Flexible working is the key employee benefit you can offer according to new research – and it’s as popular with men as it is with women.

According to a new study by the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC), Working outside the box, 52 per cent of men and 48 per cent of women say they want to work more flexibly.

The EOC says 6.5 million people in Britain could use their skills more fully if more flexible working was available, either by working at a level at which they used to work or by returning to the workforce.

Usually thought of as a problem limited to working mothers, the EOC’s research indicates the ‘skills drain’ affects almost as many men as women and more non-parents than parents.

Working outside the box warns that rigid models of work are driving highly qualified workers into jobs below their skill level so they can have a life outside work.

The waste of people’s skills and experience is undermining attempts to create a highly skilled workforce. Outdated workplace cultures are further damaging the economy by increasing pressure on an over-stretched transport system. Overcrowded rush-hour trains and motorways are causing misery for commuters and wasting time for employers.

The struggle to find a job that is compatible with life is leading to increasing pressure for a ‘new deal’ at work – increasingly, people want greater control over the hours and location of work, provided outputs are delivered, rather than reduced hours which currently often lead to low pay and poor prospects.

Pioneering employers are responding by transforming their work culture. Flexitime and home working are particularly popular and new technology is enabling companies to become more innovative in how they organise work.

In return, employers are benefiting from better staff engagement and loyalty, meeting increasing customer demand for 24/7 products and services, and raising productivity.

EOC chairman Jenny Watson said: “Work just isn’t working for many people any longer. Far too many people burn out, trade down or drop out altogether. Millions of people are working below their skill level in order to have a life outside the office.

“Failing to rethink the way we’ve traditionally organised work is a chronic waste of talent and investment in education, at a time when Britain needs to invest heavily in skills to maintain its competitiveness globally.

“People are realising that jobs don’t have to come at the expense of seeing their children, learning a new skill, or being involved in their community. Nor do they have to be packed like sardines onto a rush hour train or waste hours sitting in traffic jams just trying to get to the office.”

The EOC isn’t the only organisation calling on employers to think about flexible working.

Miles Templeman, director general of the Institute of Directors, said: “I am pleased to say that IoD members have demonstrated that they are well ahead of British employers as a whole in adopting new practices.

“In 2004 74 per cent of members (against a national figure of 15 per cent) permitted staff to work at home, and 75 per cent had flexible working hours. A large majority also see a range of business benefits when they adopt these policies.”

The CBI and the TUC have also joined forces to sign up to an agreement to encourage the wider adoption of smarter working practices across the UK. The ‘concordat’ is the brainchild of Work Wise UK, which aims to bring about a workplace revolution through the adoption of practices such as flexible working, working from home, mobile and remote working.

Brendan Barber, general secretary of the TUC, said: “Introducing smarter working practices across UK workplaces would give employees more choice over their hours and working patterns.

“Greater flexibility that allows people to work from home occasionally could have a major impact on their lives. Less time would be wasted commuting and people would get to see more of their friends and families. It would also help reduce stress levels, allowing staff to be more effective at work and healthier generally.”

CBI director general Richard Lambert added: “Many businesses are already reaping rewards from more flexible and smarter ways of working, achieving improved productivity and staff recruitment and retention. Local communities and the environment benefit too. The right balance must, of course, be struck between employees having maximum flexibility and businesses remaining competitive and meeting customers’ needs.”

One business to benefit from flexible working is BT – another signatory to the concordat. BT is one of the UK’s leaders in the introduction of smarter working practices with 80,000, of its workforce, including around 12,000 homeworkers, working flexibly.

As well as a 20 per cent increase in productivity, BT has saved more than £80 million in travel and other costs because of increasing use of conference calls rather than face-to-face meetings.

BT staff who decided to use conference calls rather than drive to a meeting saved around 300 miles each time. One in four of the replaced meetings would have been in London, while the overall savings to BT are estimated at between 10 and 15 times greater than the cost of providing conferencing facilities.

Sir Christopher Bland, BT chairman, said: “The use of conferencing services within BT is now the preferred way to work in many parts of the business. It enables BT people to better manage their work life balance and saves huge amounts of travel with associated costs and environmental impacts.”