What would happen if you could apply for every job on a part time basis?

• There was a 95% year-on-year increase in female part time workers hired at Zurich in 2022.
• Since offering all roles as flexible in 2019, the number of female part time hires at the insurer has increased five-fold.
• In the last twelve months, 45% more women were hired into senior roles compared to the same period in 2019 (62 to 90).

The number of women hired into part time roles at Zurich UK nearly doubled last year as the insurer continues to reap the benefits of offering all jobs on a part-time or flexible basis.

In 2019 Zurich partnered with the then government-run Behaviour Insights Team to identify issues that were blocking career progression for women. It found that a lack of part time senior roles was making female employees less likely to apply for top jobs.

In response, Zurich became the first company in the UK to advertise all vacancies with the option of part-time, full-time, job share or flexible working. Coupled with the use of gender-neutral language in every job advertisement, this led to a 16% rise in women applying for jobs.

In 2022 this trend has accelerated dramatically. Between January and November there was a 95% year-on-year increase in female part time workers hired at the insurer¹, while the number of part time male workers tripled over the same period².

Overall, five times more female part time workers were hired in 2022 compared to 2019 when the initiative started³.

Zurich’s latest data comes at the same time as the Government’s announcement that millions of UK workers will soon be able to request flexible working from day one of their employment, under plans to make flexible working the default⁴.

Part time workers made up 13.5% of all Zurich UK hires in 2022, up from 10.7% in 2021 and 6.5% in 2019.

Since the beginning of 2019, 89% of part time starters have been female compared to 11% of men. This is reflective of a broader societal trend – across the UK’s workforce some 38% of women work part time, compared to 13% of men⁵.

Meanwhile from January to November 2022, 45% more women were hired into senior roles at Zurich UK compared to the same period in 2019 (62 to 90). 2022 saw 17% more women hired into senior roles than in 2021.

Overall, the number of applications per vacancy climbed to 20 in 2022 compared to just 13 in the 12 months prior to the job advert wording changes in 2019.

Zurich has also become the first insurer to sign up to Roleshare, a service which matches applicants searching for part time and job share roles with employers.

Commenting on the data, Steve Collinson, Chief HR Officer at Zurich UK said:

“The pandemic accelerated demand for flexible working, but our data shows that offering roles as part time can also be a real driver in bringing more women into an organisation, especially in senior roles.

ldquo;As advocates of flexible working for over a decade, we are proud of the success of this initiative and pleased to see that the positive trends are all heading in the right direction.”

Despite the advantages, research from social enterprise Timewise[6] found that just 30% of UK job vacancies advertised some form of flexible working such as remote working, home working or part-time hours.

Of these, part time jobs make up just 12% of job adverts. Timewise found that two in five women would not apply for jobs if they do not have the option of flexible working.

Chair of the Women and Equalities Select Committee Rt Hon Caroline Nokes MP said:

“Recent years have shown the great benefits that flexible working can bring to workers, but it is becoming increasingly obvious as a benefit to employers too, especially when it comes to attracting talent. Zurich’s work in this area shows that small changes to job adverts and roles offered can be a great benefit to workplace equality.”

Donna Wayman, Head of UK Portfolio at Zurich

Donna has worked part time hours over four days for the last seven years after returning from maternity leave.

“I decided when I returned, I wanted to balance the days I had with my children and commitment to work,” Donna said.

“Most times I split the week on a Wednesday which gives the kids a break from childcare and also allows me to reset for the rest of the week.”

Donna recently took a role as a Trustee for the baby loss charity Aching Arms, which she got involved in after losing her daughter Violet during pregnancy nine years ago. The role requires time to support the management of the charity and also acting as an ambassador in hospitals and workplaces.

She said that the flexibility of her hours was a major driver in accepting the Trustee role.

“I also value the time from a wellbeing perspective, giving me time to meet friends, go to the gym and get ‘life admin’ done which means my weekends are left for good quality family time,” she added.

¹From 61 to 119
² 5 to 15
³ From 23 to 119
⁴www.gov.uk/government/news/millions-of-britons-to-be-able-to-request-flexible-working-on-day-one-of-employment
⁵ https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/SN06838/SN06838.pdf
⁶ Timewise Flexible Jobs Index