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Banks lagging behind in provision of work-life policies

WORK-LIFE BALANCE

Banks lagging behind in provision of work-life policies

Financial service organisations "need to do much more" when it comes to offering benefits designed to give employees a better chance to balance work and family life or leisure, according to a large-scale government survey.

Provisional findings from a new Department of Education and Employment (DfEE) survey reveal that banks and insurers have been slower than other industries to take up work-life practices, such as flexible working and family-friendly benefits.

The 2,500-company survey is part of a comprehensive government study on work-life practices. A separate survey of 7,500 employees is due to be published this autumn.

Banks "can and must do better"

Speaking at a conference hosted by the Chartered Institute of Bankers on 5 July 2000, Minister for Employment and Equal Opportunities Margaret Hodge said:

      "The initial findings of our survey show that virtually all employers in the banking industry understand that people work best when they can balance their work and life, and only 14% do not consider it is their responsibility to help staff achieve it. This is a welcome finding."

But the research shows while there are parts of the banking sector which are making progress, there are others which "can and must do better". This is particularly true on childcare.

Said Hodge: "At the moment it is the case that children are not seen and not heard as far as the banks are concerned."

Key findings of DfEE research

  • Only 60% of workplaces in banking and insurance offer part-time working, compared with the UK average of 76%.

  • Two-fifths of financial service organisations are unlikely to give employees the opportunity to transfer from full-time to part-time working. This compares with just a fifth nationally.

  • The vast majority of businesses in the sector — almost nine in ten — do not allow staff to work from home even occasionally, whereas nationally just over three-quarters of employers adopt this position.

  • Employees in the sector also fare worse in the provision of creches, with less than 1% of banks and insurers offering this facility. The national average is 2%.

  • But when it comes to paternity leave, employers in banking and insurance are more generous than their counterparts elsewhere in the economy.

Hodge said:

      "Work-life balance is an issue whose time has come. Eight out of ten mothers now work and more people have to balance their lives between work and caring for an elderly or sick relative. Employers need to consider work-life balance issues if they are to attract and retain the best people in their businesses.

Survey details

Title: Changing patterns in a changing world.

Base date: fieldwork was carried out in April and May 2000.

Methodology: baseline study was commissioned by DfEE to monitor the success of the work-life balance campaign, and was carried out by the Institute for Employment Research, based at Warwick University, in collaboration with IFF Research.

Survey sample: initial findings are drawn from a survey of 2,500 employers including 85 establishments in the banking and insurance sector.

Availability: a detailed final report will be published in the autumn which will include a survey of 7,500 employees. Enquiries, tel: 0870 000 2288.

Copies of the summary of responses to "Changing patterns in a changing world" are available from DfEE Publications, Prolog House, Milner Road, Sudbury, Suffolk CO10 2YJ, tel: 0845 60 222 60.

Want to know more?

Take a look at the Department of Education and Employment press release . . . http://www.dfee.gov.uk/news/news.cfm?prnumber=310&pryear=00

Work-life resources on e-reward.co.uk

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