wiatr, 2021). As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, employers were forced to amend scheduling and staffing approaches to create additional flexibility — specifically, the healthcare industry, which needed to adapt to how care was provided while ensuring that the workforce was managed (Berlin et al, 2021).
This proves difficult for an industry where healthcare employees' physical presence is generally required at the work-place to be able to provide the level of care and service that customers have grown to expect. A survey completed by McKinsey Global Institute found that 61% of the United States workforce could work no more than a few hours remotely per week or not at all; whereas 17% of respondents had the flexibility to work 1–3 days remotely (Lund et al, 2020).
Following the initial changes in response to COVID-19, (human healthcare) nurses were more interested in remuneration increases, flexibility and remote care strategies (Berlin et al, 2021). Another study recommended that as a result of the pandemic, nurses should be offered flexible working arrangements to assist with self-care (Labrague and De Los Santos, 2020).
Wellbeing
Even before the pandemic, the veterinary industry has always been well known for experiencing an impact on mental health, a high level of burnout and a high number of suicides seen in the profession (Arnold, 2021). This can occur as a result of compassion fatigue, long hours (Sanders, 2010), poor work–life balance and demanding clients (Arnold, 2021).
However, once you amalgamate the complexities of the veterinary industry with the stress of the pandemic, 53% of respondents reported that their greatest challenge was being treated worse (than normal) by pet owners. Other challenges faced were owners not respecting curbside policies, veterinary clinics being understaffed, and employees being overworked (Maciaszek et al, 2020).
Essential workers had to adapt to the changing landscape as the virus evolved and the guidance around policies and procedures changed constantly (Rowe, 2021). As the world dealt with a pandemic unlike anything we had ever seen before, a number of psychopathological effects (such as depression, anxiety, insomnia) resulted in healthcare workers, more so than in other professions (Maciaszek et al, 2020).
An employer has a duty of care to ensure that their employees have a safe working environment, and flexible working is something that may need to be considered across rapidly changing work environments and cultures.
Conclusion
The last 18 months have been unlike anything the world has witnessed before and the likelihood of returning to ‘normal’ anytime soon is unknown. Now that companies have had a taste of being ‘flexible’ and have seen that it can work, it has opened up possibilities to a new way of working going forward. The veterinary industry needs to work with employees to ensure that they can be supported appropriately for the unforeseen future. This means looking at ways to introduce flexibility, while ensuring standards of care continue to be maintained.
KEY POINTS
- All employees can put in a flexible working request and the employer has a duty of care to reasonably consider the request.
- There are many flexible working options out there, it is just a case of finding what works best for you and your employer.
- Flexible working can help with retention of staff and is more likely to increase the employee's commitment to the organisation.
- During the COVID-19 pandemic veterinary practices were considered essential service and normal ways of working were adapted.
- The veterinary industry has been well known for experiencing mental health concerns, burnout and suicides.