May 19, 2015

Lateness and constant whining are most annoying office habits

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, News, Wellbeing, Workplace

Someone who is perpetually late is the most annoying workplace colleague according to a new survey of UK office workers, although only a third are prepared to do anything about it. However, just over 40 percent of respondents said that this kind of behaviour made them consider leaving their jobs with a striking five percent having actually followed through with such a decision. Colleagues who whine all the time were found to be the second most annoying people, the study into annoying office habits by Viking reveals. Misspent time was a key theme amongst the top five habits on the list of twenty, with excessive smoking breaks and deliberate procrastination taking top positions. Contrary to popular belief, jargon isn’t the most annoying practice to plague our offices. In fact, both men and women rated jargon in the bottom three.

May 18, 2015

Sedentary working has led to weight gain for over a third of workers

by Sara Bean • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

More than two in five workers (41 percent) admit they have gained weight at their current jobs, with 18 percent confessing they have gained more than 10 pounds a survey from CareerBuilder.co.uk claims. Only 13 percent of workers claim they’ve lost weight in their current job with sedentary working, exhaustion and time constraints all being identified as obstacles to staying fit. The majority of workers (68 percent) say their employers do not provide gym passes, access to workout facilities or wellbeing benefits. Of these, 41 percent claim they would take advantage of such opportunities, yet only a quarter (24 percent) say their company provides such incentives. Over half of workers (58 percent) also spend most of their time sitting at their desk during the day and skipping proper meals due to time constraints.

May 16, 2015

The latest edition of Insight Weekly is available to view online

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, Newsletter, Technology, Workplace, Workplace design

In this week’s issue; the intersection of the different physical and technological spaces which make up the modern workplace is the theme of the latest issue of Work&Place, which is now available to view online. Paul Statham examines the transformation agile working is making to the global workplace; Paul Goodchild on the enduring appeal of wooden furniture and John Blackwell explains why IT and Property Directors need to come out of their silos. In news, the CIPD reveals that employers are using more of their resources to skill up their workforces, Acas issues advice on managing mental health problems, and how most Brits would rather lose a finger than their access to the Internet. Sign up to the newsletter via the subscription form in the right hand sidebar and follow us on Twitter and join our LinkedIn Group to discuss these and other stories.

May 15, 2015

Employers embracing more collaborative hands-on learning cultures

by Sara Bean • News, Technology, Workplace

There is a growing trend for employers to create collaborative hands-on learning cultures, with internal knowledge-sharing initiatives such as job shadowing and social learning increasingly commonplace. In the latest snapshot of the annual survey of L&D professionals by the CIPD, coaching by line managers or peers was the method of learning most likely to grow in use in organisations over the next two years, according to almost two-thirds (65%) of respondents. Over half (53%) expect to see the use of in-house development programmes increase, and on-the-job training (48%) and internal knowledge sharing events (46%) are also expected to become prevalent. The findings imply a growing focus on efforts to foster a learning culture with many organisations using technology to support learning and development.

May 14, 2015

The cost to the UK’s medium sized businesses of unwanted email

by Mark Eltringham • News, Technology, Workplace

Managing unwanted email could be costing the UK’s 31,000 medium-sized businesses more than £34,000 a year each, according to an analysis of time spent on managing spam, phishing and other unwanted emails by Mailprotector. Using filtering statistics from its customers, Mailprotector analysed medium sized firms over a 30-day period. It found that each employee receives 25 unwanted emails per day on average, which take around 5 seconds to open, glance at and delete, equating to almost one working day a year (6.94 hours). Calculating employee costs, based on an average annual salary of £28,000, and factoring in support costs – based on the number and cost per support call – the losses can add up to over £34,000 per year per company, according to the study.

May 14, 2015

Expert advice issued on managing mental health in the workplace

by Sara Bean • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing, Workplace

Mental health can affect people’s personal lives, wellbeing and morale. But it can also impact on their performance at work and be costly for businesses. That’s the message from Acas, which, to mark Mental Health Awareness Week, has issued a guide to managing mental health in the workplace. It advocates creating an environment where people feel confident they can disclose conditions to employers; that employers be aware of any changes in behaviour that might suggest they’re having problems; and suggests that if a problem is being caused by work, look into ways of facilitating changes, such as offering flexible working opportunities. It is also suggested that wellness initiatives which encourage healthy eating, exercise and mindfulness can also help to reduce the severity of mental ill health.

