City employees penalised for taking up flexible working

Flexible working policies are widely available among City employers, but employees who choose to take them up are penalised, a report on work-life balance in the City - sponsored by Simmons & Simmons -- found last week.

The research, entitled 'Quality of Life in the City', was launched at the City firm last week.The report set out three challenges for City employers: to take the need for a culture change seriously; to understand how new technology can support job redesign; and to stop the assumption that talent is easily replaced.'There is evidence of a reality gap,' said Sarah Jackson, chief executive of charitable organisation and research commissioners Parents at Work.

'In theory, the policies are there, but the culture isn't,' she said, adding: 'The report showed that people who take up the option of flexible hours feel they sacrifice their career and promotion.'Jane Buxton, co-founder of Flametree, a work-life consultancy to law firms, said: 'Law firms think that throwing more and more money at employees will solve the problem, but this has reached saturation point.

People no longer just want money but value their time just as highly.

The firms showing creativity and taking steps to redesign their culture are the ones reaping the benefits.'Simmons & Simmons is a corporate member of Parents at Work and sponsored the report in collaboration with accountants PricewaterhouseCoopers and merchant banker Goldman Sachs.The research consisted of three focus group sessions attended by employees and senior management of various City firms.Parents at Work is to issue a specific report of work-life balance by the end of the year.Andrew Towler