Several times we have heard Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi say that one of Malta’s major assets is its human resources. In fact, over the years the Nationalist Party in government has introduced and updated its policies to encourage more women to return to or remain in the labour market. At present, women comprise 50 per cent of the population – an asset that should not be wasted.

Malta is committed by the Lisbon Strategy to increase its female workforce to 60 per cent by 2010. Many mention childcare as the major issue involved in reaching this target. However, I would dare to say that there are other issues that are a priority for a woman with a family who is considering going back to work: the work practices of an organisation.

An employee who is part of a dual-career couple with children, or who is a single parent, has different needs from employees who are single or who have no children or elderly relatives to look after.

Flexible working hours are a useful organisational practice to accommodate diversity. Differences in family arrangements, such as events related to school or hospital visits for an elderly parent, all dictate that an employee may need some degree of flexibility in his or her hours of work. An organisation that truly values its employees will make every reasonable attempt to accommodate such a need.

Although flexible working arrangements can lead to improved productivity and high motivation, they make little difference unless the organisation’s culture is also flexible.

The managerial mind-set needs to change. Some strongly believe that if people are actually at work for 40 hours a week, sitting at their desks shuffling papers, then they must be working hard, with no consideration being given to output and productivity. Unfortunately there are also employees who hold strongly to these views. For flexitime to be effective, there must be a strong understanding between all concerned – co-workers, subordinates, superiors and customers.

We may feel that this concept does not apply to Malta, given our ingrained views and culture. Although I knew that there was one particularly large private organisation that employed such a practice, I recently had the opportunity to visit another company that does so.

Its name is Inspectra. It was set up within the Business Incubation Centre over a year ago and is now ready to spread its wings and move out into the world. The people behind Inspectra are two dedicated men with a vision, who put their experience to good use and also took advantage of Malta’s accession to the EU.

What impressed me most about this small company with such a brilliant future is not the momentum with which it has grown but the boldness of its management team in adapting to new work practices.

Inspectra employs about 90 employees, of whom 83 are women, including one at management level. Most of these are employees who have returned to work and who have a lot of experience to offer but, due to their family responsibilities, their schedules present certain problems. While some employers would never dream of employing this kind of workforce, these people have adapted to it and are obtaining the maximum

benefit from it.

On enquiring how can they manage such a practice, I was told that every employee must submit her schedule a week before, obviously within particular parameters. If she is a full-time employee then she must put in 40 hours. In the case of an employee working reduced hours, then she must put in 20 or 30 hours. But the “how” is a different story.

Obviously, the employee has her particular workload that she must finish within the stipulated time.

One could ask what an organisation gains by such a practice. The answer is that the employees are happier, they are less distracted by worries about how they are going to manage their schedule to meet the needs of their family and they are definitely more motivated – with the result that they are automatically more productive.

Following my visit to Inspectra, I could not help admiring the commitment and social responsibility of these people. They are really putting into effect the proverbial saying of hitting two birds with one stone. along with making a profit, they are providing an environment that, in practice, is family-friendly – an example that many others are recommended to follow.

However, before we embark on such projects there is only one question that is inevitable; how flexible are we?

Michelle Mallia is president of the Nationalist Party Women’s Movement