Four in ten low income working parents have gone into debt to pay for childcare

Four in ten low income working parents have gone into debt to pay for childcare

by • Flexible working, News, Workplace

The Working Families Index 2023: Spotlight on lower-income families reveals that many working parents on lower incomes are forced to go into debt, reduce their hours, or leave their jobs altogether due to problems affording and accessing childcareA new poll from Working Families in partnership with law firm Pinsent Masons, sets out to highlight the challenges that lower-income parents in the UK face as they balance work and caring for their children. The Working Families Index 2023: Spotlight on lower-income families reveals that many working parents on lower incomes are forced to go into debt, reduce their hours, or leave their jobs altogether due to problems affording and accessing childcare. The report also claims that working mothers on lower incomes take far less maternity leave than the UK average, and that working parents on lower incomes are often locked out of the flexible arrangements they desperately need to stay in work and earn vital income whilst balancing their childcare responsibilities. More →

Hybrid working averse businesses missing out on €113 billion opportunity

Hybrid working averse businesses missing out on €113 billion opportunity

by • Flexible working, News

European businesses continue to miss out on the full potential of hybrid working, according to a new survey from Ricoh EuropeEuropean businesses continue to miss out on the full potential of hybrid working, according to a new survey from Ricoh Europe.  The research, conducted by Opinium and analysed by CEBR, polled 6,000 workers and 1,500 decision makers across Europe. Business leaders say that workers are, on average, 4 percent more productive in a hybrid culture, equivalent to an additional €113 billion to the European economy compared with pre-pandemic ways of working. More →

Getting back to the future of work

Getting back to the future of work

by • Comment, Flexible working

future of workQuoting George Orwell is the kind of thing that people who haven’t read George Orwell do. I have read Orwell, and even have a  drunken story about Paul Shane signing my copy of the Collected Essays, which was the only autograph-able material I had on me at the time I met him in a pub in about 1990. For another time. In Nineteen Eighty-Four, Orwell describes Winston Smith’s realisation that the best books are those that tell you what you already know. This is an ancient profundity, and one that is sort of useful during times of significant, rapid change, when we are obliged to confront old truths in a new context. History doesn’t repeat itself, it rhymes, as they say. More →

Flexible working and its benefits are enjoyed most by highest paid workers

Flexible working and its benefits are enjoyed most by highest paid workers

by • Flexible working, News

Low paid workers have the least flexible working, and the gap between the number of flexible workers on the lowest and highest salaries has increased in the last year, according to figures from the Flex for Life 2023 reportLow paid workers have the least flexible working, and the gap between the number of flexible workers on the lowest and highest salaries has increased in the last year, according to figures from the Flex for Life 2023 report from advocacy group Flexibility Works. Just half (51 percent) of workers surveyed for the report earning less than £20,000 a year work flexibly, compared with eight in ten (80 percent) workers earning more than £50,000. The figures are from an analysis of flexible working in Scotland, which is supported by the Scottish Government and The Hunter Foundation. More →

Half of gig workers earn below the minimum wage

Half of gig workers earn below the minimum wage

by • Flexible working, News, Workplace

More than half of gig workers in the UK are paid below the minimum wage, a new study claimsAs the cost of living continues to spiral, a new report shows more than half of gig economy workers in the UK are paid below the minimum wage. The study, led by the University of Bristol, found 52 percent of gig workers doing jobs ranging from data entry to food delivery were earning below the minimum wage. On average respondents were earning £8.97 per hour – around 15 percent below the current UK minimum wage, which rose to £10.42 this month. More than three-quarters (76 percent) of survey respondents also experienced work-related insecurity and anxiety. More →

Hybrid working is a potential deal breaker for two thirds of tech workers

Hybrid working is a potential deal breaker for two thirds of tech workers

by • Flexible working, News

The report claims that a flexible working policy is considered a high priority by 78 percent of tech employees and a hybrid working policy by 67 percent of tech employeesA new report claims that 7 in 10 UK tech workers now consider hybrid working a key factor when considering a future employer. That is according to The Scaleup Culture Report [registration] from Techspace, based on a YouGov survey of 1,000 tech workers. The report claims that a flexible working policy is considered a high priority by 78 percent of tech employees and a hybrid working policy by 67 percent of tech employees. Other important factors include flexible working policies and opportunities for career development. These statistics have exposed a new factor that will determine startups’ competitiveness in the job market. More →

