Michael Clark of the Relationships Foundation is concerned that the current political and economic climate might scupper his organisation's work in getting the government to make it easier for workers to take time off at key family pressure points.
'Mandy is back - and he means business' was one of the many headlines announcing the return of Peter Mandelson to government. He was greeted as both Brown's saviour and 'The Prince of Darkness', depending on your political persuasion. With the economic crisis deepening, Lord Mandelson ordered a review of policies in the pipeline that may cause firms to shed jobs, cut investment or go bust, including an extension to the right of parents to ask for flexible working. Last month, Labour's party conference had approved this proposal which was trumpeted by Gordon Brown. Just days into the job, the new Secretary of State for business seemed to have kicked it to touch.
The Relationships Foundation's 'Keep time for children' campaign has worked with others over the last two to three years to lobby Government to extend the right to ask for flexible working for parents. Currently, it is available to parents with children up to age 6 or disabled children. The Government was persuaded last year to set up a working group led by Imelda Walsh, HR Director of Sainsburys, to look at all aspects of the issues. She recommended the extension of the right to ask for flexible working to parents of all children up to age 16, encompassing the difficult early teenage years of transition when children need the presence and support of their parents. The Government announced that they would implement the recommendation from April 2009 - then along came the Baron of Hartlepool and Foy.
We have written to the new Business Secretary urging the Government to maintain its commitment, arguing that both the well-attested benefits of flexible working for the employee and for good staff relations, and the wider impact of allowing parents to spend more time with their children, mean that the measure should go ahead as planned. The current economic situation will put even more stress on families making flexible working all the more essential. In light of the uncertainty, our current research is all the more significant.
Cary Cooper, Pro Vice Chancellor and Professor of Organisational Psychology and Health at Lancaster University, is one of the UK's leading experts on workplace stress, and a member of the Academic Advisory Panel on our Working Time and Family Well-Being project. This project is looking at the academic literature on the links between long and unsocial hours and family and child well-being. We expect to report in spring 2009 and to be able to show that regularly working long hours or unsocial hours (or both) has a negative impact on couple relationships and on time spent with children. These in turn have an observable effect on whether children reach their learning and developmental potential and on children's mental health, a growing area of concern for social policymakers.
Professor Cooper is also Co-ordinator of Foresight, the Government think tank which reported (last month) on 'Mental Well-Being'. It suggested five key steps to mental well-being including connecting with others; "Developing relationships with family, friends, colleagues and neighbours, will enrich your life and bring you support." The report recognises that the widespread adoption of flexible working is a key tool to encourage people to get more from their lives and improve their mental well-being, not least by spending more time with family and friends.
Professor Cooper notes, "People who choose to work flexibly are more job-satisfied, healthier and more productive". A key aim is to encourage more men to take opportunities for flexible working to enable them to carve out more time, particularly at weekends when all the family can be together, and to attend school concerts, sports events, etc.
The importance of weekends is reflected in out new campaign for a shared weekend day off for all parents. We have drafted, with legal assistance, a Family Protection Bill, which will give employed parents the right to 10 weekend days off in every quarter. Consultations are taking place with a number of friends and supporters in Parliament with a view to introducing a Private Members Bill in the next session. With limited exceptions, this Bill will enable parents, particularly those from low-income backgrounds who have little choice but to work at weekends, to agree arrangements which will allow them to take a Saturday or Sunday off with the family.
We expect the research on Working Time and Family Well-Being to give a real boost to the campaign by demonstrating how much UK families are affected by our long and unsocial hours culture. The economic crisis may well prove to be an opportunity when people stop and evaluate their priorities. Family relationships will be put under pressure as unemployment rises and household spending falls. But families are also a great source of support and encouragement. The crisis should force us all to stop and review as Lord Mandelson has done. But having paused, we must reach the right conclusions. This is not the time to hold back in helping families, they need support now more than ever.
This article was first posted on the Relationships Foundation website on 5 November.