February 22, 2019

Employees put off seeking medical advice due to worries over missing work

by Sara Bean • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

Although the majority (85 percent) of all business decision-makers agree that workplace health is a top priority, employees still aren’t being as open as they should, often playing down their illness or injury (32 percent) or feeling too busy to miss office hours (27 percent), a new survey by Bupa and Babylon Health has claimed. Worry over missing work is a key driver in avoiding appointments as seven in 10 employees (70%) have delayed or put off seeking medical advice when they should, despite the majority of business leaders having no issue with colleagues taking time off to deal with health issues. Men, young workers (18-34), Londoners and those employed in SMEs are all more likely than average to delay or put off seeking help. The data also shows that those in manual roles (vs. clerical) are more likely to shrug off illness or injury. Mark Allan, Commercial Director, Bupa UK, said: “As much as those in decision-making positions really want their employees to put their health first, they’re competing against a strong resistance from those who will strive to soldier on. This is particularly the case with those employees in SME businesses, amongst others.”

February 21, 2019

Why the gender pay gap is an enduring challenge for many organisations

by Heejung Chung • Comment, Workplace

In April of 2018, large companies with over 250 employees were obliged to report their gender pay gap for the first time. Headlines that week were dominated by some of the surprise and shock of the extent to which women were paid less in majority of the companies reported, while for many women it just confirmed our hidden beliefs. There was a slight optimism, however, that there can only be progress. However, many companies who are reporting their new pay gap for this year show that rather than progress, many have increased their gaps. Why is this the case?

February 21, 2019

Over half of workers admit to arguments about the office temperature

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

Almost two thirds (59 percent) of UK employees say that the office temperature is a controversial topic amongst colleagues, with over half (52 percent) admitting that it causes regular arguments. Now new research conducted by Boiler Plan highlights the extreme lengths that some office workers are willing to go to in the battle of the thermostat. More than one in seven (14.5 percent) workers have gone as far as making a formal complaint to their HR department due to the temperature in their office and almost one in eight (12.3 percent) have taken it as far as actually damaging the temperature control unit.

Female office workers are more than twice as likely to vandalise the thermostat as their male colleagues, and one in five (20 percent) women have requested a desk move because of this issue. Six percent of men say they have fallen out with a colleague and 7 percent admit to sending passive aggressive emails due to the temperature in the office.

February 21, 2019

SMEs intend to increase their headcount by over a fifth this year

by Sara Bean • Legal news, News, Workplace

SMEs intend to grow their headcount by over a fifth this year

Although official figures from the ONS show a decline in consumer spending throughout much of 2018, optimism amongst small businesses remains high, with UK SMEs hoping to grow their headcount by an average of 21 percent over the next 12 months. The new research from Opus Energy claims that half (51 percent) intend to grow their business in terms of people, with some even predicting they’ll increase their workforce by 50 percent. IT (39 percent), health (33 percent) and financial services (28 percent) were the sectors expecting the most growth. Even in the worst affected sectors, growth was still predicted. Half (50 percent) of retailers still expected to grow in 2019, at an average of 19 percent. 65 percent of food and beverage producers predicted an average headcount increase of 18 percent and 69 percent of manufacturers expected to grow at an average of 14 percent; despite facing the uncertainty of Brexit and the “death of the high street”.

February 20, 2019

Employers have a poor understanding of what actually motivates their employees

by Sara Bean • News, Workplace

Almost half of companies (45 percent) still believe that an attractive salary and package is what motivates their workforce, despite the fact that employees cite ‘soft benefits’ such a flexi-working, work-life balance, and ‘being valued’ as key to feeling fulfilled in their job role. The findings come from recent research ‘Meeting demands through the job offering’, by recruiter Robert Walters and job board CV-Library that highlight the disparity between what employees want and what companies are offering to staff. While 60 percent of professionals’ state career development as an important part of a job offering, less than 10 percent of companies believe that a lack of career progression and development would be a key reason for losing talent. The report also found that although companies claim that ‘staff being stuck in their ways’ is the main reason behind the lack of quality applicants, over 40 percent of professionals state that they would be willing to take up a role in another field where skills would be transferable, or work in a new sector to broaden their skills.

