CBI: Govt needs to be flexible
Wed 28 May 2008
23/05/2008
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The government needs to be flexible in setting the date for implementing new employment law, the Confederation of British Industry has said. Following a report by Sainsbury's HR director, Imelda Walsh, the government is to extend the right for workers to apply for flexible working conditions. "But extending the right to another four and a half million parents is a big step and the government must give firms enough time to prepare, particularly small firms that lack the HR resource of big companies," said CBI's director of HR policy, Susan Anderson. Ms Anderson said the extension to parents of older children strikes a fair balance and firms are committed to making it a success. However, she cautioned: "The right to request flexible working has worked well precisely because it is a 'right to request', not a 'right to have'." Companies are more accommodating than they were in 2004, a CBI/Pertemps employment trends survey showed. In 2007, 94 per cent agreed to requests when only three years earlier just 77 per cent gave their consent.
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