Workplace Flexiblity2

7/29/2019 Workplace Flexiblity2

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InnovatIve

for Hourly Workers

WorkplaceflexIbIlIty optIons

Researched and wrien by WFD Consultng


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InnovativeWorkplaceFlexibilityOptionsforHourlyWorkers CorporateVoicesforWorkingFamilies1

AcknowledgmentsInnovativeWorkplaceFlexibilityOptionsforHourlyWorkersisaproductofCorporateVoicesforWorking

FamiliesWorkplaceFlexibilityProject.ThisreportwasresearchedandwrittenbyWFDConsulting.This

researchwassupportedbyagrantfromtheAlfredP.SloanFoundation.

TheauthorswouldliketothankArleneJohnsonforhervisionandleadershipinmakingthisprojecta

realityandKathleenChristensenforherguidanceandsupport.Wearealsoindebtedtooursupporters

atCorporateVoices,DonnaKleinandJohnWilcox,fortheirsponsorshipandencouragement.Weare

gratefultoEllenGalinskyandJenniferSwanbergfortheirexpertiseandadviceonthistopic.Thankyou

alsotoDebbieMagalhaesforherassistanceinpreparationofthisreport.

Wearegratefultoourparticipatingcompanies,BrightHorizons,Marriott,PNC,Procter&Gamble,anda

consumergoodsmanufacturerwhowishestoremainanonymous,forwithouttheirgenerosityand

cooperation,thestudywouldnothavebeenpossible.

Authors

AmyRichman

DianeBurrus

LisaBuxbaum

LaurieShannon

YoumeYai


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TABLEOFCONTENTS

Overview 3

CaseStudies 17

BrightHorizons 17

ConsumerGoodsManufacturer 27

Marriott 37

PNC 46

Procter&Gamble 62

SurveyFindings 71WorkplaceFlexibilityDefined 71

UseofFlexibility 72

SupportforFlexibility 79

FlexibilityCompatibility 85

FlexibilityImpacts 90

AbouttheSurvey 97


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OVERVIEW

Introduction

LowerwageworkersarecriticaltothegrowthandprosperityoftheU.S.economy,butthissegmentof

the workforce remains underserved in both policy and research discussions. There is only faint

recognitionthatmorethan25percentoftheU.S.workforcearelowerwageworkerswhoearnlessthan

$10 per hour (or less than $20,000 annually) and that significantexpansion in this laborsegment is

anticipatedastheeconomygrows.1,2Estimatessuggestthatthemajorityofnewjobscreatedinthenext

fewyearswillbe lowerwage.Greaterattentiontothiscategoryofworkerespeciallytothefactors

thatenabletheirstability,contributionandproductivityisvitalbothtothehealthofbusinessesand

tothewellbeingofthemillionsofindividualsinthelowerwageworkforce.

Workplaceflexibilityis oneoftheareasinwhichworkplacepolicyforlowerincomeworkershasbeen

lacking but inwhich there is great potential for impact and change. Recent academic researchand

business reports have demonstrated strong positive outcomes of flexibility for businesses andemployees.This researchonthebusinesscaseforworkplace flexibilityhasproventobeinfluential,

bothingarneringtheattentionofbusinessandthepressandalsoindemonstratingthefeasibilityand

importanceofworkplaceflexibilityasabusinesstool.3However,thefocustodatehasbeenprimarilyon

management andprofessionalworkers, and relatively little attention has gone to how andwhether

voluntaryflexibilitycanworkforlowerwageemployeesandtheiremployers.Littleisknownaboutwhat

kinds of flexibility are successful in lower wage jobs, resulting in a common assumption among

employers and managers that flexibility is less feasible, effective or necessary for these positions.

Research shows that, for a variety of reasons, lower wage workers generally have less access to

voluntaryflexibilitythanhigherwageworkers.Butwhenitisavailabletothispopulation,flexibilitycan

haveequalorevenmorepowerfuloutcomes.4

Thepurposeof this projectwas tocreatebroaderawarenessof thepositivebusinessand employee

impactsofflexibilityforlowerwagehourlyandnonexemptworkersandtoprovidepracticaltoolsand

informationabouttheconditionsandpracticesthatmakeflexibilitypossibleandprofitable.

Theprojectsoughttoanswerseveralresearchquestions.

Whatmotivatestheprovisionofanduseofflexibilityforemployersandlowerwageworkers? Whatarethecriticalsuccessfactorsfromboththeorganizationalandemployeeperspectives? Howdoorganizationsdealwithandovercomethebarrierstoflexibility? Howdoorganizations ensurethat businessresults have been achieved in theareasof talent

management,humancapitaloutcomesandfinancialperformance?

Basedonresearchinfiveorganizations,thisreportprovidesdocumentedsuccessfulflexibilitypractice,itsbusinessimpactandthepracticallessonslearnedfromcorporateexperiencewithflexibilityforlower

wagehourlyandnonexemptworkers.Thereportpresentsfivecasestudiesofflexibilitybestpractices,

quantitativesurvey findings about flexibilityuseand impacts,and practical flexibilityimplementation

guidesformanagersandemployeeswithconcretetipsandtools.


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DescriptionoftheStudy

During 2007 and 2008, five organizations that had already implemented flexibility successfullywith

someportion(atleast200employees)oftheirlowerwageworkforce(generallythoseearning$12per

hourorless)foratleast12monthswerestudied.5Insomecasestheflexibilitythatisbeingdocumented

extends across the company; inother cases it has been implemented in a divisionor sector of thebusinessorwithinspecificworkteams.Companiesparticipatedinbothqualitativeandquantitativedata

collection. Theparticipating organizations represent diverse industries (financial services, hospitality,

child care and consumer products) and job types (customerfacing workers as well as operations

workers). Participating employees include child care providers, customer service representatives,

operationsspecialists,productionworkers,administrativeassistants,salesagentsandothers.

WorkplaceFlexibilityDefined

Theflexibilitypracticesinvestigatedfallintothreecategoriesthataddressdistinctneedsoflowerwage

workers.Researchhasshownthatgiventhenatureoftheirjobs,economicconstraintsandfamilyneeds,thetypesofflexibilitythatarepossibleandbeneficialaresomewhatdifferentforlowerwageworkers

than forhigherwageworkers.Thusthetypesof flexibilitystudied includeseveralofthetraditional

forms of alternativework arrangements but also extend to include the flexibility that results from

greateremployeecontroloverschedulingandfrompersonnelpoliciesregardingoccasionalorepisodic

flexibilitytwoareasinwhichlowerwageemployeeshavehistoricallyhadlessaccessthanexemptand

higherpaidemployees.

(1) alternativeworkschedulesschedulesthatdepartfromthestandardfivedayperweek,fulltime schedule, such as flexible start and end times, compressed workweeks, telework, and

voluntaryparttimewithproratedpayandbenefits(definitionsofthemostcommonalternative

workschedulesareprovidedattheendofthereport);

(2) employee control over scheduling to accommodate personal preferences or familyresponsibilitiesflexiblescheduling,selfscheduling,shiftswappingandcontrolofunscheduled

overtime;

(3) progressivepersonnel policies forhourlyworkers that enable employees tomanage periodicandunscheduledpersonalandfamilyneedsandemergencies(sickleave,timeoffandtheuseof

episodicflexibility).


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Methodology

Thedataforthisreportcomefromseveralsources:reviewofcompanybusinessinformationconcerning

flexibilitypolicies andresults,aquantitativesurvey, andqualitativefocusgroupsandinterviews. The

surveywas conductedprimarilyonlinewithmore than200managersandapproximately 1,300lower

wage,nonexemptandhourlyworkerswhoutilizeflexibility.Asmallcomparisonsamplewasincludedofabout130employeeswhoperformcomparablejobsinthesamecompaniesbutdonotuseflexibility. 6

Printedsurveyswereusedinoneorganizationinwhichemployeesdidnothaveaccesstocomputersor

theInternetat theworkplace. (See AbouttheCorporateVoicesSurveyon Flexibility forHourlyand

NonexemptWorkerslaterinthereportforadetaileddescription.)

Twentyfivefocusgroups(21groupswithemployeesandfourgroupswithmanagers)and25interviews

were conducted with middle and seniorlevel human resources (HR) and line managers; in one

organization, six individual interviews were conducted with firstlevelmanagers in place of a focus

group. Most of the interviews and focus groups were conducted in person; three groups with

teleworkingemployeesand four interviewswithmanagerswereconductedviatelephoneconference

call.

BusinessDriversofFlexibility

Flexibility has often been positioned as simply an accommodation to employees, but the data

summarized in this reportdemonstrate that employers cangain tremendous benefit fromproviding

flexibilityinwhenandhowworkgetsdone.Flexibilityasithasbeenimplementedinthesecompaniesis

used as a management tool to address a variety of business needs: to effectively manage human

resources(recruit,develop,retaintalent),controlcostsandincreaseproductivity.

Inchildcare,wherethereisashortageofqualifiedearlychildhoodteachers,flexibleworkoptionsisa

talent strategyto recruit and retain individualswho are committed totheir professionand totapa

widerlaborpoolthanmightbepossiblewithmorelimitedchoiceofworkschedule.

Companies have found that offering flexible schedulesandinnovativetimeoffpoliciescontributes to

beinganemployerofchoiceforyoungerworkersintheircompetitivelabormarkets.

Forpositionsincustomerserviceandsaleswithtypicallyhighturnover,flexibilityisawaytokeephigh

performingemployees inboth theshort term and the long term. These companies use flexibility to

respond tothechangingneedsoftheir workersover the life course (goingback toschool,raising a

family)ortoretainmatureworkers.

Flexiblework options are being used in businesses with continuous operations that needweekendcoverageorwhosebusinesshoursextendbeyonda9to5,eighthourday.Thisincludesvoluntarypart

timepositionsaswellasflextimeandcompressedworkschedules.

Flexibleschedules arean effectivemeans ofmanagingpersonnel costs, inparticularovertime costs,

whichisawinwinforemployeesandthebusiness.Flexibilityiscostandresourceneutralwhenplanned

forand personnel andproductivity costsof unscheduledabsences areavoided. Bybuildingflexibility

into the staffingmodels,someof the companies reduce overtime costsand offer more controland


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choicetoemployeesover theirworkinghours. Inaddition,someofthecompanieshavedocumented

productivitygainsandcycletimereductionsasaresultofimplementingflexibleworkoptions.

Theseinnovationsinflexibilityareprovidingnonexemptandhourlyworkerswiththeaccesstoflexibility

that has become more commonplace for professionallevel workers not only the formal

arrangementsbuttheoccasional,justintimeflexibilitythatmaybethedifferencebetweenkeeping

orlosingonesjob.

