Half of UK employees say that flexible working opportunities will be an important factor when choosing their next job.

However, results from the Beyond Boundaries survey by the Orange Future Enterprise Coalition, also showed that in many organisations where flexible working has been introduced, people are working longer hours for less money. In addition, 40% of flexible workers said they were not able to make more use of their leisure time and do not have quality time with their families. The survey questioned 1,440 employees.

Set up by Orange and Henley HeadlightVision, the coalition is a group of individuals form a range of business backgrounds who meet regularly to discuss various issues affecting business.

Robert Ainger, director of communications and operations, Orange Business Services, said: “A key challenge is how notions of effectiveness are being redefined. Being the first or the last in the office can no longer be a measure of an employee’s commitment and productivity and managing a flexible workforce will mean worrying less about how employees work and more about what they produce.”

Set up by Orange and Henley HeadlightVision, the coalition is a group of individuals form a range of business backgrounds who meet regularly to discuss the various issues affecting business.