June 4, 2015
Third of working women feel disadvantaged in the workplace
One in three (31%) successful working women in the UK say that men are offered greater opportunities at work, according to new research by Badenoch & Clark. The research claims that the glass ceiling is still a barrier to women in the workplace and this is especially true in typically male-dominated professions such as law and the IT industry. 58 percent of women in the private sector say that their organisation had leadership and development programmes compared to only 48 percent of women in the public sector. When asked why men are offered more opportunities, over half of the women surveyed (57%) said it was because of an unconscious gender bias with male-dominated senior teams preferring to recruit, mentor and measure performance in their own image. This suggests that the challenging issue of gender bias cannot be resolved through development programmes alone.
TechNorth, the Manchester based technology hothouse devised as a regional counterbalance to London, is held in higher regard than the capital’s flagship TechCity development, according to research from recruitment firm Robert Half. The study of IT decision makers across the UK claims that the vast majority would prioritise working with Northern firms over their London counterparts, with 87 percent either ‘highly likely’ or ‘somewhat likely’ to place work with IT businesses in the TechNorth hub rather than those in TechCity London given the choice. The figure is 100 percent for IT leaders based in the North and to 95 percent for those in Scotland. More surprisingly, 80 percent of those based London and the South East said they would prioritise TechNorth, as did 75 percent in the South West and Wales.
Plans for what is billed as the tallest office building outside of London have been submitted to Birmingham City Council for approval. The proposed 26 storey tower at 103 Colmore Row is planned to stand 346ft (105m) and house some 2,000 office workers. Birmingham is bound to find the scheme attractive as it vies with Manchester for the crown of England’s second city. Up to now, tall buildings have not enjoyed the same appeal in regional cities as much as they have in London. The new building is planned to replace the former NatWest tower which has lain empty on the development site since 2003 and is set to be demolished once plans are finalised for its replacement. If given a green light, the new scheme will incorporate a rooftop restaurant, green roof, terraces, street level shops and cafes and a winter garden.
A new study published yesterday in the British Journal of Sports Medicine claims that office workers spend far too much time sitting, are suffering from a range of conditions and illnesses as a result and so should be encouraged to spend up to half of each working while standing. The report, 