FlexibilityBestPractices

Thefollowingexamplesillustratehowseveralflexibilityoptionshavebeensuccessfullyimplementedin

avarietyofhourlyandnonexemptjobs.

Flextimeinproduction,operationsandothersettingsinwhichcoverageisessential

Mostpeopleassumethatflextimewillnotworkinaproductionenvironment,butwefoundthat

productionteamsinseveralcompaniesdohaveflextimescheduleseitherformalarrangementsor

occasionalflextimemanagedattheteamlevel.

Inaconsumergoodsmanufacturingplant,employeesarrange,withtheapprovaloftheirworkteams,to

eitherworkuptotwohoursattheendofthepreviousshiftoratthebeginningof thefollowingshift.

Membersofonesownshiftcovertheirworkonthatday.Thistypeof flexibilityisusedfrequentlyto

enableshiftworkerstoparticipateintheirchildrensextracurricularandsportsactivitiesortoattenda

regularweeklyappointmentorclass.

Inbankoperationsinwhichtheusualworkdayis8:00a.m.to4:30p.m.,teamshaveflextimeschedules

thatstartasearlyas6a.m.andendaslateas5:30p.m.;staffchoosestarttimesin15minuteorhalf

hourintervalsupto8:30.Teamstypicallyhavedailyserviceleveltargetsthatmustbemetandeveryone

ontheteam,regardlessofworkschedule,contributestowardmeetingthegoal.Intheseenvironments,theflexibleschedulesbuildteamworkandgreaterownershipofresults.Bothemployeesandmanagers

alsoreportedthatstaffcanbemoreproductiveduringearlymorningandlateafternoonhourswhenthe

volumeof customer interactionsis lower,allowingemployees tocompletetasks that aremore time

consumingorrequireresearchormorefocusedattention.

Inchildcarecenterswith11and12houroperations,flextimemeetsseveralbusinessneeds.Itisaway

tohavestaffwithappropriatecertificationlevelsonsitealldaysothatthecenterisincompliancewith

stateregulationsconcerningstafftochildratiosandtraining.Itisresponsivetothepeaksandvalleysof

businessbymatchingstaffinglevelstothefluctuationincustomerdemand.Itenablesthedirectorsto

recruithighqualitystaffcommittedtotheearlychildhoodfieldastheirprofessionbyofferingfulltime

teachingpositionstostudentsenrolledincollegeorgraduateschoolcourses.

Flexibleflexibilitypoliciesandjustintimetimeoffreducesabsenteeismandovertimeand

increasesretention

Companiesofferseveralinnovativeexamplesofjustintimetimeoff.Successfuljustintimetime

offpracticesareafunctionofprogressivepersonnelpolicies,supportivemanagerattitudes,accurate

knowledgeofpeaksandvalleysinworkdemands,andefficientschedulingtools.


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Company flexibility and timeoff policies as they pertain to nonexempt and hourly workers are

fundamentaltodeterminingwhetheremployeesareabletomanagethedaytodaylifesituationsthat

arisewithoutincurringpenaltiesinperformanceorcompensation.Employersinthisprojecthaveputin

placepoliciesandbenefitsthatprovidenonexemptandhourlyworkersaccesstoflexibility,bothformal

arrangements and justintime flexibility. This type of occasional flexibility is greatly valued by

employeesandhasbecomemorecommonamongprofessionallevelworkersbutisstilluncommonfor

nonexempt and hourly positions in which attendance policies are rigorously enforced. Participating

companieseitherhavepoliciesthatenableemployeestotakevacationtime,personaltimeandsicktime

inhourlyincrementsratherthanwholedaysortheindividualmanagersallowemployeestotaketime

offinsmallunits.Justintimetimeoffalsoreferstotheabilitytotakesinglevacationdaysonshort

noticeinsystemsinwhichvacationisoftenscheduledinweeklyincrementsseveralmonthsinadvance.

Theabilitytousesomepersonaltimeeithervacationtimeorsicktimeinsmallincrementsenables

employeestotakecareofpersonalorfamilymattersastheyariseevenifthebulkofvacationtimemust

bescheduledlonginadvanceandtakeninlargerunits.Thisreducescalloffsandavoidsshortstaffing

andovertime(abenefittobothcoworkersandthecompany)sincetheemployeecantakeoffanhour

ortwoinsteadofbeingoutforanentireday.Beingabletomakeupacoupleofmissedhoursatanother

timewithinthepayperiodalsohasatremendousimpactonworkerswhoarecountingoneveryhourofpay.Aswithusingtimeoffinsmallincrements,theabilitytomakeuptimeisalsolessdisruptiveto

staffingsinceemployeesarenotforcedtocallinsickortakeanentireorhalfshiftoffbecausetheyneed

togotoanappointmentorbeanhourlate.

Anecessaryelementofbeingabletoallowemployeestimeoffonshortnoticeisbuildingthecapacity

fortimeoffintothestaffingmodel.Whilemanagersmightassumethiswouldmeanschedulingexcess

staff,thatisnotnecessarilythecase.Managersreportedthatjustintimeflexibilityactuallyenables

them to manage their existing staffing resources better because, they have found, allowing small

amountsof flexibility reducesthe overallnumberofcalloffsor callouts(unscheduledabsences)

whichotherwiseresultinovertimecosts,stressandefficiency/effectivenessproblems.

Onecompanyannuallyissuesa certainnumber of timeoffcoupons tocallcenteremployeeswith

ongoingperformanceincentivestoearnmore.Employeeslogontothecallcentersschedulingsystem

todetermineifthereareavailableslotsinthescheduletouseatimeoffcouponforagivenday.Incases

inwhichemployeesarehomewithasickchildorhaveanothertypeofpersonalemergency,theycan

callthemanagerondutytocheckforavailabletimeoffslots.Timeoffpoliciesandofferingemployeesa

mechanismtohavemorecontrolovertheirscheduleshasenabledthecompanytoengageandretain

youngworkersinanindustryandlabormarketinwhichturnoveristypicallyhigh.

Inacontinuousproductionenvironment,oneteamincorporatesenoughresourcesintothestaffingplan

sothateveryday,twoteammemberscangetthedayoff.Allteammembersnamesarelistedonthe

scheduleandasanemployeesnamereachesthetopofthelist,he/shehasthechoiceofeithertaking

thedayoffwithoutpayorworkingtheextraday.Someemployeespreferthetimeoff,whileothers

prefertheextrapay;thebenefitofthesystemisgivingtheemployeeschoiceandcontrolovertimeoff.

Teleworkforadministrativeassistantsandcustomerservicerepresentatives

Teleworkfornonexemptandhourlyworkersmaybethefastestgrowingflexibilitypracticeaspressure

toreduceoperatingcostsprovidesincentivesforbusinessestodecreaseofficespaceatthesametime

thattechnologyadvancesmakeworkingathomemorefeasible.Asignofthisshifttowardteleworkasa


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businessstrategyisthatnewemployeesarebeingrecruitedforteleworkpositionsinadditiontothe

morecommonpracticeoftransitioningofficeworkerstoteleworkarrangements.

Typically theadministrative assistant position has had very little flexibilitybecause being present at

onesdeskatalltimesofthedaytoanswerthephoneandprovidesupportformanagershasbeenthe

keyrequirementofthejob.Althoughthetechnologyisavailabletoperformkeyjobresponsibilitiesof

the administrative assistant position effectively from a distance, manager attitudes have been the

biggest barrier to telework and other flexible scheduling options for support personnel. In one

participating company, a very resultsbased organization inwhich many of the managers are quite

mobilethemselves,administrativeassistantsareabletoteleworkveryeffectivelyoneormoredaysper

week. Administrative employees who are part of a team determine a coverage schedule among

themselvessoatleastonesupportpersonisattheofficeeachday.Employeesproactivelycommunicate

their schedules and contact information andutilizeemail, instantmessaging and call forwarding to

maintainsatisfactorylevelsofaccessibilityandresponsivenessformanagersandcustomers.

Therehasbeenanincreaseinthenumberofcompaniesthatareimplementinghomeagentprograms,

whichisechoedintheexpansioninthenumberofteleworkingcustomerservicerepresentativesamong

thecompaniesinthestudy.Whilesomecompaniesaretransitioningemployeeswhoformerlyworkedonsitetoworkathome,othersinourstudyareusingteleworkasacomprehensivetalentstrategythat

includes recruiting, training andmanaging remotely. Teleworkhasenabled these employers to staff

hardtofillhourswithhighlymotivated,highperformingindividualsbytappingnewsegmentsofthe

talentpoolandrehiringalumniwhoselifecircumstanceshavechanged.Thesetargetemployeesinclude

employees in rural areas,mothersof young children, students and individualswithother scheduling

requirementswhowouldnotbeavailableotherwiseforeitherstandardweekdayhours,eveninghours

orweekend hours at the company office location. Telework also helps companies to retain valued

employeeswith significant family commitments; sometelework fora couple ofdayseachweekand

comeintotheofficeotherdays,andsomemoveintoaparttimeteleworkpositionforaperiodoftime.

Withoutteleworkoptions,managersandemployeesreport,theemployeesinquestionwouldprobably

have quit their jobs altogether. Equipping employees to telework has provided companies withincreased capacity to handle unexpected situations everything from inclement weather to an

unexpectedlyhigh volumeof calls.Havingemployees setup to telework allowsmanagers to rapidly

deploystafftochangingworkpriorities.

Teambasedcompressedworkweekschedules

Although compressedworkweeks are common in some occupations and industries, we foundmore

typesofjobsinwhichcompressedworkschedulesweresuccessfulandmorepositiveoutcomesthan

previous research had indicated. For example, a child care center director viewed the compressed

workweek schedule as a strategy to provide more staff continuity and consistency and reduce the

amountofunscheduledabsences.Althoughteacherswerenotintheclassroomoneoutoffivedays

eachweek,byworkingfourlongerdays,teacherswereabletocovertheentire10hoursofoperationon

thedaystheywereworking.Thismeansfewerparttimeemployeesfillinginatthebeginningandendof

thedayandmoreoverallconsistencyinstaffing.Afteraninitialadjustmentperiod,parents(customers)

indicatedtheyweresatisfiedwithbeingabletoseethesameteacherintheclassroomatthebeginning

andendoftheday.Thecompressedschedulesproducetheintendedresultsmoreproductivityand

lessunscheduledabsenteeismasstaffareabletotakecareofpersonalneedsontheirweekdaydayoff.

