We've all stared down the barrel of another gruelling week at work and dreamed of having more free time, and yet going part-time is still something most women only consider after having a family. But new research has found that more and more of us are rejecting the notion that life has to revolve around a 40-plus hours working week, and are instead opting to trade full-time work (and the salary to match) for a different kind of bonus – quality of life. A recent survey found that 32 percent of people have changed jobs at least once for a greater work/life balance, and 27 percent have taken time off work to travel the world*. There are now 8 million part-time workers in the UK, with 700,000 of them earning the equivalent of more than £40,000 a year, and it’s on the rise. A report from the UK Commission of Employment and Skills forecasts a 7 percent increase in the number of part-time female workers by 2024, with a rise of 20 percent for men. So could you take a pay cut in return for a life promotion? These women did...
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'I work four days a month'
Sophie Grant, 33, a hairdresser from London, slashed her hours in January so that she could live in the mountains
‘I’m really into long-distance running, cycling and rock-climbing and it got to the point where I was living in London and spending every spare second trying to get out to the mountains. My husband George and I would always talk about one day leaving the city and living closer to nature, but last Christmas we just decided to buy a van, convert it into a campervan and head to Chamonix in France.
Neither of us knew if our jobs would allow us to be flexible, but luckily my boss was great about it. We agreed that every month I would come back to London for four days and see back-to-back clients. Because my outgoings are so small – just food, air fares and petrol – that’s the only work I need to do to fund this lifestyle. George works in IT for a hedge fund, so he works remotely two days a week from the van.
We put most of our stuff into storage and I now realise just how little you really need. I live in sports bras and never wear make-up when we’re in the mountains. We wake up whenever we want, I’ll go for a run and then come back and make lunch. In the afternoon we get on the bikes or go climbing, or just mooch around. As soon as I come back to London for work I notice that everyone is more tense and stressed. Our vague plan was to do this for a year but I can’t see us stopping any time soon. I’ve never experienced such freedom in my entire life.
'I thought, if not now, then when?'
Freya Coote, 32, a PR consultant from Reading, left her full-time job in 2015 to spend time with family and start a supper club
I’d been working in the same PR job for five years and really wanted a change and more free time to pursue my other interests. I remember turning 30 and thinking, ‘If I don’t make a change now, then when?’ So I decided to go freelance and work irregular hours.
Going from a regular pay packet to thinking, ‘Where’s my money coming from?’ every month was a bit of a shock to the system. But around this time my gran was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and working part-time means I have the flexibility to visit her when I want and go over and see her if she’s having a bad day. My dad also retired this year and I’ve been really enjoying spending more time with him.
One of the big things I started doing when I went freelance was cooking more. I’d always enjoyed making meals for family and friends and so I started to seriously explore my Burmese heritage through food. Eventually, I started a Burmese supper club – Yee Cho – in a pub near my house. A lot of people are surprised I work part-time, and I do think there’s a bit of a stigma attached to it, especially among colleagues my age who are ambitious and successful. But there’s more than one way to define success, and for me having time to myself is worth way more than another digit on the payslip.
'I'm a lot more productive'
Clare Gower, 25, a copywriter from London who lives in Berlin, went part-time six months ago
I don’t know if it was the stressed mind, the knotty shoulders or the pangs of bitterness that finally did it, but I realised I didn’t want to spend the next four decades working 40-hour weeks. I constantly felt knackered and busy and, when I started getting back pain and bad vision from sitting at my computer all day, I knew it was time to shift my work-life balance.
My boss was surprised but supportive and, thankfully, my company was willing to let me go down to three days a week. A few people asked me, ‘What are you going to do with all your extra time?’ and at first I did panic about that. But now I’ve settled into a rhythm of just recharging my batteries on my days off and exploring my creative interests, like writing a novel. I actually think I’m a lot more productive and efficient at my job than I was when I was in the office all the time.
Of course I have less money, but I live in Berlin where the cost of living is probably 30 percent that of London and lots of people work part-time. To be honest, I spent more on clothes and stuff I didn’t need when I was working full-time as a way to gloss over being bored or wanting to see a material reward for working so much. Resisting Topshop splurges is hard, but the happiest times of my life have been spent living out of a single suitcase. I get infinitely more joy from going to a lake on a quiet Thursday morning with my friends.
How to negotiate part-time hours without looking like a slacker
Karen Mattison, joint CEO of Timewise, gives her tips...
Do your research If the job advert isn’t clear about flexibility, call and ask HR before you apply. It is also worth enquiring as to whether they already have other people working flexibly as this is the major telltale sign it’s a possibility.
Know your worth If you hold a senior position, have hard-to-find skills and/or top-notch experience, you hold much stronger negotiating powers. The job market is turning, and employers are struggling to find suitable candidates. Capitalise on this.
Show you can make it work Demonstrate that you’ve given thought to how you could manage your current role in fewer hours, without apologising. For example: ‘It would be easy for me to complete X in a four-day week and still meet my targets, and then delegate Y to another member of the team.’
Add value to the company Is there someone you have in mind for a job-share who would be an asset to the team? Do you want to use your new free time to do a course or learn a skill that would benefit your current role? These things make granting part-time hours seem much more appealing to an employer.
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