Search Results for: development

CIPD calls for range of measures for British workforce ahead of General Election

CIPD calls for range of measures for British workforce ahead of General Election 0

by • Flexible working, Legal news, News, Workplace

The next Government needs to put ‘good work’ at the heart of its thinking in order to improve the economy, boost individual welfare and prosperity – creating the conditions for good work in organisations across the country, says the CIPD ahead of the General Election. In its ‘Manifesto for Work’ the CIPD is calling for publication of pay ratios, additional rights for zero-hours workers and increased investment in adult skills. The manifesto’s package of aim to address the systemic problems in the UK economy by focusing on the positive influence the world of work can have on productivity and wellbeing. As well as an overhaul of the UK Corporate Governance Code, the CIPD is also calling on the next Government to protect and raise awareness of employment rights, make skills the centerpiece of their industrial strategy and take steps to improve gender diversity in the boardroom. It also calls for organisations to focus more on greater organisational transparency so that businesses are more accountable for incorporating the principles of good work across their organisations.

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People in the gig economy need autonomy and good work too, argues RSA

People in the gig economy need autonomy and good work too, argues RSA 0

by • Flexible working, News

Gig economy workers should be given more power to hold companies to account under the law as a first step to making the new er of work fit for the future, according to a new report and survey published by the RSA. Good Gigs: A fairer future for the UK’s gig economy recommends the burden of proof be shifted to companies to prove gig workers are not employees, and that penalties should be strengthened against companies who use clauses that prohibit employment status litigation. As part of the project, the RSA undertook the largest ever survey on Britain’s gig economy, which reveals that there are currently 1.1 million people working in Britain’s gig economy, making it almost as big as NHS England.

 

 

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Scotland needs to develop new skills as era of automation threatens half of jobs

Scotland needs to develop new skills as era of automation threatens half of jobs 0

by • News, Technology, Workplace

Urgent reform is needed to deal with the rise of automation, which threatens half of Scottish jobs, a leading think-tank has warned. The stark warning comes in a new report from IPPR Scotland, supported by the JPMorgan Chase Foundation. Scotland’s Skills 2030 outlines the need to reskill Scotland’s workforce for the world of work in 2030. The study claims that 46 percent of jobs in Scotland – or 1.2 million – are at high risk of automation up to 2030 and beyond. It suggests that Scotland’s skills system needs to “retrofit” the workforce with the skills to be ready for technological change – 2.5 million adults in Scotland today (or 78 percent) will still be of working in 2030, report adds.

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Property developers welcome extension of office to residential conversion rights

Property developers welcome extension of office to residential conversion rights 0

by • News, Property

Three quarters (74 percent) of property developers expect to see an increase in the number of conversions of under-used office buildings into new homes over the next two years as a result of the government’s decision to extend property development rights (PDR) legislation. Of these, nearly a third (30 percent) of developers expects to see a significant growth in PDR-related conversion schemes. This is according to a small study commissioned by Amicus Property Finance. More than two thirds (69 percent) of property developers welcome the PDR extension, which was designed to enable thousands of new homes to be built by making use of neglected industrial and office property while preserving the green belt. In the UK between July 2015 and June 20163, a total of 1,066 office to residential permitted development applications were permitted with prior approval not required and a further 1,480 applications granted with prior approval.

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IFMA and RICS unveil combined qualifications platform

IFMA and RICS unveil combined qualifications platform 0

by • Facilities management, News

The collaboration between IFMA and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) is, for the first time, offering a combined suite of credentials and professional qualifications for facilities management in a single, online academy platform at www.fm.training. IFMA and RICS first launched the platform in December 2016 as an initial step toward ‘leveraging the combined authority of two of the world’s premier built environment professional organisations for the support of FM education and career advancement’. IFMA centralised its professional credential training — the foundational Facility Management Professional, the targeted Sustainability Facility Professional and the Facility Management Learning System, which supports learning for the Certified Facility Manager certification — on the academy in early April. Now, RICS has added the final critical piece of the IFMA-RICS suite of credentials and professional qualifications to the platform: the internationally recognised AssocRICS and MRICS professional designations.

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Winners of BCO Awards for Midlands and Central England announced

Winners of BCO Awards for Midlands and Central England announced 0

by • News, Property, Workplace design

The £10 million new headquarters of Wolverhampton beer and pubs group Marston’s has been named as the Best Corporate Workplace at the British Council for Offices’ annual Midlands and Central England Property Awards. The refurbishment was led by interior design firm Newman Gauge. Centre City, in Birmingham, gained the award for best commercial workplace following a redevelopment by owner Bruntwood. The judging panel said the 1975 building had been brought back to life by the refurbishment. Energy Systems Catapult, a workspace lab based at Cannon House won the award for best fit out of a workplace, with judges praising the company ethos to stimulate innovation in energy technologies.