Reductioninemployeeworkrelatedexpensessuchastransportationandchildcarecostsareadditional

benefitsfortheemployeeswithcompressedworkweeks.


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Fulltimebenefitsat30hours

Someoftheemployersofferfulltimebenefitsat30hoursasawaytoattractandretainhighquality

staffwhomaybestudents,havesecondjobsorhavesignificantfamilyresponsibilities,makingitdifficult

towork40hoursperweek.Italsoenablesthesecompaniestostaffhardertofilllatedayorweekend

shifts.Thisisatotalrewardsdifferentiatorintheirindustriesandaneffectivetalentstrategy.

Careerflexibility flexibilityoverthelifecycle

We found that employers have implementedcareer flexibility an emerging talent strategy that is

beingutilizedinthecompetitionforkeytalentasawayofattractingand,moreimportantly,retaining

nonexemptandhourlyemployeeswhoarecommittedtotheirindustries.Inhospitalityandchildcare,

workersjointhecompanyatanentryleveland,throughflexibilityandothersupports(suchascompany

sponsored continuingeducation or tuitionreimbursement), areable todevelopskillsandexperience

andmoveupthroughtheorganization.Inourstudy,severalmanagersanddepartmentheadsbeganin

lowerpaidpositionsthemselves.Itisnotuncommonforworkerstojointhesecompaniesearlyintheir

workcareers,evenasparttimeworkersinhighschoolorcollege;continuetoworkparttimethrough

school;becomefulltimewhentheygraduate;andthenchangetheirhoursormovetoadifferentrole

foraperiodoftimewhentheystartafamily.Severalparticipantsinthestudyhadmovedfromteam

lead ormanagementpositionsto otherpositions inorder toworkpart time, teleworkor havemorecontrolovertheirhoursatcertainpointsintheirpersonalorfamilylives.Someolderworkershadjoined

the company recently expressly looking for flexible working situations,while otherswere longterm

employeeswhodesiredmoreflexibilityintheirworkschedulesforpersonalorfamilyreasonstocare

forafamilymemberortohavemoreleisuretime.

Employeedesignedschedulesforcontinuousoperations

In some companies, scheduling by employee preference is replacing the traditional bidding system,

therebygivingemployeesmorecontrolovertheirschedules.Whenonecompanywenttoacontinuous

operation (24 hours x 7 days all year), management approached the two teams involved in the

operation and challenged them todevelop thework schedules. The two teams cameupwith quite

differentsolutionsthathavebeeninplaceforseveralyears.Andinbothcases,theymovedawayfromsenioritybasedscheduling.Oneteamdeveloped anannual schedule that indicates allan employees

workdaysanddaysofffarinadvance.Employeesthensubmittheirvacationrequests,whichgetadded

tothemasterschedule.Employeesstillhavetheopportunitytoswapshiftsoruseflextimeasneedsfor

flexibilitycomeuponshortnotice.Theotherproductionteamadoptedajustintimetimeoffsystem

inwhicheveryday,twoteammemberscangetthedayoff.

Employeemanagedshifttrades

Atcompaniesinthestudy,for themostpartemployeesarearrangingshifttradesandinformingtheir

managersratherthanmanagersbeinginthemiddleoftheprocess.Thishasseveralpositiveeffectsit

empowers employees to solve problems; increases teamwork, reciprocity and ownership of the

solution;reducesmanagementtime;andspeedsdecisionmaking.Onasmallerscale,butusedmore

frequently,employees coverhours foreach other in situations inwhich they need time offonshort

notice.Companiesusevarioussystemsfordocumentingshifttradesandoccasionaladjustmentstowork

hours,aswellasmechanismsforinformingcustomersandcoworkers;theseincludeschedulesposted

inprominentlocations,onlinestaffcalendarsandmoresophisticatedcomputerbasedstaffingsystems.


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KeySurveyFindings

Thesurveyresultsdemonstratethatlowerwageworkersutilizeawidearrayofflexibilityoptionsand

thatflexibilityusehaspowerfulbenefitsforenhancingthewellbeingandproductivityoflowerwage

workers,aswellastheeffectivenessoftheorganizationsthatemploythem.

Useofformalflextimeandcertainoccasionalflexibility/timeoffstrategiesisprevalent. Half

ormoreofrespondentsoccasionallyadjusttheirworkhoursforpersonal/familymattersoruse

vacationtimeinhourlyorpartialdayincrements,andfourin10useformalflextime.Takingpaid

timeoffonshortnotice,tradingshiftswithcoworkers,takingtimeoffduringtheworkdayto

takecareofpersonal/familymattersandtakingadditionaltimeoffwithoutpayareusedbyat

leastonethirdofsurveyrespondents.

Someoccasionalflexibilityandtimeoffoptionsareeasiertoaccessthanothers.Themajorityofemployeeshaverelativelylittledifficultyaccessingvacationtimein partialday increments,

occasionallyadjustingworkhoursortradingshiftswithcoworkers.Buttakingbreakswhenyou

wantto,takingtimeoffduringtheworkdayandtakingadditionaltimeoffwithoutpayaremore

difficulttoaccess.

Employees utilize multiple formal and occasional flexibility and timeoff options to meetbusiness andpersonal needs. Inexamining thewide andvariedoptions,wediscovered that

employeesutilizeamosaicofdifferentflexibilityoptionstomeettheirworkandpersonalneeds.

Onaverage,respondentsuseaboutfourtypesofflexibilityortimeoffstrategies.

Womenaremorelikelytousevariousflexibilityoptionsthanmen. Womenaremorelikelythan men to be using both formal and occasional flexibility including flextime, compressed

workweek, teleworking, occasional adjustment of start and end times, shift trades with co

workers,andtimeoffduringtheworkdayforpersonal/familymatters.

Youngerworkersaremorelikelytouseoccasionalflexibility,whileolderworkersuseformalarrangementsmoreoften.Theyoungestrespondentsarelesslikelytomakeuseofflextime,

compressed workweeks or teleworking. They are more likely, however, to make use of

occasionalflexibilitysuchastradingshiftswithcoworkers. Employees with childrenaremore likely touse flexibility than other employees,especially

employeeswithveryyoungorschoolagechildren.

Managers are the main conduit for information about flexibility options, especially foremployeeswhohaveformalflexibleworkarrangements.Assuch,itisimportanttonotethat

abouttwothirdsofmanagershavetheinformationneededtoassistemployeeswithflexibility.

Coworkerswhouse flexibility themselves are thenext most common resource on flexibility

options.

Thetypesandnumberofflexibilityoptionsusedhaveanimpactonemployeesatisfactionandflexibilityfit.Theuseof severaltypesofformalflexibility,occasionallyadjustingoneswork

hours as well as the number of flexibility options used all influence flexibility fit and

satisfaction.

7

The highest satisfaction and flexibility fit is among employees who usecompressedworkweeks.Theeaseofuseofflexibilityoptionsandthesupportforflexibilityfrom

various company constituents are also related to flexibility fit and satisfaction with a

companysflexibilityopportunities.

Managersandemployeesagreethatflexibilityhaspositive impactsforthebusinessandfortheemployee.Thereisstrongagreementamongflexibilityusersandtheirmanagersconcerning

the positive influence of flexibility on productivity, customer service, employee worklife

effectiveness,stressandwellbeing.


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Havingflexibilityfitisstronglyrelatedtoemployeesconnectiontotheiremployerandtheirwellbeing.Employeeswhohavetheflexibilitytheyneedhave55percenthigherengagement,

55percentlessstress,and45percentlowerturnoverintentionthanemployeeswhodonot.

Theuseof formal flexibility arrangements,the numberof flexibility arrangements,andtheease of access to occasional and timeoff strategies all predict higher engagement, lower

turnoverandlessstress.

Morethan80percentofmanagersandemployeessayflexibilityisimportanttorecruitmentandretention,andalmostaquarterofemployeesusingflexibilitywouldleavethecompanyif

theydidnothavetheopportunitytoworkflexibly.

Managers and employees, regardless of their experience with flexibility, concur that thenatureofnonexemptandhourlyjobsaswellasthecurrentlevelofworkloadarethemain

barrierstoaccessingflexibility. Inaddition,employeescitecompanypoliciesandsupervisors

attitudes,andmanagerscitecoverageneedsaskeyobstaclestotheuseofflexibility.

Nineoutof10respondentswhodonotcurrentlyuseflexibilitywoulddoso ifitwereofferedwithoutpenalty. Lack of access to flexibilityoptions in their currentpositions is theprimary

reasonthatmoreemployeesdonotuseflexibility.

One in five respondents is regularly expected towork overtimewith little or no advancenotice. Onefifth of employees say their managers, without asking first, assume they areavailableforovertimeasfrequentlyasseveraltimesamonthandreportthatrefusingtowork

extrahourswouldjeopardizejobadvancementorretention.

SuccessFactors

Successfulimplementationofflexibilityinlowerwagehourlyandnonexemptenvironmentsincludes

betteruseoftechnology,staffingaccordingtodemand,crosstraining,managementpracticesthat

encourageemployeeinvolvementandteambasedsolutions,consistentuseofclearpolicies,leadership

andaccountabilityforsupportofflexibility,andintentionalcommunication.

Buildflexibilityuseintostaffingmodelstomaintainproductivityandavoidcostsofunscheduled

absences

A cornerstone of creating successful flexible schedules is thorough knowledge of the workflow and

peaksandvalleysindemand,coupledwithsufficientstaffingresourcestodesignalternativeschedules.

Apparentlimitsonstaffingresourcesmayindicatethatcreatingmoreflexibilitywouldnotbepossible.

Often, unscheduled absences and other timeoff events actuallymask the fact that the number of

availablestaffisconsiderablylessthanthenumberofpersonnelresourcesinthestaffingmodel.When

managersunderstandthehiddencoststheyarealreadyincurringfromunscheduledabsencesdueto

lackofflexibilityoptionsandaddresstheissuesbybuildinginsufficientstaffingresources,proactively

managing scheduling and enabling some schedule flexibility, they find they can maintain or reduce

overalllaborcostsbyavoidingovertimeandunplannedstaffingissues.Employeeswhoarecrosstrainedandaredesignatedasfloaters,aswellasretireesandsubsarebuiltintothestaffingmodelstofillslots

and provide coverage for peak times or for employees who have requested time off. Historical

informationaboutstaffingneedsaswellasonlineschedulingsystemsarevaluabletoolsformanagersto

predictstaffingneedsanddesignflexibleschedules.


