October 15, 2019

Flexible working could improve mental health and lives of fathers

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News

Men feel frustrated in their jobs and discriminated against at work and want a better balance between work and family life in much the same way as women, according to the results of the annual survey by workingdads and workingmums. One in four dads said they’d had time off work due to mental illness, with a third of those citing the stress of work and home. Around half of working dads said their career had stalled since they became a father. Almost 70 percent admitted they feel stuck in their current role because they fear they wouldn’t be able to find another job with the amount of flexible working they need. More →

October 7, 2019

Workplace interruptions are not all bad

by Elana Feldman • Features, Workplace design

An email pops up on your screen. It’s a client sharing a project update. A Slack message appears. It’s your boss asking a question. A text alert beeps. A colleague wants to know if you will be attending a meeting. Sound familiar? People are increasingly besieged at work by workplace interruptions through email, messaging apps, social media and in-person encounters. More →

October 1, 2019

UK organisations falling behind on AI

by Neil Franklin • Automation, News, Technology

UK organisations risk falling behind global competitors unless they act now to accelerate their use of AI technology, according to a new report unveiled today by Microsoft UK. The report claims that organisations currently using AI are now outperforming those that are not by 11.5 percent – a boost that, in the face of unprecedented economic and political uncertainty, UK businesses can ill-afford to pass up, the authors suggest. More →

September 30, 2019

The role of AI in creating a more human workplace

by Josh Squires • Automation, Facilities management, Features, Technology

As artificial intelligence (AI) continues to infiltrate modern society, the benefits and pitfalls the technology receive almost peerless attention. The emergence of AI is of particular importance to how organisations might recruit, with clear signs that they are becoming more interested in the benefits it brings to their businesses.

August 27, 2019

Spotting the best features of recruitment websites

by Freddie Steele • Insight promotion, News

The job market can be competitive, even when the UK is experiencing all-time unemployment lows. In fact, the UK’s unemployment rate hasn’t been this good since the mid 1970s. This doesn’t mean that those in search of a job should ease off. There are now more ways than ever before to look for and apply for jobs. The days of searching for jobs on community notice boards are long gone and now we have an agglomeration of job search websites at our disposal. More →

August 6, 2019

Gig economy worker rights demand a global approach

by Hina Belitz • Comment, Legal news, Working culture

British people increasingly work in temporary positions and on short term engagements: part of a fundamental global shift in the way we work. The domestic gig economy has seen the number of workers more than double in number since 2016, according to a recent report from the TUC and the University of Hertfordshire (conducted with Ipsos MORI). Based on interviews with 2,235 individuals, the report’s key finding is that gig economy platforms, such as Uber, Deliveroo and Upwork, are now staffed by 4.7 million workers – or one in 10 working-age adults, up from one in 20 three years ago. It also found that 15 per cent of survey respondents had undertaken gig economy work at some point – equivalent to almost 7.5 million people if extrapolated across the entire economy. More →

August 6, 2019

Voices from the age of uncertain work

by David L Blustein • Features, Working culture, Working lives

On the surface, the wellbeing of the American worker seems rosy. Unemployment in the U.S. hovers near a 50-year low, and employers describe growing shortages of workers in a wide array of fields. But looking beyond the numbers tells a different story. My new book, “The Importance of Work in an Age of Uncertainty,” reveals that some Americans are experiencing an erosion in the world of increasingly uncertain work that is hurting their wellbeing, relationships and hopes for the future. More →

July 30, 2019

Employers missing opportunity to unlock emotional intelligence

by Jayne Smith • News, Workplace

Emotional intelligence or emotional quotient (EQ) is an increasingly popular buzz phrase in business and understanding its impact in the workplace is becoming crucial to employers in getting the most out of their staff. A new survey from Lee Hecht Harrison Penna claims the importance placed by people managers both on finding EQ in staff, and demonstrating it themselves. The study claims the changing mind-set of managers, who see EQ as key to the career development and professional success of their employees. More →

June 27, 2019

We are running out of time to find the meaning of work

by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Flexible working, Technology, Wellbeing, Workplace design

Last week’s report from the IFS detailing the ongoing rise in the numbers of working poor in the UK highlights just how dysfunctional work can be in the modern era. While depictions of work in the media tend to consist of diverse Millennials clustering around a single laptop in the sun-dappled offices of tech firms, or chilling on the Chesterfield in a coworking space, the reality for many people is somewhat different. More →

June 14, 2019

The greenest building is no building, our false craving for silence and some other stuff

by Mark Eltringham • Features, Wellbeing, Workplace design

As climate scientists issue increasingly stark warnings about the global environmental catastrophe that is increasingly likely within a very short time frame, Will Jennings issues a timely reminder in the Architects Journal that the greenest type of building is no building at all. And that is doubly so when the building we are talking about is The Tulip, which would clearly be a very bad idea at any time. The author takes particular exception to the glossy environmental pledges made by high profile architects when contrasted with the ugly, vacuous grandstanding typified by The Tulip. More →

May 3, 2019

People with epilepsy twice as likely as average to be unemployed

by George Eltringham • News, Wellbeing

In the UK approximately 1 in 100 people (600,000) have a diagnosis of epilepsy, yet despite anti-discrimination legislation, people with epilepsy in the UK are more than twice as likely as those without the condition to be unemployed. That is the main conclusion of a report from IES which included a literature review, interviews with for experts in employment support, clinical practice and applied research, interviews with six employers of different sizes across a range of industries and two focus groups of individuals with varied symptoms and employment histories. More →

March 20, 2019

RNIB launches new focus for Disability Confident scheme

by Mark Eltringham • News, Workplace

The Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) has launched a new suite of resources that will help employers support blind and partially sighted people in the workplace. The resources have been created as part of the DWP’s Disability Confident scheme, the nationally-recognised Government accreditation that supports businesses to attract, recruit and retain disabled employees.