Global migration plays an important role in London’s ongoing success, says report

Global migration plays an important role in London’s ongoing success, says report 0

by • Cities, Facilities management, News, Property, Workplace

Global migration plays an important role in London’s ongoing success, says reportDemand for construction workers in London looks set to grow due to the completion of Crossrail and the extension of the Northern Line alongside other infrastructure projects. But a new analysis reveals the Capital is struggling to attract and train the workforce needed; with London and the South East having a shortfall of 60,000 people in the construction industry. This is according to a first of its kind analysis of the role of migration on London’s economy by London First and PwC. ‘Facing Facts: the impact of migrants on London, its workforce and economy’ argues that London’s growing workforce is significantly contributing to economic growth and helping to create more jobs in the capital. The report, which draws on a comprehensive range of information, including detailed ONS Labour Force Survey data shows how London’s total workforce has grown from 4.3 million people in 2005 to just under 5.2 million, made up of people from around the UK, the EU and the rest of the world.

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Technology can help encourage employees make healthier lifestyle choices

Technology can help encourage employees make healthier lifestyle choices 0

by • News, Technology, Wellbeing, Workplace

Technology can help encourage employees make healthier lifestyle choicesFostering behavioural change among employees to encourage them to make healthier lifestyle choices could deliver both productivity gains and economic growth, a new report claims. According to Human-Centric Health: Behaviour Change and the Prevention of Non-Communicable Diseases, by the World Economic Forum in collaboration with Willis Towers Watson, behavioural economics will be critical to encourage healthier lifestyles and reduce the burden of non-communicable diseases (cardiovascular disease, mental illness, cancer, chronic respiratory disease and diabetes) that account for approximately 16 million premature deaths annually and will cost an estimated cumulative loss of $47 trillion in economic activity worldwide over the next two decades. According to the analysis, technology such as mobile phones with accelerometers that make activity challenges easier and engage individuals in a community of supportive peers will improve people’s understanding of health-related knowledge and encourage them to reshape their behaviour. Linking individuals to ‘commitment contracts’ to exercise, quit smoking, or adhere to medicine prescription schedules will also be easier to monitor using sensors and mobile technology.

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Brexit effect means London’s real estate is much better value than last year

Brexit effect means London’s real estate is much better value than last year 0

by • Cities, Facilities management, News, Property, Workplace

In the two years running up to the Brexit vote, London vied with New York and Hong Kong for the title of most expensive world city to accommodate employees and last year it was crowned the most expensive world class city for international businesses to rent office and living space for their employees. Now Brexit’s impact has made the UK look much better value on a world stage as the devaluation of sterling means it now ranks closer to Paris and Tokyo, leaving New York and Hong Kong in a league of their own with much higher accommodation costs. It now costs an average of US$88,800 per person to rent office and housing space in London, well below the price tag of June 2014 of US$124,500, according to the latest Savills Live-Work Index which measures annual accommodation costs per worker in leading world cities. By this measure, London is now 10 per cent cheaper in these terms than it was in December 2008.

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Dyson announces plans for £2.5 billion tech campus in Wiltshire

Dyson announces plans for £2.5 billion tech campus in Wiltshire 0

by • News, Property, Technology

Entrepreneur and inventor Sir James Dyson is to create a 517 acre campus in the Cotswolds as part of a £2.5 billion investment to establish a robotics and artificial intelligence firm capable of taking on the likes of Google, Amazon and Facebook. Although Dyson has previously come under fire for his decision to site parts of his operation overseas, the creation of the facility is the biggest investment in the UK’s technology since the Brexit vote. The firm has consistently increased its headcount in the UK in recent years and now employs around 3,500 people in its home market. The latest announcement is expected to see that increase that to 14,000, many of them highly skilled engineers and scientists. The location is a former RAF base in Hullavington, Wiltshire, and will aim to significantly shift the perception of the firm as primarily a vendor of vacuum cleaners to become a pioneer of AI, robotics and high density power systems.

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Employers not ready for digital disruption, where tech and people work side by side

Employers not ready for digital disruption, where tech and people work side by side 0

by • Facilities management, News, Technology, Workplace, Workplace design

Very few organisations are ready to manage a workforce where the latest technologies and people work side by side. Just 13 percent of UK companies are ready to respond to digital disruption and create “the organisation of the future”; despite 88 per cent believing this has become a priority. This is according to the 2017 Deloitte Global Human Capital Trends survey, which tracks the top trends shaping the agenda for HR and business leaders. However, while UK companies believe they are ill-prepared for the change brought by digital disruption, this has not stopped many of them from embracing disruptive technologies. 42 per cent report that they have adopted robotics, cognitive and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies within all or parts of their workforce. Another 42 per cent are running pilots in certain areas of their organisation. But only 16 per cent say they are ready to manage a workforce with people, robots and AI working side by side.

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Increasing adoption of wellbeing strategies to improve engagement and culture

Increasing adoption of wellbeing strategies to improve engagement and culture 0

by • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing, Workplace

Workplace wellbeing strategies are being implemented by employers at an unprecedented rate, with 45 percent of UK companies now having a clearly-defined wellbeing strategy in place, compared to less than a third (30 percent) in 2016, claims a new report. According to ‘Employee Wellbeing Research 2017: The evolution of workplace wellbeing in the UK’ from Reward & Employee Benefits Association (REBA), in association with Punter Southall Health & Protection, of those that don’t, virtually all plan or wish to implement one – with 46 percent planning on implementing one this year, 24 percent in the next few years and a quarter (25 percent) having it on their ‘wish list’. Over a third (37 percent) launched their wellbeing strategy to improve employee engagement, and just over a quarter (26 percent) to improve organisational culture.  Other drivers included improving productivity levels (11 percent), reducing long and short-term sickness absence (6 percent & 5 percent) and retaining talent (5 percent).