February 20, 2019

It is time for organisations to embrace the digital workplace

by Christian Brøndum • AI, Comment, Facilities management, Flexible working, Technology, Workplace

With the rise of both cloud-based technology and the worldwide gig economy, the last ten years of the 21^st century have seen some near-revolutionary changes in workplace practice. Entrepreneurs everywhere have been more than happy to make use of these developments, taking advantage of the new business models these changes have brought. For example, IDG found that 73 percent of the organizations that they surveyed have at least one application already in the cloud, and according to ONS, since 2010 there has been a 25 percent increase in the number of non-employer businesses in the private sector, a change attributed to the growing popularity of the gig economy. However, despite all the advances in workplace culture, thousands of workers in the UK are being left behind in outdated modes of work.

February 19, 2019

Productivity only a priority for a third of employers as skills shortages persist

by Sara Bean • News, Public Sector, Workplace

Despite its importance to the economy, productivity is only a priority for 36 percent of employers and only half (50 percent) use the term when discussing organisational performance according to the latest Labour Market Outlook from the CIPD and the Adecco Group. And LMO data suggests that employers are overconfident when it comes to assessing their own productivity, with just 7 percent believing their organisation’s productivity is below average. More →

February 19, 2019

Gendered label of maternity leave may contribute to parental earnings gap

by Sara Bean • Flexible working, Legal news, Workplace

It’s been argued that one of the main drivers behind the gender pay gap and inequality in the workplace is when it comes to having children. Now new research from Money Guru has revealed that 70 percent of UK employers believe that women should declare their pregnancy during the recruitment process with one in seven (14 percent) of employers admitting to being reluctant to hire someone who may go on to have children. Studies show that 39 percent of young mothers have been illegally asked in job interviews about how being a mother would affect their ability to work.

February 18, 2019

Boost in adult learning essential when preparing for the future of work

by Neil Franklin • AI, News, Workplace

Many OECD countries need to urgently scale-up and upgrade their adult learning systems to help people adapt to the future world of work, according to a new OECD report. Getting Skills Right: Future-Ready Adult Learning Systems says that new technologies, globalisation and population ageing are changing the quantity and quality of jobs as well as the skills they require. Providing better skilling and re-skilling opportunities to workers affected by these changes is essential to make sure the future works for all.

February 17, 2019

More than 600 people quit work to look after older and disabled relatives every day

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

New research by Carers UK claims that 2.6 million have quit their job to care for a loved one who is older, disabled or seriously ill, with nearly half a million (468,000) leaving their job in the last two years alone – more than 600 people a day. This is a 12 per cent increase since Carers UK and YouGov polled the public in 2013. The findings also show that more people are caring than previously thought, with almost 5 million workers now juggling their paid job with caring – a dramatic rise compared with Census 2011 figures of 3 million.

February 15, 2019

A sense of belonging is crucial factor for employee engagement

by Sara Bean • News, Workplace

A sense of belonging is just as important an employee retention tool as good pay and benefits, a new academic paper has found. In his paper Creating a committed workforce: Using social exchange and social identity to enhance psychological attachment within an ever-changing workplace, Dr Ali Fenwick of Nyenrode Business Universiteit, Breukelen, the Netherlands., argues that identifying with the team, leader, brand and organisation is paramount to workplace commitment as well as work performance. More →

February 15, 2019

Rise in number of employers that prioritise reduction of gender pay gap

by Sara Bean • Legal news, News, Workplace

New research commissioned by the Government Equalities Office (GEO) has found that more companies are prioritising reducing their gender pay gap since the legislation was introduced in 2017. The research found that 69 percent of employers now view closing the gender pay gap as a high or medium priority, an increase of 8 percent on last year. With 10,000 companies reporting their pay gaps last year, the new research also showed that 67 percent of companies are having discussions at board-level to find ways of closing the gap. The GEO published the results as it announced two new pieces of guidance, providing step by step advice for employers which helps them to identify potential causes of the gender pay gap in their organisation and develop an effective action plan to tackle it.