Addressing inequality of access

Not only have higher paid workers been more likely to work from home during lockdown, but there is also concern that this split between high and low paid workers will continue once restrictions are fully lifted. The Working Families report found that 29% of the lowest paid workers expect to work from home more going forward, compared to 60% of the highest paid.

To address this the report calls for legislation creating a duty on employers to advertise vacancies flexibly. The charity says this would help parents and carers who have lost their jobs back into work and, crucially, unlocks the different types of flexibility in all roles, helping to ensure the pandemic’s flexible working legacy is available more widely.

Following a Welsh government report into the future of remote working the Wales TUC called for the government to ensure that its drive to support remote working does not reinforce existing class inequalities in the labour market. The union body says any investment in home or remote working should be matched with investment in helping those who can’t do their job from home. This could include measures such as subsidised public transport costs, engaging workers in the best locations for nurseries and after-school clubs, or even altering school catchment areas to consider where people work as well as live.