Flexible working has been taking the world by storm especially in Finland with BBC News Worklife- a "global guide to getting ahead"- outlining how Finland has lead the world in terms of flexible working, with new legislation due to be implemented in 2020 to support a variety of working arrangements. For almost two decades Finland has paved the way for flexible working across the globe. BBC News Worklife states that since Finland's progressive approach to flexible working "discussions about the benefits of flexible working have intensified around the world, with a boom in large global companies embracing the concept ­– from Virgin and PwC to Dixons Carphone – alongside nationwide legislation designed to promote more agile working in countries including Australia and the UK." According to CIPD "more than half of UK workers (54%) work flexibly in some way. The most commonly used flexible working arrangement is flexi-time (35%), which enables workers to choose the start and finish time of the working day, while often still maintaining full-time working hours. Working from home, which may involve a worker being based at/from home on a permanent basis or working from home on a more occasional basis is used by almost a third of employees." These statistics prove that flexible working is rising in popularity but what exactly are the benefits to be gained from offering flexible working hours to employees? The potential gains are as follows: Opens your business up to a wider pool of potential employees. Boosts company morale and loyalty. Retaining talent and reducing employee turnover. It can reduce absenteeism and the number of employee sick days. These are but a few of the many benefits to be gained by offering employees flexible working. However as stated in an earlier article, not all companies are ahead of the curve on offering flexible working. Here at Grafton Recruitment Ireland, we pride ourselves on enriching the employee experience. We offer flexible hours, private healthcare and a myriad of invigorating and challenging roles across the island of Ireland, soon to expand to 14 locations. If you would like to know more about the roles we offer or have any queries, please do not hestitate to reach out at [email protected] or through our social media channels.