KPMG has welcomed the new flexible working proposals put forward by the Government today. KPMG believes that the proposals will make an important contribution to allowing individuals to better manage their work/life balance – and feed through to give employers a more productive workforce.
Michelle Quest, Head of People at KPMG, said: “These proposals are good for employers, individuals and the economy. They put forward some important ideas, which we are fully supportive of. Extending the right of all employees to make flexible working requests is surely right – flexible working is an issue for men and non-parents as well as for women. At KPMG for example, over a third of employees that work flexibly are men. We have operated a system where anyone can request a flexible working arrangement for a number of years now, and it has worked very successfully.
“The ability to share paid leave between partners is also potentially a great step forward. Over 90% of women at KPMG return to work from maternity leave. Giving women more flexibility over when they return to work and how they divide up their leave entitlement with their partner will give women and families much better control over their lives. We strongly believe that this will boost productivity, save cost and improve morale.
“I believe that many women who are the main breadwinner will welcome the opportunity to share parental leave in a flexible way, striking the balance that’s right for them and their employer.
“From an employer’s point of view, if they do this in the right way the payback they receive in terms of better motivated staff who are more loyal, more appreciative and more energised could be considerable.”
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Media enquiries to:
Mark Hamilton, KPMG Corporate Communications 020 7694 2687
About KPMG
KPMG LLP, a UK limited liability partnership, is a subsidiary of KPMG Europe LLP and operates from 22 offices across the UK with nearly 11,000 partners and staff. The UK firm recorded a turnover of £1.6 billion in the year ended September 2010. KPMG is a global network of professional firms providing Audit, Tax, and Advisory services. We operate in 150 countries and have more than 138,000 professionals working in member firms around the world. The independent member firms of the KPMG network are affiliated with KPMG International Cooperative ("KPMG International"), a Swiss entity. KPMG International provides no client services.