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Remote access to the workplace may be doing staff more harm than good

Remote access to the workplace may be doing staff more harm than good 0

by • Facilities management, Flexible working, News, Technology, Wellbeing, Workplace

Remote access to the workplace may be doing more harm than good

Employees are divided on whether remote access to the workplace is really a positive or negative development, with almost a third of UK workers (32 percent) feeling that having remote access to the workplace means they can’t switch off in their personal time. According to the latest CIPD/Halogen Employee Outlook report, two-fifths of UK workers (40 percent) admit to actively checking their work mobile or emails at least five times a day outside of working hours. Nearly a fifth (18 percent) feel as though they are under surveillance with remote access to work, and 17 percent say it makes them feel anxious or even impacts their quality of sleep. However, almost a third (30 percent) of employees say they feel empowered by having remote access to the workplace, showing a divide in opinion. Indeed, more than half of employees (53 percent) say it helps them to work flexibly and more than a third (37 percent) say it makes them more productive.

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Best workplaces in London honoured by British Council for Offices

Best workplaces in London honoured by British Council for Offices 0

by • Facilities management, News, Property, Workplace design

The British Council for Offices has announced the six winners of regional property awards for London and the South East of England. The winning entries, announced at a lunch at the Park Lane Hilton were Sky Central (main image), 8 Finsbury Circus, The Estée Lauder Companies, 20 Eastbourne Terrace, 67-71 Beak Street and Sea Containers House by BDG architecture + design. The prestigious BCO awards programme claims to recognise ‘the highest quality developments and sets the standard for excellence in the regional and national office sector.’ The winner of the Best Commercial Workplace was 8 Finsbury Circus while Sky Central took home the prize in the Best Corporate Workplace Category.

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BCO launch new research project into health and wellbeing in offices

BCO launch new research project into health and wellbeing in offices 0

by • News, Wellbeing, Workplace design

BCO launch new research project into health and wellbeing in officesA major research study into Health and Wellbeing in offices has been launched by the British Council for Offices (BCO). “Wellness Matters: Health and Wellbeing in offices and what to do about it” is a year-long project which aims to provide definitive guidance on how to enable office Health and Wellbeing across a building’s lifecycle. The major research study has been commissioned to critique existing Health and Wellbeing measurement and certification, identify the most recent and relevant medical evidence justifying a proactive approach to Health and Wellbeing in the built environment, and give guidance on the business case for investment in this space beyond simply improving productivity. Most significantly, this research aims to deliver a practical guide to creating a healthy environment across the different stages of a building’s life cycle, from design, construction and leasing to the most important aspect by time and value: occupation and asset management.

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Over a quarter of employees don’t think they’ve acquired the skills to do their job

Over a quarter of employees don’t think they’ve acquired the skills to do their job 0

by • News, Workplace

Over a quarter of employees don't think they have the skills to do their job

Four in 10 employees (39 percent) feel they are not well managed at work and are out of their depth in their roles, and 26 percent of employees don’t believe they have the right skills or experience to do their job properly in the first place, a new report claims. The research by recruitment firm, Robert Half UK also found that nearly one in five employees (18 percent) are not clear of what is expected of them at work. The research shows employees want better management and guidance from their bosses, particularly as they progress in their careers. Employees currently feel they have more support and training early on in their careers, with 71 percent of 18-34 year olds, claiming they are well managed. In comparison, just over half (56 percent) of 55+ year olds feel the same. To resolve this, managers need to set out clear expectations, offer regular training and opportunity for assessment, while employees also need to assume responsibility and ask for help.

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Facebook announces plans for technology that allows people to communicate with their minds

Facebook announces plans for technology that allows people to communicate with their minds 0

by • News, Technology

Anybody who has ever felt any degree of scepticism at the idea of Bond villains maintaining secret lairs employing hundreds of workers that manage to keep their secrets to themselves may have suspended disbelief when news leaked this week of Apple’s plans for driverless cars, something the firm has largely managed to keep to itself for at least two years despite having a 1,000 people working on the project in a dedicated location. Facebook has its own secrets, by all accounts many of them the product of something called Building 8, which is a sinister idea in itself, until you hear what they have just announced. The head of the department that occupies building is a woman called Regina Dugan who has just revealed some details of the department’s work on an interface that will allow people to communicate with computers using only their minds.

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Apple granted permit to trial driverless cars in California

Apple granted permit to trial driverless cars in California 0

by • Flexible working, News, Technology

Apple has been given permission to test a range of driverless cars in California. The state’s Department of Motor Vehicles has awarded a permit for the company to start testing its self-driving car technology on public roads, ending a period of speculation about its plans for the autonomous technology. The permit covers three vehicles, which will be 2015 Lexus RX 450h hybrid SUVs, and six individual drivers. However, the plan does not seem to suggest that Apple will become a car maker any time soon and instead will focus on the development of the technology itself rather than the hardware.

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