June 26, 2017

Digital tech is fastest growing sector in Scotland, claims report ⁰

The digital technology sector is forecast to grow twice as fast as the Scottish economy overall in the years to 2024, according to research published by Skills Development Scotland and the Digital Technologies Skills Group. This growth is ‘creating unprecedented demand for digital skills with employers across all sectors seeking to harness the benefits of technology to drive innovation and increase competitiveness’. The new publication, Scotland’s Digital T echnologies, found that digital tech was the fastest growing sector of the economy accounting for five percent of Scotland’s total business base and employing two per cent of the national workforce.

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June 23, 2017

Many business owners are baffled by workplace law jargon ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Legal news, News, Workplace

A survey of 250 business owners by Attest market research for HR and employment law advisors Peninsula found that 54 percent of business owners were baffled by workplace law jargon with many thinking the human resource management method – Bradford factor – stood for the best singer in Bradford instead of a means of measuring worker absenteeism. 44 percent thought TUPE meant total under taxation of parliament expenses not transfer of undertaking regulation, 30 percent thought EAT meant employment advice team not employment appeal tribunal. Meanwhile the Conservatives’ election slogan ‘strong and stable’ clearly left a huge mark on people’s thoughts as a number of business owners thought that ‘SSP’ stood for ‘strong and stable professionalism’ instead of the correct meaning of ‘statutory sick pay.’

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June 22, 2017

Firms still paying lip service to digital transformation, but change may be coming ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • News, Technology, Workplace

Britain’s biggest businesses risk being disrupted by the pace of technological change because their senior leaders are paying lip service to the need for digital transformation, according to a study from tech startup AVADO. The study of senior managers responsible for the learning and development (L&D) of staff at Britain’s biggest firms with turnovers of over £100m found that the need for digital transformation is accepted, almost universally, among respondents. 86 percent say they have assessed the business risk of not taking action and 88 percent have taken steps to address this. Yet, despite 93 percent of L&D professionals saying a digital transformation strategy is in place, the report suggests critical top down buy-in is missing. Yet, a second report from recruiters Robert Half suggests that a growing number of firms in the key finance sector are now actively recruiting to improve their digital transformation strategy.

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June 22, 2017

Shared desks are less hygienic than dedicated workstations, claims study ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • News, Wellbeing, Workplace design

A study by Initial Washroom Hygiene claims that microbiological activity is 18 percent higher in ‘hot desking’ environment. The firm claims that these findings suggest that having germs from different people on the surface of shared desks, computer mice and other equipment, means these workstations are typically home to more bacteria. The swabbing study was conducted using one company of over 100 employees with a fixed-desk environment. The same company then moved to a hot-desking environment, and the study was repeated in the same manner four months later. Experts from used an ATP bioluminescence reader to measure the microbiological concentration of various items on 40 different workstations, to determine what levels of bacteria these surfaces were harbouring. On average, the readings in the hot-desking office were 18 percent higher than those in the fixed-desk office. The use of communal computer mice in the hot-desk scenario was a key contributor to the difference in hygiene levels. Shared mice in the hot-desking environment had a 41 percent higher microbiological reading compared to readings taken from the computer mice on the fixed-desks.

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June 21, 2017

Report sets out costliest cities for mobile workforce of multinationals ⁰

by Neil Franklin • News

In a rapidly changing world, mobility has become a core component of companies’ global talent strategy and as a result, multinational organisations are carefully assessing the cost of packages for their international mobile workforce, claims a new report which sets out the costs of living in the world’s major cities. Mercer’s 23rd annual Cost of Living Survey finds that factors like instability of housing markets and inflation for goods and services contribute to the overall cost of doing business in today’s global environment. Mercer’s 2017 Cost of Living Survey finds Asian and European cities – particularly Hong Kong (2), Tokyo (3), Zurich (4), and Singapore (5) – top the list of most expensive cities for expatriates. The costliest city, driven by cost of goods and security, is Luanda (1), the capital of Angola. Other cities appearing in the top 10 of Mercer’s costliest cities for expatriates are Seoul (6), Geneva (7), Shanghai (8), New York City (9), and Bern (10). The world’s least expensive cities for expatriates, according to Mercer’s survey, are Tunis (209), Bishkek (208), and Skopje (206).

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June 20, 2017

The workplace experience will define how real estate enables business transformation ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News, Technology, Workplace design

JLL has today launched ‘Workplace powered by Human Experience’, a new global report series and accompanying tool, the ‘Human Experience model’, looking at how workplace experience can help businesses thrive in the new world of work. Findings of the report, which is part of JLL’s recently launched Future of Work research programme, are based on consultations with decision makers at 40 corporations around the world and the results of a separate, anonymous survey of more than 7,300 employees working for companies with more than 100 members of staff. The survey covered 12 countries and the respondents were aged between 18 and 65 years. Countries where employees were surveyed: Australia, China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, South Africa, Spain, the UK and the US.

