The awards honour organisations that recognise the link between flexibility, engagement, wellbeing and high performance.
Companies can enter by completing a benchmark survey that probes their policies regarding work-life balance and practices.
As well as the benchmark, companies can enter up to eight categories of The Special Awards. Categories for these awards are:
- Best for flexible working
- Best for all stages of motherhood
- Best for all stages of fatherhood
- Best for carers and eldercare
- Best for engagement
- Best for career progression for flexible workers
- Best for innovation
- Best for childcare
The small employer benchmark, for companies with 250 staff or fewer, returns this year after its introduction in 2013. The top benchmarked companies will be announced as The Top 10 Small Employers For Working Families.
Sarah Jackson, Chief Executive of Working Families, said: ‘Top Employers for Working Families offers organisations of all sizes and from all sectors a unique opportunity to examine their flexible working and work-life policies, to celebrate what is working well and to understand where future improvements can be made."
Registration for The Special Awards closes on 22 April and on 12 May for the benchmarks. A shortlist of the Special Awards finalists will be announced in May 2014.
The winners of the Special Awards will be announced at an awards ceremony in early July. The A-Z lists of Top Employers for Working Families and the Top Small Employers for Working Families will be announced at a conference during National Work-Life Week in September 2014. HR magazine will be exclusively covering the results.
