Not everybody has the same experience of working from home so firms need to manage people better

Not everybody has the same experience of working from home so firms need to manage people better

by • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing

A new meta-analysis published in the Journal of Occupational Health suggests that a one size fits all approach to working from home is best avoided, as the outcomes for people in terms of their productivity and wellbeing can vary enormouslyA new meta-analysis published in the Journal of Occupational Health suggests that a one size fits all approach to working from home is best avoided, as the outcomes for people in terms of their productivity and wellbeing can vary enormously. The research, led by Charlotte Hall of Kings College London and the UK Health Security Agency, advises that employers should retain flexibility but be aware of the complex impact of remote work on different people. More →

Why changing with the seasons is key to the all-weather workplace

Why changing with the seasons is key to the all-weather workplace

by • Comment, Wellbeing, Workplace design

Building in flexibility within workplace strategy and office design is a way to ensure working environments remain a magnetic destinationLove it or hate it, weather chat is part of Britain’s day to day – yet in the world of work it’s not just casual small talk. In fact, the seasons have a real impact on how we feel and perform. The change in seasonal characteristics influences what employees need from where they work. Looking after employee wellbeing and putting individuals in the best position to be productive at work means different things throughout the year. Building in flexibility within workplace strategy and office design is a way to ensure working environments remain a magnetic destination that support people all year round…but what does this type of flexibility look like? More →

Work-life balance trumps pay in list of employee wants

Work-life balance trumps pay in list of employee wants

by • News, Wellbeing

The majority of UK workers would choose better work-life balance over higher pay (61 percent vs. 39 percent) in both their current and future jobsThe majority of UK workers would choose better work-life balance over higher pay (61 percent vs. 39 percent) in both their current and future jobs, according to the latest Amex Trendex report which claims to reveal consumer trends and priorities for 2024. According to the report, based on a survey of adults from the UK, Australia, Canada, India, Japan, Mexico, and the United States, personal wellness, work-life balance and the environment are seen as priorities for this year. More →

Cautious welcome for government’s disability plan which aims to make UK ‘most accessible nation’

Cautious welcome for government’s disability plan which aims to make UK ‘most accessible nation’

by • News, Wellbeing

he UK government has announced details of its new Disability Action Plan which includes 32 steps it claims will make the UK the most accessible place in the world for disabled people to 'live, work and thriveThe UK government has announced details of its new Disability Action Plan which includes 32 steps it claims will make the UK the most accessible place in the world for disabled people to ‘live, work and thrive’. The publication of the Disability Action Plan is part of the government’s stated intention to improve the lives of millions of disabled people. This has included seeing 1.3 million more disabled people in work now than in 2017, which the government claims is delivering a commitment five years early. More →

Life at the coalface: How the agile workplace first appeared in the mid 20th Century

Life at the coalface: How the agile workplace first appeared in the mid 20th Century

by • Comment, Wellbeing, Workplace design

agile working began in the coal fields of NottinghamshireThe idea of diffusion of innovation has become so embedded in our culture, and most recently so associated with the adoption of new technology, that we might assume it happens in predictable ways. The steps between innovators, early adopters, early majority, late majority, and laggards seem intuitive and certain even when their peaks might be unsure. And yet history teaches us that sometimes new ideas can take years or even decades to take hold, even when they are potentially world-changing and relevant for the era in which they were formulated. More →

A million women in the UK routinely hide period sick days from employers

A million women in the UK routinely hide period sick days from employers

by • News, Wellbeing

More than a million women mask period sick days each year because they feel unable to tell their boss the true reason for their absenceMore than a million women mask period sick days each year because they feel unable to tell their boss the true reason for their absence. The latest research revealed in the Bupa Wellbeing Index, shows that one in eight (13 percent) women have taken time off work in the last 12 months due to symptoms linked to periods, with a third (35 percent) gave a different reason when requesting the time away. More →

Many people continue to put a brave face on mental health

Many people continue to put a brave face on mental health

by • News, Wellbeing

Seven in ten employees (67 percent full time and 69 percent part time) say that they feel the need to put a brave face on things when asked about their mental health. Half (47 percent full time and 54 percent part time) report that the reason is because bigger things are going on in the world right now and they don’t wish to be a burden, whilst a quarter of full time employees (27 percent) and a third of part time employees (35 percent) don’t believe that people really want to know how they are. A quarter (26 percent full time and 27 percent part time) say they fear being judged if they open up. As a result they are feeling withdrawn, isolated and less able to socialise. More →

The final word on workplace wellbeing

The final word on workplace wellbeing

by • Comment, Wellbeing

The final word? Of course not. Five years ago this month, we published an article that described how the quest for productivity had been supplanted almost entirely by a new emphasis on workplace wellbeingThe final word? Of course not. Nearly six years ago, we published an article that described how the quest for productivity had been supplanted almost entirely by a new emphasis on workplace wellbeing. It was the final nail in the coffin of scientific management and its central notion of the office as a factory, subject to rigid times and places of work and manufacturing’s culture of process, efficiency and productivity. The office a splice of factory and panopticon. More →

Third of UK adults experience a high level of stress each year

Third of UK adults experience a high level of stress each year

by • News, Wellbeing

Over a third of adults experienced high or extreme levels of pressure and stress always or often in the past year (35 percent),Over a third of adults experienced high or extreme levels of pressure and stress always or often in the past year (35 percent), according to the new annual report from Mental Health UK. The report warns that the UK is at risk of becoming a ‘burnt-out nation’. Against a backdrop of rising levels of people out of work due to long-term sickness, the polling of over 2,000 UK adults by YouGov for the Mental Health UK reveals that one in five workers (20 percent) needed to take time off due to poor mental health caused by pressure or stress in the past year. More →

A hazy shade of Winter: Nigel Oseland sounds off on the Workplace Cocktail Hour

A hazy shade of Winter: Nigel Oseland sounds off on the Workplace Cocktail Hour

by • News, Podcasts, Premium Content, Wellbeing, Workplace Cocktail Hour

It’s bitterly cold outside but over a glass of hazy IPA, Nigel Oseland and Mark Eltringham warm to a conversation about fish guts, the sounds that make us cringe, what comfort means to different people and what it would really take to get them to spend more time in the office. And it’s not free fruit, corporate sanctioned togetherness or quirky office features. Nigel also explains why firms might be getting it wrong when it comes to managing which people use which spaces in agile environments. We also discuss how people overestimate their own productivity and underestimate that of their colleagues and what that means for the way we organise. More →

Workplace piffle, humane design and throwing away the blank slate

Workplace piffle, humane design and throwing away the blank slate

by • Comment, Technology, Wellbeing, Workplace design

workplace designThe piece I wrote on workplace bullshit came in for quite a bit of attention when it was published and also meant I was pointed to this excellent article on how to spot it when you see it. Lots is said about the skills we’ll need to cope with the challenges of the current Century, but this is perhaps one of the most important. Especially trying to spot it in ourselves. Paradoxically, but understandably, we already seem reasonably able to spot it in our politicians and other people we don’t quite trust. More →

The average day off includes about two and a half hours of work

The average day off includes about two and a half hours of work

by • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing

the average Brit will spend up to two-and-a-half hours working while technically having a day off on holiday or leave.A recent study by Forbes Advisor claims that a quarter (25 percent) of UK employees will work between three and four hours on days when they are officially “off the clock”. The survey found that the average Brit will spend up to two-and-a-half hours working while technically having a day off on holiday or leave. More →

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