Bisley Home Space to launch at Clerkenwell Design Week 2023

Bisley Home Space to launch at Clerkenwell Design Week 2023

by • Company news, Flexible working, Workplace design

British furniture maker Bisley is to open thBritish furniture maker Bisley is to open th e doors of its new Home Space showroom during Clerkenwell Design Week (23-25 May 2023) exploring the theme of People, Wellbeing and Spacee doors of its new Home Space showroom during Clerkenwell Design Week (23-25 May 2023) exploring the theme of People, Wellbeing and Space – at Home and at Work. Making its debut at Clerkenwell Design Week will be the Bisley Home Space, a brand new area of the showroom dedicated to Bisley’s growing range of products for the home. A key festival highlight will be an installation created by interior design writer and stylist Cate St Hill. Bisley x Cate St Hill explores Fern, Bisley’s acclaimed collection of stylish steel lockers, and new pieces for spring 2023 including the versatile Reef wall-mounted shelf, with a special area of the showroom curated by Cate in her distinctive calm, neutral style. More →

Employees care more about work culture than flexible working

Employees care more about work culture than flexible working

by • Flexible working, News, Workplace

Brits are more than twice as likely to leave their job due to negative work culture or a toxic working environment than because of limitations with flexible workingNew findings from Cpl’s Talent Evolution Group suggest employees care less about flexible working than generally thought. The survey, to 1,500 UK employees, reveals Brits are more than twice as likely to leave their job due to negative work culture or a toxic working environment than because of limitations with flexible working.  Whilst organisations may be prioritising flexibility for working parents, over 80 percent of 25–44-year-olds would not actually consider limitations to flexible working a reason to leave their position.  More →

Firms missing the chances to implement hybrid working and adopt new technologies

Firms missing the chances to implement hybrid working and adopt new technologies

by • Flexible working, News, Technology, Wellbeing

companies are missing opportunities to unlock new levels of employee productivity with new technology, hybrid working, and talent development.The new Slack State of Work Report [registration] claims that companies are missing opportunities to unlock new levels of employee productivity with new technology, hybrid working, and talent development. The report, based on a global survey of more than 18,000 desk workers – including 2,000 in the UK, found only 23 percent of companies are investing in technology to improve productivity and efficiency (21 percent in the UK), and just 27 percent of companies are using AI tools to help do so. More →

Half of parents struggling for work life balance

Half of parents struggling for work life balance

by • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing

A new poll from AA Driving School suggests that around half (51 percent) of British parents find their job prevents them from finding a healthy work life balance, due to childcare and cost of living pressures.A new poll from AA Driving School suggests that around half (51 percent) of British parents find their job prevents them from finding a healthy work life balance, due to childcare and cost of living pressures. Increases to the cost of childcare have driven UK parents to work either additional hours in their current job (18 percent) or even take another job (12 percent) to financially support their family. More →

Employers gain nearly two weeks extra work a year from hybrid workers

Employers gain nearly two weeks extra work a year from hybrid workers

by • Flexible working, News

Analysis by  workplace consultancy Advanced Workplace Associates (AWA) claims that on average hybrid workers deliver nearly two extra weeks of work a year for their employerAnalysis by  workplace consultancy Advanced Workplace Associates (AWA) claims that on average hybrid workers deliver nearly two extra weeks of work a year for their employer as well as working harder and better in a hybrid environment.  The results of the analysis — which shows the benefits of hybrid working for organisations — are a combination of academic research and studies by AWA itself. They are included in AWA’s latest report, ‘Why Employers Benefit From Hybrid Working’, which also found that employees often work better when in a distraction-free environment, with more than half their time dedicated to working alone or focussed work. More →

Only a fifth of workers think hybrid working tools have substantially improved productivity

Only a fifth of workers think hybrid working tools have substantially improved productivity

by • Flexible working, News, Technology

Only around a fifth (18 percent) of workers in two key sectors believe hybrid working technology has substantially improved their productivity.A new poll from IT consultancy Doherty Associates, claims that while over three-quarters (77 percent) of workers in two key market sectors say their company has introduced new technology to support hybrid working, only around a fifth (18 percent) of respondents believe it has substantially improved their productivity. More →

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