Home working - equality and equity
- Carol Elston
- Feb 1, 2023
- 5 min read
Two decades ago, I co-authored a book entitled flexible working. This book was part of the Hodder teach yourself series (ISBN 0-340-84516-3), aimed at those wanting to make a case to their employer for a more flexible working arrangement, including home working. Skimming through the book, much of the content is still relevant; the case studies still resonate, and many benefits and challenges remain. However, what has changed is the acceptance of this mode of working.
When the book was written in 2003 new legislation supported the cause, yet there was scepticism from employers and employees alike. In 2023 I would suggest there is a general acceptance that home working is inevitable and in many cases it is welcomed. The popular mixture of home and workplace activity is here to stay, but in some cases it may have embedded without clear guidelines and consideration to consistency and equality.
If you are managing home workers, this blog post may focus your thoughts. It looks at what home working might mean for those working in digital education teams but is also relevant more widely. There is also referenced information to highlight the speed in which changes have occurred.
Digital education managers and teams have had time to adapt to home working. Some have adapted well, whereas others found the experience challenging. Back in March 2020 offices were abandoned with anticipation that staff would be returning in a few weeks. As time went on, systems and practices were adapted to support the longer-term adoption of working remotely. In my experience, the practical implications were managed well, with some technical challenges but a strong willingness to find ways to make it work. We were all in it together and there was a culture of understanding and adaptation. Now digital education teams are in for the long haul, and mixed location working patterns need to be adapted to meet personal and business needs.
Many aspects of the digital education cycle can be carried out remotely, without any face-to-face contact. In fact, during the pandemic all aspects were carried out remotely, including video production. Now there is a choice, digital education managers need to consider options and the preferences of both staff and those working with those staff to design and develop online learning materials.
From a management perspective the skills needed to manage flexible working patterns are no different to pre pandemic; this can be summarised by the four Cs:
1. Change management
2. Culture
3. Caring management approach
4. Communication
For home or mixed location working to be successful there needs to be a solid culture, good communication and a general excellence in line management. By adopting a fair and consistent approach, which is clearly communicated, there will be clarity, and avoidance of potential pitfalls. Often easier said than done in a time pressured environment, but it is definitely worth giving this thought and a level of priority.
Managers will never be able to please all staff all the time, but if there is clear policy regarding working modes and patterns which is fully explained (and agreed consultatively), then most challenges can be avoided. Problems arise when there is discrepancy in approach; if managers are inconsistent then staff will become aggrieved, and rightly so. Up front change management is not always high on the agenda for organisations but the current more permanent changes in working modes needs managing formally and quickly. If teams simply slide into home working patterns then there will inevitably be challenges ahead; change management is often an afterthought, once there are problems. If left, habits will have formed, and expectations seeded.
It is important to consider the different roles within the team and to base approaches (and policies) on the sub-team or role rather than the individual. For example, if as a team there is consensus that all staff should attend a regular onsite meeting, then that will need to be addressed with current employees and built into the recruitment process for new staff. If it is infeasible for some team members to join face-to-face, these exclusions need to be documented and understood by all. Equally it may be necessary for some face-to-face interactions with subject matter experts (for filming, learning design) or with suppliers, partners etc. This needs to be thought through and documented so there is clarity.
It maybe that your wider institution has this detail in place, and you can fully draw of HR guidelines. However, it is more likely that digital education managers will be advised to form their own specific detailed approach, tying into a high-level set of institutional recommendations. Defining the team's approach and securing buy-in is not an easy task, but one that needs to be grasped and sorted at the earliest opportunity.
Current educational conversation is dominated by AI, but any topic which impacts staff recruitment and retention needs to remain a focus. I hope this post might start a thread and encourage support between digital education management teams. In my experience HR challenges take up so much time and energy, detracting effort away from the enjoyable aspects of providing online learning. If this change to the working dynamic can be managed to avoid ambiguity now, a sticking plaster approach won’t be needed as challenges arise. If you have successfully managed this change, please share your approaches. I would appreciate your thoughts and I'm sure your help will be appreciated by others!
To close, here is some detail about the rapid move to home working:
Home working isn’t new; the UK census employment data shows that in 1901 nine per cent of women and two percent of men worked from home. The predominance of women home workers was due to professions such as dressmaking and laundry services. Since then, the number of people home working has climbed steadily (apart from during the two world wars) with home working predominate in rural communities.
The 2001 national census shows that 9.2 per cent of those in employment, in England and Wales, mainly worked at or from home. By the 2011 national census this data was recorded differently (with more direct questioning about home working) and the data showed 5.4% home working, equating to around 1.4 million. The local authorities with the highest proportion of home workers continued to be rural in nature, mainly due to the predominance of farming communities.
Prior to the pandemic, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) Annual Population Survey estimated that over the 12-month period from January to December 2019, of the 32.6 million people in employment, around 1.7 million people reported working mainly from home.
This smaller scale research was followed by the full 2021 census during the pandemic. The census estimates that 8.7 million (31.2%) of usual residents aged 16 years and over, in employment in England and Wales, worked mainly at or from home in the week before Census Day, 21 March 2021.
Following the lifting of restrictions and the ability to return to the workplace, further research by the ONS in February 2022 shows that more than 8 in 10 workers who had to work from home during the coronavirus pandemic said they planned to spend some time in the workplace but also continue to work from home (“hybrid work”). Since then, the proportion of hybrid working has risen from 13% in early February 2022 to 24% in May 2022. However, the percentage working exclusively from home has fallen from 22% to 14% in the same period.
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