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Engageemployeesindevelopingteambasedflexibilitysolutionsthatmeetbusinessandpersonal

needs

Starting with a solid understanding of the business parameters, asking employees what they want,

listeningtotheirideasandbeingopentocreativenewwaysofschedulingarekeytodesigningtherange

offlexibleworkoptionsthatwillworkforemployeesandthebusiness.Whileitmayrequiremoretime

initially, involving employees in developing the potential flexible work options and getting team

consensus andsupportbuilds commitmenttomeetingbusinessgoalsandownershipof theflexibility

solutions.Thisprocessofthinkingoutsidetheboxisoftenessentialtodevelopinginnovativesolutions

that will meet business as well as employee needs. Pilots of potential flexibility solutions that are

evaluatedafteraspecifiedperiodoftimeandthenrevisediftheyarenotmeetingtheintendedpurpose

havehadpositiveresultsthatthenareexpandedtoincludemoreemployeesoveralongertimeperiod.

Empoweringemployeesandtrust

Successful flexibility requires selecting and hiring responsible people, clearly communicating

expectations,providingthenecessaryinformationandtools,andthenempoweringandtrustingthemto

delivertherequiredresults.Inworkgroupsinwhichflexibleworkpracticesarecommonplace,managers

encourageandexpectemployeestoresolveissues,developsolutionsandusethemanagersmoreas

resourcesandforfinalapprovalofschedulingchanges.Employeesaremorelikelytoagreetocoverfortheircolleaguesknowingthattheircolleagueshaveand/orwillcoverfortheminexchange.Employee

empowermentfromlessonslearnedaboutworkingflexiblygeneralizetootheraspectsoftheworksuch

that teammemberstakeongreaterresponsibilityandaccountabilityforoverallteamfunctioningand

results.

Both managers and employees note the importance ofmutual trust and respect in the success of

flexibleworkarrangements,particularlywhenemployeesareteleworking.Themanagermusttrustthat

theemployeesareworkingastheywouldbeiftheywereintheoffice,eventhoughthemanagercannot

see them. Agreements on expectations and objective measures of performance are important. In

productionenvironments,inwhichsystemsarealreadyinplacethatprovidemanagerswithinformation

aboutproductivityandperformanceagainstgoals,evidencesuggeststhatemployeeswhoteleworkareactuallymoreproductivethanemployeeswhoworkattheofficelocation.

Createaccountability,provideinformationandsupportformanagerstopromoteflexiblework

practicesintheirunits

In companies inwhich success of flexiblework options has been sustained, there is leadership and

support from the organization. Senior managers connect flexibility to their corporate values and

understandtherelationshipbetweenflexibilityandemployeeengagement;theysupportmanagersand

holdthemaccountableforprovidingflexibilitytotheiremployees.Thecompanyinvestsintrainingand

communication on implementation of flexiblework arrangements for employees, managers and HR

professionals;theyprovideopportunitiesformanagerstodiscusstheirexperiences,problemsolveand

sharestoriesofsuccessfulflexibilitythroughouttheorganization.

Developclearpolicies,proceduresandguidelinesandutilizethemtoensureconsistent,fairtreatment

Consistencystandsoutasoneofthemostimportantfactorscontributingtothesuccessofflexiblework

practices.Clearflexibilitypolicies,guidelinesandabusinessbased flexibleworkarrangementrequest

processprovidetheinfrastructureandguidanceforemployeesrequestingflexibleworkarrangements

andmanagersapprovingflexibilityrequests.Thisguidanceisparticularlyimportantformanagersfaced

withdifficultdecisionsorcompetingrequests,especiallyiftheflexibilityguidelinesareclearaboutthe

business considerations thatmust bemet for flexible work arrangements tobeapproved. Equity is


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achieved through all employees having access to a fair and consistent flexibility process, but the

flexibilitydecisionsandapprovalsmayvarydependingonthenatureofthework,coverageneeds,job

requirements,etc. Incompanies inwhich flexibilityis beingutilizedeffectively,managersenforcethe

policiestoensurefairnessandequitywhilealsobeingopentoandsupportiveofflexibilityasabusiness

and management tool, and they approve requests whenever possible. Where existing company

flexibility policies do not address the needs of nonexempt or hourly positions, HR is often a good

resourceforlinemanagers,providingguidanceincraftingappropriateflexibleworkoptionpolicies.In

some cases, employee committees have proposed flexibility options and guidelines that were then

approvedbymanagement.

Communication

Effective communication is even more important to high performance when workgroups utilize

flexibilitythanwhenteammembersallworkonthesamescheduleinthesamelocation.Postingweekly

anddaily schedules online or in strategic locations, aswell as updating in real time critical business

informationsuchasdailyproductivitytargetsandstatusondeadlines,ensuresthatallstaffareinformed

aboutexpectationsandstaffavailabilityregardlessofthehoursorlocationofwork.Makingthestaffing

schedules readily available and communicating the coverage parameters also facilitates employee

requests foranyschedulechangesor timeoffandempowers themtoproactively find solutions, thussaving management time and enhancing employee ownership of the arrangements. Managers are

proactiveaboutconnectingwithemployeestomotivatethem,keepthemengagedandintegratenew

teammembers.Employeesareexpectedtokeeponeanotherandthemanagerinformedaswell;team

members use email, logs, phone messages, instant messaging and other communication tools to

conveyupdateson deadlines, resolvecustomer issues andexchange otherworkrelatedinformation.

Clearly technology tools cansupportrealtimeaccess tocolleagues andmanagersand access tokey

businessinformation.

Crosstraining

Crosstrainingandtheabilitytobackupcolleaguesisoftenaprerequisitetoimplementingflexiblework

arrangementssuchascompressedworkweeksandflexiblestartandendtimesthatinvolvevariedshifts.Teamscollectthe informationonwhichemployeesarecrosstrainedandcanfunctionasbackupsand

usethatinformation todetermineworkschedulesand toquicklymakeadjustmentswhenemployees

areout foranyreason.Havingmultiplestaffmembersknowledgeable on keyprocesses ensuresthe

workgroupwilldelivertheexpectedresultsregardlessofindividualworkschedules.

Technologyandtools

Constantimprovementsintechnologyenablemorewidespreaduseofflexibleworkpracticesinseveral

ways.Onlineschedulingtoolsthatbuildincoverageparametersandtimeoffguidelinesgiveemployees

morecontrolandflexibilityintheirschedulestorequestaregularschedule,tradeshifts,orschedule

vacationorothertimeoffandassistmanagerstoprojectstaffingneeds,approverequests,andtrack

andmonitorarrangements.Thisempowersemployeestotakemoreownershipofthearrangementsas

wellasproactivelyfindsolutionstoschedulingconflictsandreducestheoveralltimespentbymanagers

onworkschedules.

Callmanagementsystemsandothermanagementtoolsthatprovideinformationaboutstaffavailability,

dailyworkloadandprogressagainstgoalsenableindividualemployeesaswellastheworkgroupasa

wholetoanticipatedemand,manageworkflow,adjuststaffingandavoidlastminutecrises.


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Technology now enables effective telework with connectivity to communication and information

systemsandmonitoringofperformancecomparabletoonsitework.Virtualmeetingsusingwebinars,

videoconferencing andteleconferencing supporteffectiveteammeetings andtraining. Inaddition, e

mailandinstantmessagingkeepmanagersandemployeesaccessibletooneanother.

Evenwith thebenefitsof technology,managersarechallenged to find creativewaysto build strong

relationshipsandkeepemployeesandworkgroupsmotivatedgivenincreasedworkdemandsandvaried

workarrangements.Somemanagershavedevisedinnovativeapproachesforconductingperformance

reviews,givingrecognitionandonboardingnewteammembers.

Flexiblecareers

In industry sectors with competitive labor markets, recruiters, HR professionals and line managers

conceptualizeandmarketflexibilityasabusinesstooltorecruit,developandretainhighperforming

employeesacrossthelifecycle.Managerswhointeractwithemployeesatkeydecisionpointsinthe

employmentcycle,whoarefamiliarwiththecompanysflexibilitypoliciesandwillingtothinkcreatively,

canofferflexibleworkoptionsasastrategytohelpemployeesachievetheirlongertermcareerand

personalgoalsaswellasmeetthebusinessneeds .Initiatingconversationswithemployeesabouttheir

careerplansaspartoftheperformancemanagementprocessoratcriticaljuncturesandexploringtheopportunitiesforflexibilityhaveenabledbusinessestoretainvaluedemployeeswhomtheywouldhave

otherwiselost.

Challenges

Viewingflexibilityasabusinesstool,notanentitlement

Managersexpressconcernthatonceemployeeshaveaflexibleworkarrangementinplace,theytreatit

asanentitlementanditwillbedifficulttomakeanychanges.Managersmayassumethatifflexibilityis

implementedtheywillbeexpectedtoapproveallrequestsforaflexibleworkarrangement,wheninfact

they should modify ordeny those requests thatwill not meet businessneeds. For teleworkers thisincludesclearmessagesconcerningcreationofaprofessionalbusinessatmosphereinthehomeoffice,

availabilityforworkhoursandchildcarearrangements.Itiscriticaltosetexpectationsattheoutsetthat

flexibleworkarrangementsmustmeetbusinessneeds,willbereviewedonaperiodicbasisandmaybe

renegotiatedifbusinessrequirementschange.Managerandemployeetrainingandtheuseofarequest

processcanhelppositionflexibilityappropriatelyasabusinesstool.

Managementsupport

Theprimarybarriertobroaderimplementationofflexibleworkarrangementsisvariabilityinmanager

supportatdifferentlevelswithintheorganization.Managersheavyworkloadsandcompetingpriorities

hampertheirabilitytointroducenewworkpracticesthatwouldrequireanyadditionaleffort.Further,

concerns about monitoring performance, achievement of productivity goals or service levels byemployees working on different schedules and at different locations, and confidence in established

operating practices inhibit theirwillingness to consider newwaysofworking. Those unfamiliar with

managing flexible work options may not have the information or tools to manage arrangements

effectively.Inconsistenciesinmanagementssupportforflexibleworkpracticesacrossdepartmentsand

wheretherehasbeenturnoverinmanagementwithinthesameunitcauseemployeedissatisfactionand

turnover.Creatingaccountabilityforpromotingflexibleworkpractices,providingmanagertrainingand

coaching,andpublicizingtheresultsofsuccessfulpilotscanaddresstheseconcerns.


