The UK government has announced planned reforms to make it easier for employees to work from home, with new flexible working rules expected to come into force in 2027
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Businesses may find it increasingly difficult to turn down employees’ requests to work from home under proposed changes to flexible working legislation.
Andy Burnham’s government has pledged to simplify the process for those wishing to work from home, in a move designed to put ‘power back into the hands of working people’.
The government is introducing reforms aimed at increasing the likelihood of flexible working requests being approved, with the changes anticipated to take effect in 2027.
Speaking at the annual Trade Unions Congress (TUC) in Brighton, Louise Haigh stated that businesses would be required to demonstrate they had “properly” considered a worker’s request prior to refusing it, reports Birmingham Live.
She said: “That is what putting power back into the hands of working people looks like. Life isn’t always as neat as employers would like it to be.
“There’s kids to pick up. Parents to look after. Families who rely on us at short notice. And sometimes, a little bit of flexibility can make all the difference.”
Ms Haigh further noted that while “not every job can be done from home and not every request can be agreed”, each request “can be taken seriously”. She added: “If an employer wants to turn down a request, they will have to sit down with their employee, properly consider and explain why.”
Paul Nowak, the TUC’s general secretary, described flexible working as not “just a perk – it’s a lifeline”. He continued: “That’s why this move is a welcome step forward. It makes it harder for employers to turn down requests while giving workers a stronger voice in the process.
“Improving access to flexible working benefits workers, businesses and the economy – whether it’s through increasing staff productivity or higher retention.”
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Your legal rights to work from home
Employees have had a statutory right to request flexible working from their first day in a job since 2024. Flexible working can include changing your hours, start or finish times, days of work or your place of work, according to ACAS.
However, holding a legal right to request flexible working does not currently guarantee an automatic entitlement to work from home. Your employer is permitted to decline a request provided there is a legitimate business reason for doing so.
There are currently eight grounds upon which an employer can rely to reject a statutory flexible working request. These encompass the burden of additional costs, an inability to redistribute work amongst existing staff, a detrimental impact on performance or quality, an inability to meet customer demand and planned structural changes to the business.
Employees may submit up to two statutory requests within any 12-month period, which must be responded to and resolved within two months of the request being made, according to The Mirror. According to ACAS, flexible working arrangements can also be agreed informally, without resorting to the statutory procedure.
This encompasses informal requests for a change, or where a company operates its own separate process for such requests.
Those with a disability are also entitled to request home working. Employers are legally obliged to make reasonable adjustments for disabled members of staff.
Employees seeking to work from home on the grounds of disability may do so either through a flexible working request or a reasonable adjustment request.
To learn more about home and hybrid working policies within your organisation, it is advisable to speak with your manager, employer or HR department.