May 13, 2015

Millennials now account for largest percentage of American workforce

by Sara Bean • Flexible working, News, Workplace

The publication this week of a survey by EY revealed the uncomfortable fact for US employers that 38 percent of millennials would consider moving to another country for better parental leave benefits. Now, another piece of research illustrates why US employers may need to work harder to keep their millennials (adults ages 18 to 34) happy. They now make up more than one-in-three of workers, surpassing Generation X to become the largest group in the US workforce, according to new Pew Research Center analysis of US Census Bureau data. This milestone was reached in the first quarter of 2015, as the millennial workforce hit over 53 million. With its large proportion of immigrants, and at an age of transition from college to working world, the millennial workforce is likely to grow even further.

May 12, 2015

Commuting costs the UK £148 billion annually, claims new report

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News, Workplace

In spite of the growth of flexible working in the UK, commuting to an office each day costs British workers and the national economy some £148 billion annually. That is the key finding of a new report from recruitment firm Randstad. The study claims that an average commute for staff in the UK covers around 22 miles, taking around 43 minutes. The report claims that the time spent commuting continues to increase as people move further away from their main place of work, especially in the South East and North West of England. London workers – unsurprisingly – spend more than anybody else on commuting. There are also major differences across sectors with the workers in financial services, accountancy and IT industries subject to the most costly commutes.

May 12, 2015

One third of global workers are finding work-life balance unattainable

by Sara Bean • Flexible working, News, Workplace

Managing work-life balance has become more difficult for a third of workers over the last five years, with Millennials most affected. After competitive pay and benefits, nearly three quarters of people questioned in a global poll (74%) felt that being able to work flexibly and still be on track for promotion, and working with colleagues who supported flexibly were the most important considerations when choosing a job. In the countries covered in the research from EY, German and Japanese workers find it hardest to create work-life balance. Globally, around half (46%) of managers are working more than 40 hour weeks and four in 10 say their hours have increased over the past five years. Nearly half of Millennials (47%) report an increase in hours compared to 38 percent for Gen X and 28 percent for Boomers.

May 11, 2015

National prevention strategy called for to help workers with mental ill health

by Sara Bean • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

Nearly half (46%) of workers struggle to switch off from work, a new survey has revealed. The survey by YouGov of over 2,000 British adults, commissioned by the Mental Health Foundation to mark the beginning of Mental Health Awareness Week (11 – 17 May) reports many people always or often feeling stressed (29%), anxious (24%) and depressed (17%). With the survey showing nearly two thirds of people (65%) likely to take part in activities that reduce stress, the Mental Health Foundation is calling for a national prevention strategy to reduce the risk of problems and for mindfulness to be more widely practised. Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy is recommended by the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and endorsed in the Chief Medical Officer’s Mental Health report, for reducing the risk of depression.

May 11, 2015

Nearly a third of Brits would rather lose a finger than their broadband connection

by Mark Eltringham • News, Technology, Workplace

According to a report by technology comparison website Cable.co.uk, nearly a third of British people say they would rather live without one of their fingers than without access to the internet and a further quarter couldn’t choose between the two. According to the study of 2,500 British residents, when asked if they had to live their life without either one of their fingers (the report doesn’t say which, although that would surely make a difference) or their internet connection which would they choose, one in three (29 percent) said they would rather lose a finger, while a further 25 percent claim they couldn’t decide between the two. They’re not alone in believing in the indispensability of broadband. In February, a House of Lords committee recommended reclassifying broadband as a public utility.

May 8, 2015

The world’s enduring addiction to the joy and misery of commuting

by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Flexible working, Work&Place, Workplace

Commuting is one of the most complained about yet least explored facets of our working lives. This is in spite of the fact that it consumes so much of people’s time, energy and money, is presented as one of the main arguments for more flexible working practices and is so closely linked to our wellbeing. Yet the half a billion – and growing – commuters worldwide could be forgiven for assuming nobody is really that much interested in the effects of their daily grind into work, especially when you consider the attention given to other workplace issues. Douglas Langmead in his feature on page 32 of the new issue of Work&Place does his bit to redress this imbalance with a fascinating look at commuting in the rapidly developing and endlessly fascinating economies of the United Arab Emirates.