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Maintainingcoverage

Oneofthemainbarrierstoofferingflexibleschedulingisnotbuildingenoughresourcesintothestaffing

model to achieve the level of coverage necessary to meet the business demands. Perennial

understaffing can be a barrier to implementing flexibility. The desire to implement flexibility is an

opportunitytoexaminehowtheworkiscurrentlybeingdone:Isthereanopportunitytoredesignor

eliminatelowvalueworkandincreaseflexibility?

Often, unscheduled absences and other timeoff issues are masking the fact that the number of

available staff is considerably less than the number of paid personnel resources. When managers

understand the hidden costs they are already incurring from unscheduled absences due to lack of

flexibility options and address the issues by building in sufficient staffing resources, proactively

managingschedulingandenablingsomeschedule flexibility, they findthey canmaintainorenhance

productivity. They can alsomaintainor reduce overall laborcosts fromhaving the majorityofwork

resourcesavailableattheirregularwages,therebyavoidingovertimecosts.

Providingconsistencyandcontinuity

Businesses must ensure that consistent quality and customer service are maintained regardless of

employeesworkschedules. Itis critical thatemployeesormanagerswithrequisitequalificationsandknowledgeareavailableandthatcommunication toolsand technologyareutilizedsothatemployees

andcustomershavereadyaccesstoinformationduringallhoursofoperation.Involvingtheworkgroup

in designing the flexible work schedules, cross training employees on all key work processes, and

implementingtechnologyandcommunicationtoolsforessentialinformationcanhelpensureconsistent

servicequality.Furthermore,theuseofflexibleschedulescanhelpretainhighperformingemployees

whose knowledge and expertise have direct and longterm impact on productivity and customer

satisfaction.

Addressingpoorperformance

Somemanagers,particularlythosewhohavenotmanagedindividualsonflexiblearrangements,worry

abouthowperformanceismanagedwhenemployeesareworkingdifferentschedulesorindifferentlocations.Flexibilitydoesnotincreaseperformanceproblems,butitdoesshinealightontheissuewhen

poorperformersarenotbeingcoachedormanagedeffectively.Whenindividualsarenotperformingup

toexpectations andare abusing flexibilityarrangements, themoraleof theentireworkgroup canbe

affected.Poorperformanceshouldbeaddressedwiththeindividualemployeeratherthanjeopardizing

theavailabilityofflexibilityforanentireworkgroup.Performanceshouldbemanagedaccordingtothe

deliveryofresultsusingproductivityreportsandothermanagementtoolsregardlessofworkschedules.

Arequest forflexibilityis anopportunitytoestablishgoalsanddiscussperformanceexpectations ina

resultsbasedframework.

Schedulingmeetingsandtrainingswhenallcanattend

Managers have the challenge ofplanning staffmeetings and conducting trainings at timeswhen all

employeesintheworkgroupcanattend.Managersmayhavetopayovertimeifemployeesareaskedto

comeinontheirdaysofforattendmeetingsafterregularbusinesshours.Whilemanagerstrytolimit

thesesituations,itishelpfultosetexpectationsattheoutsetthattherewillbetimeswhenemployees

areaskedtoaltertheirworkschedulesortocomeintothecentralofficeforsuchevents.Workgroups

that have implemented teleworkextensivelyarealsotaking advantage of newmeetingand training

technologies that enable employees to participate including teleconference,videoconference,virtual

meetingsoftwareandcomputeraidedinstruction.


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Trackingflexibleschedulesandtimeoff

Someflexibleschedulesandtimeoffstrategies,suchascompressedworkweeks,parttimeschedules,

and incremental use ofvacation and sick time,require that timeworked and timeoff betracked in

hours;however,companytimetrackingsystemsoftenusedays.Thismayresultinadditionalpaperwork

oruseofasecondtrackingsystembymanagerandemployeetodocumentwhathourstheemployee

has worked and what time off he/she is entitled to. Some companies have implemented human

resources information systems that capture work time in hourly units, while in other companies,

managershavecreatedExcelspreadsheetsandotherdatabasetoolstotrackworkhours,vacationand

sicktime.

ImplicationsandConclusions

Inthisstudy,wehaveexaminedflexibilityfrommanydifferentperspectivesandinsodoing,wecan

makesomeconclusionsaboutsuccessfulimplementationofflexibility.Wefindthatitisnotonlyformal

flexible arrangementsthatproducethese impressive resultsbut progressivepersonnelpoliciesand a

workculturesupportiveofoccasionalflexibilitythatgiveworkersaccesstoavarietyoftimeoffoptions

andcontrolovertheirworkschedules.Whencompaniesprovideemployeeswithanarrayofflexibility

and timeoff options and an environment in which it is possible to access flexibility opportunities

without barriers, employees develop their own strategies to use the options that best meet their

individual needs andsatisfybusiness requirements. Theuniquecharacteristicsofemployees,both at

workandpersonally, suggest that there is no onesizefitsall flexibility solution. Anapproach that

encompassesamorecomprehensiveflexibilitystrategyismorelikelytosucceed.Whilespecifictypesof

flexibility and timeoff strategies may lend themselves to better outcomes for employees and

organizationsthanothers,thereislittledoubtthatavarietyofoptionsenablesabetterflexibilityfitto

suit the unique characteristics of employees.We find that the use ofmultipleoptions has aneven

greaterinfluenceonwellbeing,worklifeeffectivenessandbusinessresults.

Companiesthathavecreatedsuccessfulflexibilityoptionsfortheirlowerwageworkersreceiveahighreturn on their investmentsbecause of the many positive impacts on employees and the business:

betterrecruitmentandretentionoftalent,increasedengagement,lowerlevelsofstressandburnout,

greater productivity and effectiveness, better customer service, and finally more positive financial

results.


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CASESTUDIES

CaseStudy:BrightHorizons

Childcarecentersofferflexibleschedulestoattractandretainhighqualityteachersandoffer

extendedhoursofcaretomeettheneedsofchildrenandparents.

Background

BrightHorizons,foundedin1986andheadquarteredoutsideBoston,MA,managesmorethan600child

care centers for many of the world's leading corporations, hospitals, universities and government

agenciesacrosstheUnitedStatesandinternationally.Theircentersprovideavarietyofflexiblechild

care options for companies and working families, including worksite child care and emergency child

care.BrightHorizonshasmorethan18,000employees,thevastmajorityofwhomarehourlyworkers.

BrightHorizonsofferssalariesforearlychildhoodteachersatorabovemarketrate.BrightHorizonsoffersarangeofschedulingoptionsinordertoattract,retainandengagequalifiedchild

careproviders.Thechildcarecenterdirectorshavetoconsiderstateregulationsregardingthenumber

andqualificationsofteachersineachclassroom,theeffectofschedulechangesonthechildrenincare

andtheir parents,andtheneedsandavailabilityof theircentersemployees.BrightHorizonscenters

varysomearelocatedatcorporateworksiteswhileothersareindependent;somearesmallwhile

othershave manyclassrooms;and eachhas uniquequalities reflecting itsdirector,teachers,parents

andchildren.

BusinessDrivers

EachBrightHorizonscenterislikeasmallbusiness,withas fewas10orasmanyas50teachers.With

statemandatedstaffingrequirementsandextendedhoursofservices,onemightexpectlimiteduseof

flexibility.WhilenotallBrightHorizonscentershaveimplementedflexibleschedulingpractices,many

center directors, with the support of regional managers, have recognized that teachers at different

stages in their lives and careersneed scheduling flexibility and, as a result,have developed creative

staffingstrategies. Forall, recruitmentand retention of qualityemployees is an incentive to offering

flexibility in an effort to meet both business and employee needs. In some cases, candidates for

positions indicated limitson theiravailabilitybecauseof familyobligations, schoolor asecondjob.In

ordertohirethesecandidates,directorshadtobewillingtoconsidernontraditionalscheduling(i.e.,

something other than full time over five days each week). In other cases, teachers who had been

working a traditional schedule determined that managing their work and personal responsibilitieswouldbeeasieriftheyhadalternatives.

Inmostcases,itistheemployeewhocomestothedirectorwitharequestforaflexibleschedule.Some

directors, however, need to fill a particular schedule gap and therefore hire with a nontraditional

scheduleinmind.Becausemanyofthecentersareopenfor10or12hourseveryday,somecreativity

and flexibility are necessary to cover the hours while meeting best practice teachertochild ratios,

whichareoftenabovethestatemandatedteachertochildratios.Certaintimesofthedayrequiremore


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coverage than others, and breaks also need tobe factored in. Directors find that inmost casesthe

flexibilitytheygivetheirteachersisreciprocatedwhentheyneedcoverageforemployeeswhoareout.

When flexibility works well in an employees life, it makes for a better employee.

Teacher

Ithink[thereasonweintroducedflexibleschedules]wasacombinationofnecessity

andafeelingofsupportfortheemployees.RegionalManager

History

Eachcenterhasasomewhatdifferenthistoryintermsofintroducingflexibleworkarrangementsfor

teachers. Because of the nature of the industry and the demands of caring for children, flexible

schedules as well as some daytoday flexibility are important tools to attract and retain qualified

teachersandensurethatappropriatecoverageisavailableinalloftheclassrooms.

Insomecases,anewdirectorproposedtheideaofflexibleschedulestochangethingsup.Atother

centers,directorsand/orteachersheardaboutsuccessfulimplementationofflexibleschedulesatother

centersandwereopentotryingitthemselves.Somecentersbeganflexibleschedulingbecauseofthe

needs of one or more current or prospective teachers who needed particular times of the day off

becauseofobligationsoutsideofwork.

Onecenterthat implementedcompressedworkweeks to increase staffingconsistencyand to reduce

absenteeism began the process by mapping schedules looking at the childrens schedules and

havingtheteacherstogetherfigureoutclassroomcoverage.

Theteachersknowthatthefourdayworkweeksmaynotbenecessary,buttheywant

ittoworksotheybuyintoit. Director

ProgramDescription

Scheduling flexibility for center teachers includes parttime, compressed workweeks; working a

customizedschedule;swappingshifts;andvaryingstartandendtimes.Flexibleschedulesallowforthe

required classroom coverage over an extended day while also meeting the needs of the teachers.

Teachersalsoflextheirschedulesoverthecourseofayear,insomeinstancesworkinghourstomirror

the public school year and taking school vacations and summers off or on a parttime schedule.

Flexibility is also utilized by students, who are grateful to schedule work around their classes and

increasetheirhoursduringschoolbreaks.

Formalflexibleworkarrangementsareincorporated into theweekly schedule; this includes parttime

schedules,compressedworkweeks,nontraditionalhours,andvaryingstartandendtimes.Inaddition,

thereisasignificantamountofadhocflexibilityswappingshiftswithpeers,coveringforcolleagues

who need toleave for anappointment,or filling inforcolleagueswho are out because ofillnessor

vacation.


