September 17, 2020

Working from home may be more productive, but at the cost of wellbeing

by Jayne Smith • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing, Working lives

New research by the CIPD claims the shift to home working over the pandemic has been a positive experience for most employers, who report people’s improved work-life balance (cited by 61 percent of employers), enhanced employee collaboration (43 percent) and improved focus (38 percent). Overall, 28 percent of employers report that the increase in home workers has boosted productivity, while 37 percent say it has not impacted productivity levels, with 28 percent of employers reporting a decrease. More →

September 14, 2020

Flexible working and wellbeing? We already know how that all works

by Mark Eltringham • Features, Podcasts, Premium Content, Wellbeing, Wellbeing Matters

If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans. Woody Allen’s wise observation could have been made for this year. But it’s not just true for plans that go awry, but also those that go right in unexpected ways. For example, what better time to publish a book about the links between flexible working and wellbeing than in April 2020 as large swathes of the population were adjusting to completely remote work, many of them for the first time? More →

September 11, 2020

The link between wellbeing and green design is driving material innovation

by Craig Stuart • Comment, Environment, Wellbeing, Workplace design

One of the most interesting developments in the way we talk about the design of buildings in recent years is how the issue of wellbeing has found an overlap with environmental concerns. We know instinctively that these are natural partners. What is good for the environment almost always has a direct beneficial effect on people’s physical and mental health, as well as their productivity. More →

August 11, 2020

UK businesses lead the way on lockdown wellbeing

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing

Business leaders around the world have focused on protecting their employees in their immediate COVID-19 response, with UK CEOs leading the pack on mental wellbeing support. Some 93 percent of UK CEOs (92 percent globally) prioritised protecting employee health and safety over everything else. However, UK CEOs were found to have been significantly more focused on their employees’ mental wellbeing than their global counterparts, with 90 percent providing wellbeing support and initiatives, compared with 61 percent of CEOs globally. More →

July 30, 2020

People know that restricting screen time at work would benefit their wellbeing

by Neil Franklin • News, Technology, Wellbeing

In a new survey of 4,000 employees in the UK, the US, Singapore and the UAE, three quarters of office workers say restricting screen time would benefit their mental and physical wellbeing. The survey has been published in a new report, The digital health dilemma: Is technology keeping workers healthy or making them ill? from benefits provider, Aetna International, in a bid to uncover how modern workplace technology and digital tools have impacted employee wellbeing. More →

July 24, 2020

Wellbeing directly linked to levels of engagement with art

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing

Direct exposure to art has a significant effect on our wellbeing in ways that researchers cannot fathom completely, a new paper in the journal Emotion suggests. The study, co-authored by Peter Todderdell at the University of Sheffield and Giulia Poerio at the University Essex, explores the effects of engaging with art rather than taking part in artistic endeavours and other activities. More →

July 23, 2020

Balancing the rights and responsibilities of employee wellbeing

by Nathan Berkley • Comment, Wellbeing

Health and wellbeing has been at the top of the agenda for HR departments for a long, long time, but there’s nothing like a global health emergency to catalyse a fundamental rethink of how you approach your responsibilities as an employer. Corporate healthcare has moved from the remedial approach to curing existing ills, to the preventive approach that encourages employees to take care of themselves through services such as gym membership. More →

July 17, 2020

Self-employment is great for wellbeing, not so great for the bank balance

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing

In the week the ONS announced that the number of self-employed people in the UK had dropped by 178,000 over the last quarter, a new report from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation and the Institute for Fiscal Study suggests that the growing number of people who turn to self-employment do so despite a drop in their incomes. On average, they earn nearly £500 (30 percent) less a month than they did before falling out of traditional employment. More →

July 2, 2020

Wellbeing of overwhelming majority affected by events of 2020

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing

A new study commissioned by Perkbox of 13,271 employees claims that 93 percent of employees have faced new wellbeing challenges in 2020. The most common being feeling less connected to the company/colleagues, increased loneliness/feelings of isolation and increased financial concerns. The study looks at the wellbeing impacts of the events of 2020. Nearly 73 percent state that coronavirus has negatively impacted their mental health, followed by Brexit (29 percent) and Black Lives Matter (27 percent). More →

June 16, 2020

Study suggests need for UK employers to offer employee mental wellbeing support

by George Eltringham • News

A survey of 2,000 UK consumers by digital health company BioBeats suggests that nearly a quarter (21 percent) of UK employees say that their mental health will be negatively impacted by extending remote working measures post-lockdown. Only 5 percent of respondents state that their mental health will improve as a result of extended remote working but alarmingly only 3 percent say they would ask for help in coping with this new way of working, which presents a striking gap between employees’ needs and their ability to seek support from their employer. More →

June 15, 2020

Wellbeing for remote workers should not be lost in translation

by Brendan Street • Comment, Flexible working, Wellbeing

As the coronavirus pandemic continues to disrupt the world of work – seeing many businesses remote working – employers are learning more about the importance of effective communication. Diminished in-person contact can lead to feelings of isolation and loneliness among employees. And managers are also facing new challenges in providing the level of social interaction and support that is crucial in maintaining the mental health wellbeing of employees while away from the office. More →

June 4, 2020

Wellbeing at work was falling even before the lockdown

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing

Work has made our wellbeing worse over the last two years, according to new research from the CIPD. A survey of more than 6,000 workers found the number of people saying work has a positive impact on their mental health has fallen from 44 per cent to 35 per cent. Not only does this highlight that employers haven’t done enough to tackle the issue to date, according to the CIPD, it raises concerns about the further impact COVID-19 could have on people’s wellbeing, given many are worried about contracting the virus at work, losing their job or bearing the brunt of other cutbacks by their employer. More →