Flexible Working for Generation Y

Flexible working schemes have been around for many years, and are generally expected to be found in any organization that wants to keep its staff. The standard 9-to-5 business hours structure is an old concept. Employees being able to work from home or manage their own work hours is no longer an unusual concept. Employers receive numerous benefits from the flexibility including increased productivity. However, the make-up of employees is developing once again. Generation Y, have different needs and preferences in comparison to the generation before them, resulting in organizations having to develop with them.

The Australian Ernst and Young, Accounting firm EY Oceania recently introduced a “life leave” policy that allows employees to apply for 6–12 weeks unpaid leave in one or two blocks for a holiday, to tend to family commitments, or for any other personal reason. The policy, which came into effect on April 1, 2019, also gave employees the opportunity to work full-time during session-time, and to work part-time or apply for the unpaid leave during school holidays.

EY Oceania’s People Partner, Kate Hillman said that the generation Y workforce was one of the primary reasons for introducing the policy because their career preferences were driven mainly by the flexibility provided by a job. In 2020, with the expectation that 80 percent of EY Oceania’s workforce…