Setting up flexible working arrangements

Flexible work can improve your employee’s work-life balance.  This is important if they live with disability, injury or health condition. Flexible arrangements may benefit your business too.

What are flexible working arrangements?

Flexible working arrangements are changes to standard work setups. They help support an employee with disability, illness or health condition. These changes can include things like giving them the option for: 

• extra breaks if they have pain or fatigue
• flexible working hours if they have a condition that changes
• paid and unpaid leave
• negotiate their roster
• sharing a job with a co-worker
• working part-time
• working from home.

Benefits of flexible working arrangements

Flexibility can improve your employee’s work-life balance. This in turn helps your organisation. Being flexible can help you:

• attract and keep good people
• reduce stress for staff
• improve staff confidence and productivity.

Supporting your employee through flexible arrangements can allow them to:

• manage personal and medical needs
• manage stress, anxiety or pain
• work at the times of the day when they are most productive
• focus on tasks without interruptions, for example if working at home. 

Working from home

Many employers allow staff to work from home, depending on the type of work. This is sometimes a hybrid arrangement. For example, the employee works 2 or 3 days a week from home and is at the workplace the other days. 

You might want or need your employee to complete a trial period in the workplace before they work from home. 

Working from home safety 

When your employee works from home, their home becomes their workplace. Your organisation could be responsible if your employee gets an injury while working from home. 

You need to consider basic safety issues. These include:

• having enough light in the work area
• having enough air flow and fresh air
• working in an area that is not too noisy
• keeping equipment safe and in good working order.

You may want to carry out a work health and safety check before your employee begins working from home. 

Working from home agreements

If an employee is going to work from home, it’s a good idea to have an agreement in writing. It means you can be sure about the conditions of work and who is responsible for what. 

Your agreement could include:

• who will buy and install any equipment, such as a computer or office furniture
• who will pay for work-related costs such as electricity, phone or internet
• how often your employee will need to go in to the actual workplace
• how and when your employee must ‘check in’ with their manager or co-workers – for example by phone, online meetings or email 
• how your employee will take part in meetings and training 
• how your employee will deal with clients if this is part of their job
• how work health and safety will be assessed.

Agreeing to changes with your employee

Talk with your employee about what would help them to do their job. Talk to them about:

• what they need
• what their preferred working arrangements are and why
• putting their request for flexible arrangements in writing.

You can negotiate an arrangement that meets both you and the employee’s needs.  Conversations must be respectful. Only ask how an employee’s disability relates to their job.   
If you’re not sure what flexible working arrangements will be best for your employee and your business, you can set up flexible work arrangements for a trial period. 
Find out more about flexible working arrangements best practice and the law on the Fair Work Ombudsman website.