It wasn’t too long ago when a typical employer could offer health insurance, a 401(k), and a few workplace perks that would keep employees happy. Those days are long gone. The modern workforce expects so much more from their benefits. Near the top of the list is flexible work hours.

BenefitMall, a Dallas general agency that provides broker services to thousands of benefits professionals around the country, cites a 2022 survey from the Society for Human Resource Management in explaining that 70% of U.S. companies now offer some measure of work schedule flexibility.

They say that flexibility has become a priority for employees in the wake of the COVID pandemic. Perhaps the desire for flexibility was always there, but the pandemic brought it to the forefront.

The Elusive Work-Life Balance

The appeal of flexible work schedules is undeniable. Survey after survey demonstrates as much. But why? It goes back to something we have been talking about in this country for decades: work-life balance. It has been an elusive goal for as long as we have been discussing it.

Some would say that it is impossible to achieve a good balance given that we spend almost one-third of our time, at least Monday through Friday, at work. But if that’s true, then work-life balance is nothing more than creating equal time. It turns out there may be something more to it.

More Control Over Scheduling

Perhaps the work-life balance issue has nothing to do with balancing literal time. We all understand that we need to work to eat. We also understand the need for a 40-hour work week. The question may be more of how and when those hours are worked rather than just working them.

Flexible scheduling might enhance the pursuit of a proper balance by giving employees more control over their scheduling. Take the concept of childcare. Without flexible scheduling, parents are often forced to put younger children in daycare for 8 to 10 hours per day. That means they only see their kids for a few hours in the evening before putting them to bed.

With flexible scheduling, one parent can stay home with a child while the other is working and vice-versa. Both parents are still working a full 40-hour week but sharing childcare also means they get to spend time at home with the little ones.

Flexibility Represents Freedom

Beyond creating a better work-life balance, flexible scheduling gives employees a sense of freedom. It makes them feel like they are in control of their lives rather than surrendering that control to their employers. That is big.

How many employees feel like they are slaves to their employers? In the absence of hard and fast numbers, it is still probably safe to assume the number is significant. It’s natural to feel beholden to an organization to which you devote so much of your time and energy.

Having a flexible schedule gives one the opportunity to do more things without having to always accommodate the work schedule. Combine it with unlimited PTO and you create an incentive that encourages employees to work hard and get things done so that they have more time to themselves.

A Benefit That’s Here to Stay

Now that 70% of U.S. employers offer flexible scheduling, the chances are good the benefit is here to stay. It is clear that employees want more flexibility. It is also clear that their employers are willing to give it to them. It will be interesting to look back a decade from now and see how flexible scheduling has impacted productivity and profitability. Both should show improvements.