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June 20, 2017

The self employed have to rely on each other as government offers almost no support ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News

The self employed are turning to one another for business and financial support, according to new analysis by the RSA think-tank. Commissioned by the Federation of Small Business (FSB) to examine how self-employed workers might manage the risks they face, the RSA report claims that growing numbers of workers are turning to collective sick-pay funds to manage ill health, cash pooling schemes to deal with late payments and micro-loan services to plug gaps in bank finance. The RSA’s report, The Self Organising Self Employed concludes that, to date, both the state and the market have struggled to keep pace with the rising numbers of the self employed. Although successive governments have been vocal in their admiration of people who strike it out alone, holding up their attributes as ‘self-starters’ and ‘strivers’, this had led to a ‘non-interventionist, hands-off policy agenda, with the self employed broadly left to their own devices’.

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June 20, 2017

Extending the length of working lives could boost UK GDP by £80 billion ⁰

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

The UK could boost its GDP by around 4.2 percent (around £80 billion at today’s values) if the employment rate of workers aged over 55 could match that of Sweden, the highest performing EU country, according to a new PwC analysis comparing the employment of older workers across 34 OECD countries. There is a 12 percentage point gap between the employment rates of workers aged 55-64 in the UK and Sweden. PwC’s Golden Age Index is a weighted average of indicators – including employment, earnings and training – that reflect the labour market impact of workers aged over 55. The UK has remained middling in the rankings since 2003, falling by one place from 18th in 2014 from 19th in 2015. The report suggests that extending working lives could have a transformational effect on the economy.

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June 20, 2017

Hong Kong and London’s West End again top global commercial property costs, according to CBRE ⁰

by Neil Franklin • News, Property

Hong Kong (Central) and London’s West End topped the list of prime commercial property occupancy costs again, according to CBRE Research’s latest annual Global Prime Office Occupancy Costs report. Hong Kong’s (Central) overall prime occupancy costs of US$303 per sq. ft. per year topped the “most expensive” list, followed by London’s West End (US$214 per sq. ft.), New York (Midtown) (US$203 per sq. ft.), Hong Kong (West Kowloon) (US$190 per sq. ft.) and Beijing (Central Business District (CBD)) (US$183 per sq. ft.). Global prime office occupancy costs—which reflect rent, plus local taxes and service charges for the highest-quality, “prime” office properties—rose 1.9 percent year-over-year, with the Americas up 3.6 percent, EMEA up 0.8 percent and Asia Pacific up 1.2 percent. Durban (South Africa) had the highest increase in occupancy cost overall, though Stockholm (Sweden) registered some of the fastest growth in Europe, along with Palma de Mallorca (Spain), Belfast (U.K.) and Amsterdam (Netherlands). In Asia Pacific, Shanghai (Puxi) in China had the highest growth in occupancy cost, followed by Guangzhou, Bangalore and Shanghai (Pudong). Buenos Aires showed the biggest increase in the Americas overall, while suburban Denver, suburban Houston and New York Midtown South saw the largest occupancy-cost increases in the U.S.

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June 20, 2017

Half of UK employees say the workplace has a negative impact on their wellbeing ⁰

by Sara Bean • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

UK employers are falling short of fully supporting mental health in the workplace, with half of UK employees say their workplace has a negative impact on their physical, mental and financial wellbeing, a new survey claims. And according to the Global Employee Benefits Watch 2017/18 from Thomsons Online Benefits of over 2,000 office workers around the world, multinational organisations are not using benefits effectively to improve employee wellbeing and provide a positive workplace experience. Almost 40 percent of employees cite improving mental wellbeing as a life goal, yet less than half of those (18 percent), feel that their benefits scheme supports this. The situation is similar for those wanting to get fit and healthy; 44 percent of employees are keen to do this, yet less than half of them (20 percent) say their employer is helping them to fulfil this ambition.

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June 20, 2017

As UK heatwave continues, Acas issues hot weather tips for employers ⁰

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

With the Met Office predicting that the hot weather looks set to continue for much of this week, workplace expert Acas, has offered some tips to help employers manage workplace challenges due to the hot weather. From a legal perspective, it advises that workplace temperatures should be reasonable as the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) has stated that the temperature in all workplaces inside buildings must be reasonable. The HSE offers advice on how to carry out a thermal comfort risk assessment if employees complain about the temperature. Acas Senior Guidance Adviser, John Palmer, said: “Today’s sizzling weather may be ideal for the beach but staff getting into work on one of the hottest days of the year may not feel the same way. Certain workers may be adversely affected by the extreme heat such as pregnant women, elderly employees and Muslim staff that are currently fasting during Ramadan. Our advice offers some top tips for employers to help ensure their businesses remain productive during the heat wave whilst keeping staff happy too.”

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June 20, 2017

Lack of digital adoption is the greatest social challenge we face, claims new report ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • News, Public Sector, Technology

More than 50 percent of organisations claim existing processes are preventing digital adoption, claims a new report from Agilisys, a tech firm focussed on projects in the public sector. The ‘State of the Digital Nation’ draws on findings from a survey of over 400 individuals from private and public sector organisations, who shared the progress they are making on their ‘digital transformation journeys’. The report, based on the key findings of a survey conducted by online publication Digital by Default News, considers the role of digital inclusion in the adoption of digital public services. The survey revealed that 40 percent of respondents had a clear digital vision and were already well on their way to realising the benefits. The majority (65 percent) of those surveyed considered digital one of their top organisational priorities.