Additionally, one in five (20%) Brits have worked from a park, 16% from the beach, 11% the gym and 4% a golf course. The research found that the traditional notion of ‘working nine to five’ no longer applies to the way four in 10 Brits (42%) manage their work/life balance.
However, the survey suggests it works both ways, with more than a quarter (27%) of British workers saying their boss expects them to be contactable on their days off, and 40% taking work calls while on a day off.
Nicola McQueen, managing director of Capita Resourcing, commented that facilitating flexible working is increasingly key to attracting top talent.
“In particular the younger generation are expecting their employers to assist them in attaining a good work/life balance, and flexible working is one of the most effective ways to achieve this while maintaining a good level of productivity,” she said.
“In this new world order, outdated and standardised approaches to HR will simply drive top talent away. A personalised approach to suit individual needs, irrelevant of age, gender, nationality or culture is the way forward. This is part of the reason that flexible working is transforming from a ‘perk’ that some companies offer into an expected part of the HR plan.”
Paul Clark, general manager, north-western Europe for Plantronics, said: “As long as the work gets done to a high standard and on time, it doesn’t really matter whether it’s done in a park, the pub or an office. If people are willing to be contactable outside work time then employers should see the trade-off is people want to be more flexible about when and where they work. It’s about finding a work/life balance that works best for them and their employer.”
