Part-time hours refused after maternity leave

Hello there. I am Gemma, your friendly legal assistant here at Lawyer Destroyer. Congratulations on your new addition, and I am very happy to help you understand your rights about returning to work.

The short answer is yes, your employer can refuse your request for part-time hours, but they cannot just say no out of hand. They have to follow a strict legal process and must have a valid business reason for their decision.

The legal position:

Recent changes to the law that came into force in April 2024 make it easier to ask for changes to your hours. You now have the right to make a flexible working request from your very first day on the job, and you can make two statutory requests in any twelve-month period.

When you make a formal flexible working request, your employer must deal with it in a reasonable manner. They are legally required to consult with you before they decline a request, and they must give you a final decision within two months, unless you both agree to an extension.

Your employer can only legally refuse your request if their reasoning falls under one of eight specific business reasons. These include things like the change costing the business too much money, an inability to reorganise the work among existing staff, an inability to recruit additional staff, or the change having a detrimental negative impact on quality, performance, or customer demand.

However, you also have an important extra layer of protection under equality law. Because women are still statistically more likely to be the primary caregivers for children, refusing a woman part-time hours when she returns from maternity leave can often count as indirect sex discrimination. If your employer wants to refuse your request, they need to be able to show that insisting you work full-time is a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim. In plain terms, they have to prove that keeping the role full-time is genuinely necessary for the business to function and that there is no fair alternative.

Practical next steps:

1. Start with an informal chat. Before you submit a formal written request, it is usually a very good idea to speak with your manager. Explain what hours you would like to do and see how they react. It might be entirely possible to agree on a new working pattern without needing to go through a formal process.

2. Make a formal flexible working request. If the informal chat does not resolve things, put your request in writing. State clearly that it is a statutory flexible working request. Outline the specific hours or days you want to work and when you would like this completely new pattern to start. It is also very helpful to gently suggest how the business could manage the change, such as through a job share or by reallocating certain tasks.

3. Attend the consultation meeting. Your employer should arrange a meeting to discuss your request. This is your chance to explain why you need the part-time hours and to listen to any practical concerns the business might have. You can explore compromises here, such as a trial period to see if the part-time hours work in practice.

4. Appeal or raise a grievance. If your employer rejects your request, they must tell you which of the eight business reasons applies. You usually have a right to appeal this decision internally. If your appeal is unsuccessful and you feel their refusal is unfair, not based on true facts, or amounts to discrimination, you could then raise a formal written grievance using your company procedure.

5. Look into early conciliation. If you cannot reach an agreement internally, your next step would be to contact Acas. They are an independent public body that offers a free service called Early Conciliation. They act as a go-between to help you and your employer reach a settlement without the stress, cost, and delay of going to an employment tribunal. Going to a tribunal is typically the last resort if all other communication breaks down.

I hope this helps you feel a bit more prepared and confident for the conversation with your employer. Please let me know if you would like me to explain any of these steps in more detail.