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Europe’s happiest workers revealed in new report

Europe’s happiest workers revealed in new report 0

by • News, Wellbeing

Levels of job satisfaction vary significantly across Europe, with Dutch, Polish and Swiss employees being the most satisfied, according to research by HR software firm ADP. The new study of nearly 10,000 European working adults explores how employees across Europe feel about the future of work. According to the research, Dutch, Polish and Swiss employees are the most satisfied, whilst the UK comes joint fifth. In the UK, satisfaction levels also differ greatly across regions; three quarters of those based in the East are satisfied (75 percent), whilst only 59 percent of employees in Northern Ireland are satisfied. In the UK, those working in Architecture, Engineering and Building are the most satisfied (84 percent), whilst IT & Telecoms workers fare well across Europe and the UK. In the UK, those working in financial services are the least satisfied (57 percent) – the lowest level of job satisfaction overall. In contrast, 71 percent of financial services employees in other European countries are satisfied.

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New Acas guidance on gig economy working and employment status rights

New Acas guidance on gig economy working and employment status rights 0

by • Facilities management, Flexible working, Legal news, News, Workplace

New guidance published on gig economy workingNew and updated guidance s being published today by Acas to help employers and their staff understand the many different types of employment arrangements that exist in the modern workplace and their legal entitlements. The revised guidance is released against the backdrop of Matthew Taylor (Chief Executive of the Royal Society of the Arts) review which considers the implications of new forms of work driven by digital platforms, for employee rights and responsibilities, employer freedoms and obligations, and the existing regulatory framework surrounding employment. The new Acas guidance reflects these changes to the way in which people work, are expected to work in the future, and follows recent legal cases about employment status; including the Pimlico Plumber and Uber decisions.

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Digitisation of workplace boosts earning powers in creative and design sector

Digitisation of workplace boosts earning powers in creative and design sector 0

by • Flexible working, News, Technology, Workplace

Digitisation of workplace boasts earning powers in creative and design sector

The rise of the gig economy and social media platforms have pushed creative and design jobs up the salary ranks, according to the latest UK Job Market Report from Adzuna.co.uk. In January, average salaries in this sector saw an annual increase of 2.2 percent to £31,828, with its popularity being driven by factors such as the new digital age coupled with the expertise of graduates who step into the jobs market with a fresh outlook on social media channels such as Snapchat and Instagram, which are highly valuable to employees. Across the job market, the employment rate stands at 74.6 percent, the highest since comparable records began in 1971 according to the ONS. This has been helped by a record proportion of women in work, with so-called ‘returnships’ – a type of later-life work experience helping older people, predominantly women back into the workplace – boosting the figures. Immigration may have tailed off in the wake of Brexit, but this also previously helped stimulate the jobs market.

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Almost half of over 55s will work past retirement age, but need bosses support

Almost half of over 55s will work past retirement age, but need bosses support 0

by • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing, Workplace

 

A majority of older workers (55+) in the UK are bracing themselves to continue working until they are 70 years old, but three quarters of employees don’t think employers are doing enough to support them, according to new research by the CIPD. In a survey of more than 1,600 UK employees, more than a third (37 percent) believed that they will have to work past the widely accepted retirement age of 65, a figure which jumps to 49 percent among workers over 55 years old. Among those who predict they will work past 65, the average age they expect to actually retire is 70. The most common reasons for employees wanting to work past 65 the belief it will keep them mentally fit (32 percent), followed by a desire to be able to earn enough money to continue to enjoy themselves. However, the research has also found that many employers aren’t doing enough to support older workers in the workplace. Just one in four (25 percent) employees believe that their employer is prepared to meet the needs of workers aged 65 and over, demonstrating how much work organisations need to do in order to prepare for the increased numbers of older workers in the workplace.

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Working significantly past the state retirement age is a threat to recruitment and retention, claims study

Working significantly past the state retirement age is a threat to recruitment and retention, claims study 0

by • News, Wellbeing

Rising numbers of employees working past traditional retirement ages is a potential threat to recruitment and retention, new research from employee benefits consultancy Portus claims. Its study of 103 HR executives and 1,043 employees claims 41 percent of HR managers believe they face looming problems in retaining and recruiting new staff if existing employees are unwilling to retire or can’t afford to. Employment data shows 1.19 million over-65s are still working – slightly down on the 1.202 million peak at the start of 2015 – but still nearly double the 635,000 over-65s in the workforce in 2006. Working past 65 is increasingly seen as an option by employees, the study claims. It found just 29 percent of employees have ruled out working past 65. Younger workers – who face higher state pension ages – are the most likely to work past 65 with just 23 percent of those aged 25 to 34 saying they will definitely stop work by 65.

UK firm asks 16,000 employees whether their jobs could be done by robots

UK firm asks 16,000 employees whether their jobs could be done by robots 0

by • News, Technology

robotsUK insurance firm Aviva has asked 16,000 of its employees whether they believe their jobs could be done better by robots. The consultation process will see those people who answer yes retrained for a new role within the business. Research by Oxford Martin School recently warned that 35 percent of jobs in the UK were in danger of automation over the next 20 years. Insurance underwriters were at the top of the list, rated 98.9 percent at risk. Despite frequent warnings that automation will disrupt a wide swath of industries, many workers believe that their own job is safe. This is in spite of warnings such as that from Mark Carney, governor of the Bank of England, who claimed recently that automation could put 15 million British jobs at risk, equivalent to nearly half of the 31.8 million people who work in the UK. Most recent research backs this up. A White House report from 2016 concluded that between 9 percent and 47 percent of all American jobs are vulnerable, including around 80 percent of jobs paying less than $20 an hour. Image: SoftBank Robotics

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