Policy statement / The Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner (OPCC) recognises that a flexible approach to the arrangement of working hours supports operational efficiency while ensuring personal circumstances of employees are taken into account.
This policy outlines the provisions available under this scheme and the conditions of their use.
Scope / All employees of the OPCC.
Policy outcome / The aims of this policy are to:
· support employees and managers to achieve a balance between work life balance and service delivery
· set out the parameters of the flexi time system
· set out the obligations of managers and employees
Check which policy to use / Employee requests for flexible working should be addressed using the Managing Requests for Flexible Working Policy.
Annual leave and other time off provisions should be addressed using the Annual Leave and Time Off Policy.
Key definitions / Flexi time is an arrangement whereby an organisation provides employees with the opportunity for a flexible approach to the arrangement of working hours.
Flexi leave is an arrangement whereby an employee accrues hours through flexi time and takes these as leave.
Under flexi time, there is normally a core period of the day when employees must be at work, whilst the rest of the working day is "flexi time" during which employees can choose when they work, subject to achieving total daily, weekly or monthly hours.
What the law says / The Working Time Regulations 1998 and the Working Time (Amendment) Regulations 2003, which implement the European Working Time Directive into the UK law govern the hours most workers can work, these set out:
· limits on the average working week
· the statutory entitlement to paid leave for most workers
· limits on the normal hours of night work and regular health assessments
· special regulations for young workers
· minimum rest break entitlements
Principles / Where operational circumstances permit, a system of flexible working hours ("flexi time") may be applied by local agreement.
The OPCC recognises the needs of employees to balance their working and home life and will therefore work to minimise overtime working.
Eligibility / This policy applies to all OPCC employees in grades up to and including grade F and to grade G and above posts in business critical areas, provided the flexi leave is authorised in advance by management.
Working hours / Standard full-time working hours are 37 hours per week for salary calculation purposes; part time employees are paid at a pro-rata rate.
The over-riding consideration in determining the arrangement of working hours is the need to provide effective, responsive and flexible services which meet customer needs.
Where an employee is working at home they are still required to be available to be called into their work base or another location if requested.
Scheme rules / Hours may be worked between 7am and 10pm, seven days a week.
There is no standard core time, but local arrangements apply to satisfy service delivery requirements.
A maximum of 12 days flexi leave per year may be requested by employees working 37 hours a week, this opportunity is calculated on a pro-rata basis for part-time employees.
The accrual of hours through flex time and the taking of flexi leave must be approved by managers in line with operational requirements. Employees must request flexi leave using ESS lite.
Employees should not normally be more than 8 hours "in debit" at any time unless by prior agreement with their manager.
Employees should not normally be more than 40 hours "in credit" at any time, unless exceptional circumstances apply and prior agreement has been obtained from their manager.
Employees are required to keep accurate records of the hours they work through the locally agreed reporting arrangements. Managers are responsible for maintaining suitable monitoring arrangements and must review credit/debit hours on a monthly basis to ensure the limits outlined above are not exceeded.
Flexi time hours will not normally be converted to overtime hours.
Any employee who abuses the scheme will be managed using the Managing Misconduct Policy.
During an employee’s notice period, their start and finish times must be adjusted to ensure they are no longer in credit or debit on their last working day. Managers must facilitate such arrangements.
Sick pay / Sick pay entitlements are not affected by the application of this scheme.
Related documents / To help with the application of this policy it may be useful to read the following:
· Managing Requests for Flexible Working Policy
· Working Time Regulations Policy
· Annual Leave and Time Off Policy
Support / Employees:
Queries should be directed to your line manager.
A confidential counselling service is provided by the Wellbeing Helpline who can be contacted on 023 8062 6606 or by emailing
Your trade union or professional association may be able to provide you with additional support.
Managers:
Further information is available in the Managers’ How to Guide Flexi Time Policy.
Advice on remaining queries can be directed to HR Operations.
Policy
Governance
Hantsfile reference: / 6953941Date of publication: / V1 – November 2014
Planned review date: / 3 years or sooner if required.
Owner: / HR Operations
Employees of non Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner bodies are excluded from this policy and should refer to their own employer’s policies and procedures.
Flexi Time Scheme Policy / Page 4 of 4