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Schedules vary greatly; full time is defined as at least 30 hours per week, which allows for many

scheduleoptions.Parttimeschedulesarecrucialforstaffcoverageofextendedhoursandworkwellfor

thelaborpoolthatBrightHorizonsattracts(i.e.,students,mothersofyoungchildren,etc.).Foracenter

thatisopen7a.m.6p.m.,theearlyshiftmaybe7a.m.3p.m.andthelateshift10a.m.6p.m.There

aremany variations of this. Oneexampleis a teacherwho works eighthourdays: theearly shift on

MondaysandThursdaysandalternateFridays.Anotherexampleisateacherwhoworks8a.m.6p.m.

everydayexcepthavingWednesdaysoff;acollegestudentcoversherclassroomonWednesdays.One

teacherworks8a.m.6p.m.TuesdaythroughThursday,7a.m.6p.m.onFridayandhasMondaysoff

because she has another job. Another teachers schedule is Monday 10 a.m.3 p.m. and Tuesday

throughFriday10a.m.5p.m.Someteachershavesplitshiftsinwhichtheyleavemiddayandthen

comebackto thecenter.Insomecases,collegestudentswork7 a.m.10a.m.,beforetheirclassesor

internships.

BrightHorizonscentersutilizeavarietyofcommunicationandplanningtoolsintheirscheduling.Posting

weekly and daily schedules for all to see plays an important role in the smooth implementation of

flexibleschedules.Alloftheteachershaveaccesstotheinformationtheyneedtofindcoverage,andthe

parentsareable toseewhosworking.Parentsappreciateknowing whospecifically hasbeenin their

childsclassroomandhearingfromthatpersonabouttheirchildsday.Iftheteacherisnotworkingatpickup time, she will leavea note for the otherteachers sothey can beinformed when parents ask

questions.Classroomsalsohavecommunicationnotebookstorecordimportantdailyinformationabout

specificchildren.

Inourclassroom,ifsomeonecantcoverit,wellcoverashiftonourown.Wellplan

withourownschedules.Teacher

Teachers do swap shifts a lot. Usually they will swap with different schedules, for

examplea74fora96.Theywriteanoteandputitonthemasterscheduleformeto

approve.Director

Themasterschedulegoesouteachweektheschedulesinyellowaresetschedules

sotheycant change.The rest are flexibleso I can move them around. The pink are

thosewhoflipschedulingonFridays.Ialsodoadailyschedulebecausepeoplecallout.

Director

The overall philosophy and policy of Bright Horizons supports flexibility. At the center level, some

teachersarehiredintotheirpositionswitha flexibleschedulewhileotherschangetheirschedulesas

their circumstances change. Teachers apply for a flex schedule by notifying their supervisor of their

request.Thereareotherteacherswhopreferatraditionalscheduleanddonotparticipateintheformal

flexibleworkarrangementsalthoughtheyaccesssomeadhocflexibilitywhentheyneedhourscovered

ortheycoverhoursforcolleagues.

Whenhiring,Iaskwhattheiravailabilityisto seehowitwillfitintoourschedule.If I

knowIneedsomeonetostartat3:30,workingaparttimeschedule,Imaygetahigh

schoolstudentwhowantstoworkafterschool.Director

Inthecorporatechildcarecenters,itisoftenhelpfultohavestaffworkinglongershiftsbecausethe

corporationsemployeesareworkinglongershifts.


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[Corporation]doescompressedworkweeksandflexibleworkarrangementsfortheir

employees,sothataffectswhathappensatourchildcarecenter. Director

Impacts/Benefits

Improvedrecruitmentandretention

Themostsignificantbenefitforthecentersistherecruitmentandretentionof qualifiedteachers ina

professionwithalimitedlaborpool.Manycentershaveteacherswithgreatlongevity,whichsupports

thecentersattractivenesstoparentsandalsoreducescostsassociatedwithhiringandtrainingnew

employees.The resultingcontinuityincareprovidersalsosupports theexpertisethecenteroffers,as

wellasenhancingthecenterculture,buildinglongtermrelationshipswithfamilies,collaboratingwith

colleagues and advancing ones career at Bright Horizons. Parent satisfaction at centers is high, and

teachersbelievethatthisisdueinparttothebenefitsoftheflexibilitytheteachershave.

Asaworkingparent,I wouldntbeabletoteachifthiscenterwerentas flexibleas it

is.Teacher

Withoutflexibility,Iwouldntbeabletoworkhere.Iftheyneededmetobehereuntil

6,IcouldntbecauseImasingleparentandIneedtopickupmychild. Teacher

Teachers will be more flexible with each other and work with each other and

communicatewitheachother,ifthecompanyisflexiblewithus.Itmakesuswantto

workhereandtostayhere. Teacher

Flexibilityisavaluabletoolwhenyouhavereally,reallygoodstaff.Staffingchildcare

centersisveryhard.Idontwanttolosemyteachersbecausethataffectstheclassroom

andthedynamics,soIwilldomybesttoretainthem. Director

Employeeswhoarealsoundergraduateandgraduatestudents

Flexibility allows students to work at the centers, scheduling their work hours around their class

schedules.Manyof thestudents areable toworkmore during thesummerand duringtheir breaks,

whichbenefitsthecentersbecausesomeoftheregularstafflooktotakevacationduringthesetimes.In

addition,someofthesestudentsworkatthecentersfulltimeaftertheygraduate,comingwithnotonly

theirearlychildhoodeducationdegreebutalsoexperienceatthecenterandanestablishedrelationship

withatleastsomeoftheircolleaguesandsomeofthefamilies.Essentially,thecenterishelpingtobuild

thenextgenerationofchildcareprovidersandcenterleadersbytrainingstudentswhohavealready

indicated their commitment to educating young children. Bright Horizons has several directors who

advancedtheircareersusingflexibilityinthisway.

WhenIdecidedtogobacktoschool,[thedirector]toldmetofigureoutaschedule

thatwillworkforme,andwellmakeitworkforthecenter. Teacher

IworkfulltimebutleaveatnoononTuesdaysandThursdaystogotomyclasses.

Teacher


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Compressedworkweeks

Teachersfindcompressedworkweeksbeneficialforanumberofreasons.Teachersusetheirdayoffto

attendtoappointments,doerrandsandregroup.Thefrequencyofteacherscallingoutsickorneeding

timeawayfromworkforappointmentsislessenedasaresultoftheirflexiblescheduling.Someteachers

whonowworkfourdayseachweekindicatedthatitwouldbestressfultogobacktoafivedayschedule

becausetheywouldthenhaveonlySaturdayandSundaytogetthingsdoneandmanyoftheservices

they need are not open on weekends. Teachers with compressed workweeks also save money in

commutingcosts(i.e.,parkingandgas).Mostoftheteachersdonttaketheirflexibilityforgrantedand

willdowhattheycanforthecenterinreturnfortheflexibilitytheyhave.

Atonecenterinwhichallteachersusecompressedworkweeks,thereismorecontinuityonadailybasis

thechildrenarewiththesameteachersformostorallofeachday.Thecenterssizeandhoursof

operationmakeitpossibleforalloftheteacherstoworkcompressedworkweeks.

Theygavemetheflexibility,soIthinkitsmyresponsibilitytoworkmyneedsaround

thatschedule.Teacher

I like my schedule because I have children at home I can schedule all theirappointmentsonWednesdays.Teacher

Theteachers[usingcompressedworkweeks]arelessstressed.Theycanworkhereand

stillgotoschoolorgetasecondjoborbeavailabletogetsomeovertime. Director

Itsstillexhaustingworkingfourdays,buttheteacherstendtobemorerefreshedthan

whentheyreworkingfivedays.Director

Itsnicetohaveadayoffinthemiddleoftheweekithelpsyoubreakuptheweek.

Teacher

SuccessFactors

Empoweringemployees

Directors find that empowering employees to figure out how to flex their own schedules while

maintainingnecessarycoverageofclassroomsbenefitseveryone.Teachersaremorelikelytoagreeto

coverfortheircolleagues,knowingthattheircolleagueshaveand/orwillcoverfortheminexchange.

Manytimes,shiftsareswappedbetweenteachers,andthedirectorisinformedafterthearrangements

havebeenfiguredoutmakingthedirectorsjobeasierbutstillgivinghertheopportunitytoapprove

or deny the requested switch. If someone needs coverage for certain hours, theres almost always

anotherteacher whowants theextrahours.Depending onratio requirements andovertime costs,arequestmayormaynotbeapproved.Oftenitsasimpleswitchwithacoworkerwhohasthesame

qualificationsorclassroomexperience,sothatateachercangotoanappointmentoraschoolmeeting

occurringatatimesheisscheduledtowork.

Iftheyneedmetoswitch,Imflexiblebecausetheyreflexiblewithme. Teacher


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IfIneedtochangemyschedule,Iaskmycoteachersandweworkitout.IfIask[the

director],shelltellmetoaskmycoworkers. Teacher

Manyofusarecertifiedforvariousagegroupssowecancoverforanotherteacher.

Teacher

Idonthavealldaytomicromanagetheteachersschedules.My ruleis: Figureitout

andaslongasIknowaboutitanditjiveswiththecenter,itsfine. Director

Thinkingcreativelywithsupportfromregionalmanagers

Thinkingcreativelyandoutoftheboxiscriticaltosuccessfulschedulingflexibility.DirectorsofBright

Horizons centers have the support of their regional managers regarding scheduling,and flexibility is

consistent with the corporations values and efforts to show their appreciation for all employees.

Requests fordifferentschedulesshould beconsidered, although thedirectordoeshavetheoptionof

sayingnoifarequestisnotgoodforthecenter.Clearlytheteachertochildratiosmandatedbythe

state drive the scheduling needs. The centers being open longer than eight hours each day also

necessitatesacreativeandinnovativeapproachtoscheduling.Onecenterkeepsalistofsubstheycan

call iftheyre having trouble covering a shift usually past employees who have left togo back toschool.OthernearbycentersintheBrightHorizonssystemarealsoasourceofbackupstaff.

Ifthedirectorconsidersthestaffsrequestsandthecoveragethatsneeded,theycan

figureouthowtobeflexible,aslongastheyrecreativeandopenminded. Teacher

Itwouldbeeasiertosetaschedule.Imgivingupalotofmytimeeachdaytomake

thiswork,butIknowitsworthit.Flexiblescheduleshelpyouwhenpeoplecallout.

