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- Annual leave (holiday)
- Attendance during severe weather
- Compassionate leave and Emergency leave
- Flexible working
- Flu pandemic
- Homeworking
- Circumstances in which homeworking may be approved
- Suitability for homeworking
- Employee requirements and effective homeworking
- Working arrangements
- Guidance for managing staff working from home
- Equipment
- Accessing IT facilities and support from home
- Long term/extended homeworking
- Business continuity
- Security and confidentiality
- Health and safety
- Compensation for expenses
- Mortgage, landlord, council tax and insurance issues
- Changing job
- Jury service
- Parents and Carers
- Right to request training
- Sickness absence
- Study leave
- Travel policy
- Forms and templates
Working arrangements
The overriding objective of any homeworking arrangement should be to ensure continuity of service. While it may be possible to accommodate some individual preferences requested by the homeworker on start and finish times and days when they are working at home or working at the University, the needs of the service should take precedence.
The manager should discuss the following working arrangements with the employee(s):
Working hours
While working at home, employees should work their normal working hours, taking account of flexible working arrangements operating in their College or Service. This means that the standard ‘bandwidth’ hours (of 08:00 – 18:00 hours) and the University ‘core hours’ (of 10:00 – 12:00 and 14:00 – 16:00 hours) apply.
Homeworkers should agree their working hours with their manager before commencing the homeworking arrangement - taking account of operational requirements and the preferences of colleagues in their team as well as their own preferences. It is essential that the manager and other members of the team are clear about when they are working and contactable. To meet specific, reasonable operational requirements of the service and to balance the preferred working arrangements of other members of the team, it may not be possible for the homeworker to work their preferred choice of hours.
Exceptionally, where this can be accommodated without compromising operational requirements and standards, the manager may agree to a more flexible working arrangement operating outside of standard ‘bandwidth’ hours. However, as a minimum, while homeworking the employee should be working during University core hours.
Recording flexible working hours
Where flexible working arrangements apply, the manager should ensure that the employee records their working time while homeworking in accordance with the standard time recording arrangements operating in their College or Service.
Contact expectations
Whilst working at home, homeworkers must be contactable by telephone and email during the working hours they have agreed in advance with their manager.
In addition, homeworkers should ensure their online Outlook calendar is up to date indicating their place of work and should share their Outlook calendar with colleagues as required.
Flexibility
Meeting/training course attendance
The University can require homeworkers (with reasonable notification) to attend meetings and/or training events at the University, as and when necessary, on days when they would normally be working at home. Travel expenses cannot be claimed for any travel to/from home and the University.
Homeworkers may be required to ‘flexi-desk’ on days when they are working at the University.
Sickness absence
Sickness absence on days the employee would normally be working at home should be reported promptly in accordance with the requirements of the University and the College/Service.
Annual leave
Homeworkers should balance their annual leave between ‘homeworking days’ and days when they would normally be working at the University.
