Employers already flexible

Media release
8 October 2008

Employers already flexible

Promotional material on Labour Department research on work-life balance released today implies more employers are offering flexible hours because of legislation passed earlier this year.

But Business NZ says New Zealand employers have always been progressive in offering flexible hours and the survey provides no evidence that there has been any change in their already progressive approach.

There have been two flexible work surveys by the Labour Department. The first, reported in 2006, did not measure how much flexibility was offered by employers.

The second survey released today did include measurement and found almost all businesses offer flexibility of some kind.

But the two surveys together provide no evidence that the legislation brought any measured change or that there has been any change in employers’ already progressive practices.

At the time the legislation was promoted employers said it was not needed. Hopefully the promotion of the recent survey findings is not a case of using stats to try to justify unneeded legislation, Business NZ said.

ENDS

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