Director

Youhavetoseethebiggerpicturetomakeitwork. Director

Itslikefittingapuzzletogether,pluggingintheteachersasneeded. Director

Itsa numbersgame,tomaintaintheratiorequiredby regulations.We cancallother

BrightHorizonscentersintheareaifweneedto[togetsubstitutes]. Director

Imconstantlyhearingfrommyregionalmanagerthatweneedhappyemployeesto

have happy kids. We need to appreciate our employees pretty typical of the

company.Director

Providingconsistencyforchildren

Youngchildrenneedconsistencyofcaregivers,andparentsprefertoseefamiliarfaceseachdaywhen

theydropoffandpickuptheirchildrenatthecenter.Somedirectorsperiodicallysendletterstothe

parentswithalloftheteachersnamesandschedulessotheyknowwhosscheduledtobeatthecenter

atanygiventime.Ifcoverageisneeded,thedirectortriestoarrangeforsomeonewhohasworkedin

thatclassroombeforesomeonethekidsandtheparentsarefamiliarwith.

Wehaveoursetschedule,sothefamiliesandthekidsknowtheroutinetheyknow,

unlesstheresanote,theyregoingtoseemeeachmorning. Teacher


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Havingaconsistentteacherisemotionallybetterforcertainages,especiallyfordrop

offsinthemornings.Teacher

Centersshouldntbesoflexiblethatthechildrendonthaveaconsistentcaregiver.

Teacher

Theteacherswhoworklongerdaysareprovidingahugebenefittomeandthe

families,becausetheyarehereatdropoffandpickup. Director

Communicating

Communication isessential among teachers andalsobetweenthecenter andtheparents. Weekly

anddailyschedulesarepostedateachcenterforalltosee,andifateachersscheduleischangingora

teacherisoutfortheday,thatinformationispostedaswell.Teachersnotesandalogarealsokeptin

eachclassroomsoateacherreturningtothecenterafteradayoffcanreadaboutwhathappenedinher

absence.Theteachersareveryproactiveandgoaboveandbeyondwhatisrequiredofthem;inmany

situationsinwhichateacherisoutonedayaweek,shellcheckinbyphonewithacolleaguethenight

beforeshereturnssothatsheisuptospeedwithwhathappenedbeforeshewalksbackintothecenter.

Theteacherscommitmenttothekidsandtoeachotherisindicativeofthecaringprofessiontheyarein.

I have Mondays off and [my coteacher and I]talkevery Monday night I get the

rundown of what happened on Monday so I know what to expect on Tuesday.

Teacher

Ineedtomakesurethateverythinggetscommunicated.Sincetheteachersareouton

differentdays,Iuseemailalot. Director

Usingfloatersaspartofastaffingmodel

Havingextrapeopleonthescheduleallowsformoreflexibilityinscheduling.Manycentershavefloatersonstaffparttimeorfulltimestaffmemberswhocangointoanyroomatanytimeasbackupstaffto

coverbreaksandplanningtimeandfillinasneeded.Thesefloatersarethenfamiliarwithwhathappens

inalloftheclassrooms,andthechildrenrecognizethemsothefloaterscaneasilycoverforteachers

whoareout.Floatersarethereforecrosstrainedandcanbeanintegralpartofastaffingplantomeet

thedemandsofprovidingcareoveranextendeddaywithstrictteachertochildratios.

Cross training gives us lots of flexibility. Parents will know the teacher already, so

theyrenotalarmediftheusualteacherisnotthere. Director

Teambasedflexibleschedulesolutions

Forflexibleschedulingto succeed, its important tohavea groupof teacherswhoworkwelltogether

andrespectoneanother.Consensusandsupport fromtheteamtotrydifferentwaysof schedulingis

important.Theteachersoftencredittheirdirectorforcreatingschedulesthatworkfortheindividuals

andthecenterandforsupportingtheteachersintheireffortstodesignaschedulethattheyrehappy

with. Teachers areempowered tocome upwithsolutionsto scheduling issues andthen presentthe

solution to the center directors for approval, rather than presenting the issue to the director and

expectinghertocomeupwithasolution.


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Weneedtoworkwellintherooms,trusteachotherandcommunicateinordertotake

careofthechildren.Teacher

We have weekly team meetings and monthly team meetings where we can work

[schedulingissues]out. Teacher

Weorganizethescheduleasagroupsotheteacherscanheareachothersreasoning.

Director

Wegobysenioritywhendecidingwhogetswhichdayoff.Whentheresanewhire,

currentstaffhavetheoptiontoswitchtheirdayoff. Director

Challenges/Barriers

Recognizingflexibilityisnotalwaysfeasible

Although BrightHorizonsencouragestheuseof flexible scheduling,there aretimeswhen,duetothe

sizeofthestaffatacenterortheschedulesofotherteachers,arequestforflexibilityhastobedenied.

Thiscanbechallengingbecausestaffseeothersworkingindividualizedschedulesandmayresentthat

their requestcould notbe approved. Centersthat areunabletohire extra staff becauseof financial

constraintsmay be less able to offer flexible schedules andmay be more challenged when teachers

requestalternativeschedulesorneedtimeoff.Inmostcases,directorstrytoavoidpayingovertimedue

tothenegativeimpacttotheoverallfinancialwellbeingofthecenter,sotheymustwatchtheteachers

schedulestobesuretheyarenotworkingtoomanyhours.Ifarequestforaflexibleworkarrangement

isdenied,thedirectorisexpectedtogiveabusinessreasonforthedenial.

Its about fairness, notnecessarily always what youwant todo.Just becauseyoure

flexibledoesntmeanthatyourealwaysgoingtogetwhatyouwant. Teacher

Idliketodothefourdayworkweek,buttheonlywaythatwouldhappenisifwehave

anotherassistantintheclassroom.Iusedtodoacompressedworkweek,andIlovedit.

Teacher

Swappingshiftsisnotanoptioniftheteacherwillthenbeworkinglessthan

30hours.Thenitsnotachoicetheyhavetotakevacationtime. Director

Because Im following a consistent kind of approach [to approving or denying

requests],Ifeelsafer.RegionalManager

AddressingperformanceissuesTeachersanddirectorsagreethatperformanceissuesareindependentofflexibleschedulesbutmustbe

addressedwhentheyoccur.Incasesinwhichanemployeesperformanceisslippingandsheisusinga

flexibleworkarrangement,thedirectorneedstomeetwiththeemployeetodiscussthesituationand

adjusttheteachersscheduleto onethatwillbettersupportherperformancewhile alsomeetingher

schedulingneedsandtheneedsofthecenter.Compressedworkweeksaregoodfitsforsometeachers

but not for all teachers; some find that working four 10hour days is too exhausting and leads to


26/103


burnout.Itsnotaonesizefitsallsituationasnoteveryonecanworkthesameschedulesteachers

anddirectorspartnertofigureoutaschedulethatworksforboththeteacherandthecenter.

Berealisticaboutwhathoursyoucanwork.WhenIwasdoing7:303:30,itdidntwork

out,butIkepttryingtomakeitwork.Youhavetobeabletoassesswhatyoucando.

Teacher

Ateachermayreallyenjoythecompressedworkweek,butiftheyrenotabletogetto

workontimeoriftheyrenotabletodemonstrateafulllevelofenergy,theirschedule

willhavetobechangedback.RegionalManager

Allstaffmeetings

Directorsalsohavethechallengeofplanningstaffmeetingssincetheremaynotbeatimewhenallof

theteachersareworking.Teacherssometimeshavetocomeinontheirdayoff,butdirectorstrytolimit

theseoccurrences.

Maintainingstaffingconsistencyandcontinuity

As a consequence of flexible schedules, parents may find that different teachers are in their childsclassroomondifferentdays.Someparentscomplainaboutthis,althoughtherealityof10to12hour

extendedcentercare impliesthatthesamestaffarenotabletobothopenandclosethecentereach

day. Centers try to minimize the variation, but the longer workdays and the teachers scheduling

flexibilitydoesmeanthatparentswillseedifferentteachersondifferentdaysoftheweek.Directors

havefounditishelpfultoassuretheparentsthattheotherteachersarejustasqualifiedastheteacher

theyareaccustomedtoseeing.Sharingthescheduleandinformationabouttheteachersqualifications,

aswellasmanagingtheparentsexpectations,ishelpful,asispreparingthechildrenattheendofone

day with mention ofwho they will beseeing the next morning when they come back in. A positive

consequenceofschedulingflexibilityisimprovedteacherretention,whichinturnprovidesmorelong

termcontinuityforthechildren.

Parentswantconsistency.Theydontwanttoseedifferentpeopleeveryday.Kidsand

parentsfeelcomfortablewithpeopletheyknow;theydontwanttoseeastranger.

Teacher

We try to tell parents about any changes in schedules or upcoming vacations in

advance,orassoonaswecan.Teacher

Youhavetolookatcontinuityforthekids.Werenotgoingtothrowinanewteacher

thatthekidsdontknow.Director

Implications/ConsiderationsforOtherEmployers

Thedirectorsandtheteachersagreeontheimportanceofallinvolvedbeingwillingtothinkcreatively

andtryschedulingthatisdifferentfromwhattheyareaccustomedto.Directorsmustbeabletolisten

to the needs of the teachers, and the teachers must be willing to give back, not merely ask for

schedulingflexibility.Postingeveryonesschedulesishelpfulsothatteacherscanlookatwhomightbe

availabletoswitchwithorprovidecoverage.


27/103


Forchild care providers, it is important to consider theconsequences of changing schedules for the

childrenandtheparents,whomaybeapprehensivewithlessconsistencyintheteacherstheyseeevery

day.

The experience of the Bright Horizons centers is that not everyone wants a flexible schedule or

compressedworkweek.Whilesomedirectorsmayfearthattheywillbeinundatedwithrequests,thisis

usuallynotthecase.

Itseasiertoimplementthanyouthink.RegionalManager

Flexibility is beneficial to all constituencies: Teachers appreciate the ability to better manage their

commitments outside of work, directors are better able to attract and retain qualified employees,

childrenandparentsbenefitfromhavingteacherswhoarelessstressedandmorelikelytostay,and

Bright Horizons in turn benefits from the success of the center. Whilesome may be hesitant to try

flexible scheduling at a child care center, the overall experience of teachers and directors at Bright

Horizons has been positive as they have seen the benefits of successful implementation. With the

support of the regional manager, the center director and the staff, flexible scheduling is a winwin

situation.


