The Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Act 2023 ("the Act") has completed its passage through Parliament. The Act now only requires Royal Assent before becoming an Act of Parliament. The Act will make various changes to the regime for flexible working currently contained within the Employment Rights Act 1996.

Background

The Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Bill was introduced as a Private Member's Bill in the House of Commons by Labour MP, Yasmin Qureshi. The rationale behind the Bill was that if more people could request flexible working, more people could enter the workforce. It would also help those already in employment to balance work and home life.

The UK Government supported the Bill, following previous consultation on similar proposals in 2021, with the Bill completing its House of Common stages in February 2023.

What will the Act do?

The Act makes the following changes to the current flexible working regime:

• Removes the requirement for employee explanation: The existing requirement for an employee to explain in their application the effect of their flexible working request on the employer will be removed.
• Revision of application frequency: The Act enables employees to make two statutory requests for flexible working in the same 12-month period (an increase from the current one statutory request within the same 12-month period).
• Mandatory consultation: Employers must now consult with an employee before rejecting any flexible working request. An...

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