GAPS IN PROTECTING WORKERS
The new recommendations are good for establishing and standardizing what adaptable work plans are, but gaps remain.
Mr Sher-li Torrey is the leader of Mums@ Work, a job portal with 60,000 people in Singapore that supports working mother by listing careers that offer flexible plans.
Companies now understand what flexi-work is since the website launched in 2010, but this is still lacking in some smaller businesses, according to Ms Torrey.
She said of the novel rules: “It is a step in the right direction. Is it going to move the knife? Not then, and certainly not in the near future. ”
However, she said, requiring companies to take into account demands for flexi-work gives employees the freedom to request such arrangements and can encourage them to stay in their work.
However, they do not defend applicants looking for freedom, including moms returning to work, she said. Rather, asking about freedom during a job interview had fail on the prospect.
“So what this helps is expertise loyalty, no skill interest, ” she said.
There is no clear way to ensure they are also considered for offers, according to Ms. Torrey, and employees even fear being penalized for having flexible work arrangements.
In her experience, businesses frequently make a compelling argument for preventing people ‘ career advancement through flexible work arrangements.
“They do find sidelined for deals. And it’s difficult to argue because sometimes there are things like encounter time, she said, where versatile employees might spend less time with supervisors.
An employee’s job opportunity can also change over time because of the essence of what they are capable to do under flexible job arrangements, which can also influence prospects for development, she said.
Yet if flexi-work is normalised, it will probably still be a minority who have such plans, added Ms Torrey.
Therefore, the question becomes: May a minority say that I want similar promotional rights despite the fact that I have the flexibility to do so? ”
Employees ’ concerns that they could be penalised are “fair”, said Mr Ang Yuit, president of the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises ( ASME).
A “mature talk ” on this may start by looking at whether the requested structure is temporary or permanent. If it is permanent, next the employer and employee have to sit down and discuss their expectations, he said.
Employers are encouraged to inform people about their expectations for job objectives, performance evaluation, how the individual may be contactable, and the possibility of reviewing and changing already-approved arrangements.
Mr. Ang added that ASME was enticing smaller businesses to consider the method for taking into account flexi-work requests thoroughly as part of their development of human funds practices.
When asked about the difficulties that these companies had implementing the instructions, Mr. Ang pointed out that many employers now engaged in casual flexible work arrangements.
The guidelines ‘ intention is to make that process official and obvious, and he said it will help employers streamline the process for such requests.