28/103


CaseStudy:ConsumerGoodsManufacturer

Aconsumergoodsproductionplantoffersarangeofschedulingoptionsdevelopedandmanagedat

theteamleveltomeetproductivitygoalsandmanagecostswhilealsogivingemployeesmorecontrol

overtheirworkschedules.

Background

Alargeplantofa U.S.basedconsumergoodsmarketingandmanufacturingcompanyisknownwithin

thecompanyforcreativityandcontinuousimprovement.Innovativeprogramsinitiatedattheplantare

oftendisseminatedtootherlocations.Thefacilityoffersarangeof schedulingoptionsdevelopedand

managedattheteamlevelthatareutilizedtomotivateemployees,meetplantproductivitygoalsand

controlcosts.

BusinessDrivers

Thebusinessdriversforflexibilityhavecomefromthecompanyscorporatevaluesaswellasbusiness

needstoboostproductivityandcontrolcosts.Thecompanyvaluesworklifebalanceforemployeesand

acknowledges that production schedules, which includeweekendwork and12hour shifts,do create

worklife challenges for employees. The company looks for ways to help employees manage their

personalandfamilyneedsandboostmorale.Flexibleworkpracticesareconsistentwithcompanyvalues

andverymuchpartoftheiroverallemployeevalueproposition.

Several years ago, the need to go to continuous operation prompted the design of new schedules.

Consistent with the plants continuous improvement philosophy, teams were given the task of

developing the work schedules. Each team built in certain types of time off as a feature of the

continuousoperation;thesehavebeeninpracticeeversince.

Control of labor costs is another driver of flexible scheduling. The need to limit overtime expenses

motivatedthedevelopmentofa poolofcrosstrainedemployeeswho fillinforstaffon vacation.The

cost of carryingan additional team member who is cross trained can be offset by the savings from

avoidingovertimecoststocoverothersvacations.

History

The plant has developed many flexible work practices. Consistent with its continuous improvement

philosophy, plant management encourages employee involvement in developing high performance

work practices and problem solving. Many of the flexibility options currently available have been

employeeinitiated.Insomecases,anindividualemployeehasaneedorasuggestionforaflexiblework

solutionandbringsaproposedideaforflexibilitytothemanagerortheemployeecommitteethatis

responsibleforguidelines.Theideaisoftenpilotedand,ifsuccessful,rolledoutmorebroadlyinthe

plant.Otherflexibilitypolicies,suchasoccasionalflextime,wereincorporatedintotheworkprocesses

fornewproductsbyhighperformanceworkteams.Oncepiloted,thesepolicieshavebeenrolledoutto


29/103


otherteamsthroughouttheentiredepartment.Otherflexibilitypractices,suchascrosstrainingofrelief

poolworkers,weredevelopedbyateamleaderasanapproachtocontrolovertimecosts.

Someonefromtheoutsidehadthatasanoptionpreviouslyattheirwork.Wethrew

thatideaouttheretothemanagementteam,andtheysaidwecouldtryitandifitsa

challenge,itwouldberevisited.Itworkedoutwellenoughtokeepitandspreaditto

everyone.Manager

ProgramDescription

Occasionalflextime

Employeesarrange,withtheapprovalof theirworkteams,to workuptotwohoursattheendof the

previousshiftoratthebeginningofthefollowingshift.Membersofonesownshiftcovertheirworkon

thatday.Employeesmustgive24hoursnotice.Thistypeofflexibilityisusedfrequentlytoenableshift

workers to participate in their childrens extracurricular and sports activities or to attend a regular

weeklyappointmentorclass.Althoughtheflextimepolicyisnotapermanentchangeofschedule,there

isnolimitonhowmanytimesperyearanemployeecanuseflextime.

Shifttrades

Theshift trade (also known as shift swap) policy enablesemployees within thesame department to

tradeonetofourdaysperweekortotradeuptosixweeksonceinacalendaryear.Itgivesindividualsa

mechanismtochangetheirworkscheduletotakecareofpersonalorfamilyneeds.Employeesmustfind

tradepartnerswhohavesimilarqualificationsandclassifications;also,thetradingpartnerassumesthe

payandsenioritystatusoftheotherpartnerforthattimeperiod.Overtime,employeesfindshifttrade

partnersforwhomitismutuallybeneficial.Shiftswappingismorecommonamongsecondandthird

shiftworkers.

ReliefpoolA pool ofemployees cross trainedon all jobs within a team isbuiltintothestaffing modelto cover

vacationandothertimeoffevents.Whilethereliefpooladdsstaffingresources,itactuallysavesonthe

overtimecoststhatwouldhavebeenpaidtocoverstaffingshortagescreatedbyvacationdays.(Thefirst

yearthereturnwas130135percent).Giventhecomplexityofworkprocessesandtheestimatesof

timeoffcoverageneeds,onereliefpersonperteampershiftisplannedintothebudget.Thejobsare

challenging because the relief pool workers do different jobs on a regular basis, sometimes moving

among three different roles in a single day to cover multiple twohour flextime situations. They

frequently get retrained to keep their skills and knowledge up to date as the technology and work

processeschange.

VacationinhalfdayincrementsThehalfdayvacationisaplantwideinitiativeintroducedinthe1990sandisusedfrequentlyforfamily

events,medicalappointmentsandotherpersonalneeds.Employeescanuseuptoeighthalfdaysper

yearandmustgive24hoursnotice.Thedifferentshiftstendtousethefronthalforlaterhalfdepending

ontheshift.Forexample,ifsecondshiftemployeeshavetotraveltoattendachildsawaysportsgame,

theycanuseahalfvacationdayandthenbebackatworkforthesecondhalfoftheirshift.


30/103


Unpaidtimeoff

Inseveralofthecontinuousrundepartments,theteamshavedevelopedstaffingmodelsthatbuildinup

to two extra people per shift. Depending on the workload, vacations, sick time, etc., there is the

opportunityfortwopeopletotakeadayoffwithoutpay.Teamshavedifferentsystemsfordeciding

howandwhenteammembersgettochoosewhethertheywanttoworkextrahoursthatweekorwould

prefertohavethetimeoff;someteamssimplyrotatetheteammembernamesandwhenyourname

reachesthetopofthelist,itisyourchoice.Otherteamstakeintoaccounthowmanyhoursanindividual

hasalreadyworkedsothatpeoplewithfewerhoursgetachancetoearnovertime.Weekendhoursare

rotatedsothatnoone,regardlessofseniority,willbeforcedtoworkeveryweekend.Employeessignup

at theend of their shift to requestthe timeoff slot for thefollowing day.It is possiblethat staffing

needswillbelightthefollowingdayandmorethantwoslotswillbeavailable.

Employeedesignedschedulesforcontinuousoperations

Severalyearsago,whentheproductdivisionwenttoacontinuousoperation24hoursx7daysall

year management approached the two teams involved in the operation and challenged them to

developtheworkschedules.Thetwoteamscameupwithquitedifferentsolutionsthathavebeenin

place for several years. In both cases, they moved awayfromsenioritybased scheduling. Oneteam

developedanannualschedulethatindicatesalltheemployeesworkdaysanddaysofffarin advance.Employeesthensubmittheirvacationrequests,whichgetaddedtothemasterschedule.Employeesstill

havetheopportunitytoswapshiftsoruseflextimeasneededforflexibilitytocovereventsthatcome

uponshortnotice.

Theother production team adopted a justintimetimeoff system. Theteam incorporatesenough

resources into the staffing plan sothat everyday, two team members can get the day off. All team

membersnamesarelistedontheschedule,andasanemployeesnamereachesthetopofthelist,

he/she has the choice of either taking the day off without pay or working the extra day. Some

employeespreferthetimeoffwhileothersprefertheextrapay;thebenefitofthesystemisgivingthe

employeeschoiceandcontrolovertimeoff.

Impacts/Benefits

Employeesatisfactionandmorale

Themostsignificantbenefitofprovidingflexibilityishighermoraleandsatisfaction.Inanenvironment

in which employees are asked to work weekends, long shifts and frequent overtime, providing

schedulingtoolsthatgivethemsomecontrolovertheirhoursboostsmoralewithoutaddingcost.

We are the happiestgroup. And yearly we have attitude surveys, and we have the

lowestrateofabsenteeism.Everybodyin[ourdepartment]wouldsaywereatop

100company.Employee

Ithinkitsgreat,frommy personalexperience.Iveseensomanywinwinsituations,

wherepeoplearegenuinelyappreciative,knowingtheyhavetheabilitytouseit.They

tendtogiveyou110percent.Theyreveryappreciativethatyoureworkingwiththem

andhelpingwiththeirfamily. Manager


31/103


Itrulythinkmoraleisthebiggestthing.Wedontcareifitsawagepersonorsalaried

person, we expect the job to be done. If you need to adjust your hours to fit your

schedule,youstillneedtofinishyourwork.Manager

Wheretheyruncontinuously,weexpectalotofouremployeesalotofthetime.Sowe

trytogivethemflexibilityandhelptomanagetheirlife.Itsalmostanobligation,given

ourexpectationofthem.Manager

Greaterabilitytomanagepersonal/familyresponsibilities,especiallyforsecondandthirdshifts

Policiesthatgiveemployeescontrolovertheirschedulesandtimeoffonshortnoticeenableemployees

to participate in important events outside of work as well as manage everyday personal and family

situationsthatarisewithoutincurringperformancepenalties.

Whenyouhavekidsactivitiesespeciallyifyoureonsecondshift,youtendtomiss

everythingafter5:00.Youmayhaveachildwithasportsactivityandneedtodo itfor

fourtofiveweeks.Employee

Sometimeswhenyouhavebothspousesworkinghere,iftheyhavedaycareissues,helltradewithsomeonewithanoffdayshiftsothathiswifewhosworkingdayshift

canswitchdaycareresponsibilities.Employee

Partofitiswecantrytoavoidanusvs.them[mentality];wetrytobeallonthesame

page.All thesepracticesaresomethingthatsalariedemployeesareexpectedtohave,

andifwecanofferthesamethingforoperators,thatsagoodthing .Manager

Itreducestheamountofcorrectiveaction,communicationIhavetohavewithpeople

inmydepartment,becausetheyrenotgettingintoabsenteeismproblems.Itsgoodfor

employeesbecauseitallowsthemtoadjusttochangesintheirlives. Manager

Lettingthewagepoolhavemorecontrolofhowtheydotheirworkandhaveworklife

balance. When you feel youre in control of your hours, you dont have to take a

vacationtogotoadentistordoctorsappointment. Manager

Reducedabsenteeismandovertimecosts

Theabilitytotradeshiftsandadjustworkschedulesonoccasionreducestheinstanc

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