January 27, 2021
January 26, 2021
Tech and finance firms opt to keep offices closed
by Jayne Smith • Business, News, Working culture
Expenses app, ExpenseOnDemand, has published new data which claims to highlight how businesses in different sectors are planning office returns in 2021. The majority of businesses across many sectors have stated offices will reopen this year at some point. (more…)
January 26, 2021
SLL publish specialist lighting guide for FMS
by Jayne Smith • Lighting, News, Workplace design
The Society of Light and Lighting (SLL) has published its first guidance document designed specifically to address the key lighting tasks required of facilities managers. Lighting is absolutely critical to providing a safe and productive working environment and much of the management required to procure, maintain and optimise lighting systems falls to facilities managers. (more…)
January 26, 2021
Call for employers to do more to safeguard the health of their employees
by Jayne Smith • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing, Working culture
In April 2020, 47 percent of UK employees worked from home and for many, they still haven’t returned to the office. The events of 2020 have been unprecedented, as rules and advice from the government have changed at rapid rates in response to the Coronavirus Pandemic. But one thing that remained relatively consistent is the encouragement for those who can, to work from home. (more…)
January 26, 2021
Remote work continues to impact physical and mental health of workers
by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing
New research from Fellowes Brands claims to reveal the ‘alarming’ impact enforced remote work is having on the mental wellbeing and physical health of the nation. Over a third (35 percent) of UK workers admit feeling stressed or anxious, lonely and isolated (32 percent) and tired or lacking in energy (38 percent), while working from home during lockdown. The study is based on a survey of 1,000 UK office workers who had worked from home for at least four months. (more…)
January 25, 2021
The future of work is hybrid with a firm focus on employees
by Jayne Smith • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing, Working lives
Companies are searching for ways to reinvent the office and give employees reasons to return to their workplace and a new report by JLL says the focus must be on the workforce. The report, Reimagine: the new future of work to shape a better world predicts that the future of work will involve companies prioritising the health, wellness and mental well-being of employees. (more…)
January 22, 2021
Low paid workers have borne the brunt of the pandemic
by Neil Franklin • News, Workplace
New analysis by the Institute for Employment Studies has found that low paid workers are more than twice as likely to have lost their jobs during the pandemic and are at far greater risk of being temporarily laid off or having their hours cut. The research, funded by Standard Life Foundation, concludes that in this current lockdown it is likely that around two thirds of low paid workers – or four million people – are either temporarily laid off or working fewer hours than normal. This would be double the rate of work disruption for staff who are not classified as low paid. (more…)
January 21, 2021
Furlough scheme should be extended ahead of the Budget, says CIPD
by Neil Franklin • News, Workplace
With six weeks still to go until the Chancellor’s Budget, the CIPD is urging the Government to act early to extend the furlough scheme to protect jobs, support incomes and enhance skills development. Its calls are outlined in a report called The Future of Furlough – Recommendations for now and for any future wage subsidy. In order to support smaller firms who don’t pay an apprenticeship levy, the CIPD is also recommending the creation of a furlough scheme training fund of up to £100 million, which would be funded from levy-paying firms’ expired levy funds that would otherwise go to HM Treasury. The CIPD estimates that this could pay for training or outplacement skills development support for nearly 160,000 workers in small firms. (more…)
January 21, 2021
First platinum certified smart building awarded to EDGE Olympic Amsterdam
by Freddie Steele • Company news, News
Smart Building Certification, the organisation behind the smart accreditation, awarded its first platinum building. The founders of Smart Building Certification handed the first official platinum certification over to Coen van Oostrom, Founder and CEO of EDGE. (more…)
January 20, 2021
Business leaders are overestimating their organisational agility capabilities
by Jayne Smith • Business, News
Almost three-quarters (72 percent) of business leaders and 90 percent of CEOs across Europe see organisational agility as critical in driving business performance and growth, yet many are overestimating their capabilities, according to new research from ServiceNow (NYSE: NOW). (more…)
January 20, 2021
Work-life balance is the key to workplace happiness
by Jayne Smith • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing, Working lives