Search Results for: jobs

June 13, 2013

Gender equality and senior roles where are we now?

Gender equality at senior management and Board level has been and is likely to remain an area of contention. According to recent research by analysts BoardEx into gender inequality in Britain’s top 100 private companies, 73 per cent of companies still have all male teams of executive directors, 51 per cent have only male non-executive directors and there are still 56 per cent of all male Boards. At the end of May a new National Equality Standard was launched by the CBI and the Equality and Human Rights Commission in response to the continued concerns about the issue, which some EU members have argued requires the imposition of mandatory board quotas.

June 11, 2013

Construction sector is digging its way out of recession

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, News, Property

The UK’s Employment Outlook is looking firmly positive, according to ManpowerGroup, and it’s being driven by an upturn in construction and a buoyant London economy. “As we head into the summer months, the UK jobs market is not too hot, but not too cold either. It’s all about the Three ‘C’s: Construction, the Capital, and Consistency,” said ManpowerGroup UK Managing Director, Mark Cahill. The first ‘C’ is for Construction, the most improved sector this quarter, up by five points, which is positive news as construction has been a huge drag on the whole UK economy, and is one of the main reasons we’ve had a double dip recession. Now ManpowerGroup reports it is starting to see rising demand for skills across the board, particularly in skilled trades and engineers. More →

June 11, 2013

Two thirds of UK managers complain of unethical demands by employers

by Sara Bean • Knowledge, Legal news, News, Workplace

Employee’s beliefs can differ from that of their employers, and that can cause them to face an ethical dilemma. Take yesterday’s news reports of an ex-CIA operative who alleges that the data-gathering centre GCHQ circumvented the law to gain information on UK citizens, or the recent (rejected) claims by three British Christians to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg who argued their religious rights where being violated by their employers. Following the banking scandals, public expectations on business ethics have risen over the past few years, but are CSR policies being put into practise? It seems doubtful, as new research by the Institute of Leadership & Management (ILM) and Business in the Community (BITC) reveals that nearly two thirds (63 per cent) of managers have been expected to behave unethically at some point in their career.

June 5, 2013

The future of retail – High Street Bladerunners and Apple in Wonderland

by Simon Heath • Comment, Facilities management, Technology, Workplace design

AT&T’s flagship Chicago store

I was going to write this week on the manifesto from MANTOWNHUMAN – subtitled “TOWARDS A NEW HUMANISM IN ARCHITECTURE” but frankly the dystopian visions it conjured up drove such a bulldozer through any human sensibility as to prove thoroughly depressing. You can find it here if you’re that way inclined. I’d be interested in your views. Instead I’m following up on a faintly hagiographic article in Adweek which recently hailed a new frontier in physical retail spaces, building on the success of Apple’s uber-cool high street playgrounds for bored teenagers and husbands. The store in question and an example of what many are hailing as the future of retail is AT&T’s new flagship on the self-styled Magnificent Mile in Chicago.

May 31, 2013

UK employment recovery could take up to four years finds research

by Sara Bean • Knowledge, News, Workplace

It will now be more than four years before the UK restores the employment rate of 2008 – and jobs recovery could take far longer. According to a new analysis from independent think tank the Resolution Foundation, it is now all but certain that the current jobs recovery will take longer than that following either the 1980s or 1990s recessions. The new findings are based on calculations of the UK ‘jobs gap’, the number of jobs the UK needs to create in order to restore the 2008 employment rate. The tough figures are explained partly by the UK’s ageing workforce, as a third of the current jobs gap is down to the growing share of the workforce aged over 64, which is growing twice as fast as the population aged 16-64. More →

May 29, 2013

Mayor confirms £1billion China gateway business district in London

by Mark Eltringham • News, Property

London mayor Boris Johnson has confirmed the details of a £1bn investment in a new business district that will transform the Royal Docks into a 35 acre gateway project aimed primarily at firms from China and Asia looking to establish a business foothold in the UK and Europe. The site is intended to deliver more than 2.5m sq ft of office as well as retail and leisure facilities under the plans. Chinese owned developer ABP will work with Stanhope and architects Farrells with the first firms taking up occupancy in 2017. The Greater London Authority said the proposed development would create 20,000 full-time jobs, and inject £6bn into the UK economy, with £23m in business rates generated annually. No tenants are confirmed at this stage although the developers claim interest from Chinese banks is said to be high.

May 22, 2013

Fearful UK employees benefit from engagement policies finds survey

by Sara Bean • Knowledge, News, Public Sector, Workplace

A new study provides some proof that the employee engagement lobby has some validity. According to a new national survey, job stress has gone up and job-related well-being has gone down since the start of the recession, with Britain’s employees feeling more insecure and pressured at work than at any time in the past 20 years. The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES) report the biggest concern was about pay reductions, followed by loss of say over their job. However, the survey found that where employers pursued employee engagement practices, giving employees more involvement in decision making at work, staff were less anxious about their jobs. More →

May 15, 2013

Long term investment in infrastructure needed to boost UK economy

by Mark Eltringham • Knowledge, News, Property

The UK government should reverse the long term slump in infrastructure investment to boost the economy, according to a new report from the Centre for Economic and Business Research and the Civil Engineering Contractors Association. The report, Securing Our Economy: The Case For Infrastructure, calls for the government to address the decade long £13bn infrastructure construction shortfall and lays out a series of recommendations to reverse the situation. The report claims the UK endures a £78bn GDP ‘black hole’ each year due to the lack of investment and that by investing at the level of other developed economies, the economy could enjoy an additional £100 billion each year by 2026.

May 10, 2013

Recruitment rates rise, but employers should be careful who they hire

by Sara Bean • Knowledge, News, Workplace

There is mixed news on the recruitment front, with the latest Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) and KPMG report on jobs hinting a positive turn, with permanent placements accelerating, the rate of demand for permanent staff remaining solid and average starting salaries continuing to rise. However, according to a new global report, employers are urged to be cautious about who they hire, because more than half of employers in each of the ten largest world economies say that a bad hire has negatively impacted their business, pointing to a significant loss in revenue or productivity or challenges with employee morale and client relations.

May 8, 2013

Planning consent given for Tower Bridge Business Complex

by Mark Eltringham • News, Property

Workspace Group has announced that it has received planning consent for the mixed–use redevelopment of its property at the Tower Bridge Business Complex in South East London. The final development will offer 270,000 sq ft of existing business space and 60,000 sq ft of new business accommodation as well as 800 new residential units and a public park. Jamie Hopkins, chief executive officer said: “There is strong demand for tailored business space in the area and it is our firm intention to increase the number of jobs on site in order to benefit the local community. The development also provides a significant boost to both the capital value and rental income of the site.”

April 30, 2013

Report urges EU and members states to use design for public good

by Sara Bean • Knowledge, News, Public Sector, Workplace design

Design is no longer just an add-on, but has evolved into a fully joined-up innovation methodology and with countries around the world adopting this thinking the European Union cannot afford to be left behind. This is the message of Design Council and other members of SEE (Sharing Experience Europe) in a report published today, Design for Public Good, which encourages the European Union and its member states to adopt design-led innovation to create the next generation of public services and policy that can meet the pressing demands of the future.

April 24, 2013

Majority of employers support flexible working but perception problems persist

by Sara Bean • Knowledge, Legal news, News, Workplace

As we reported last week, the Millennial generation of workers born in the 80s and 90s would describe work as a “thing rather than a place”, and want more flexibility in where and how they work. While the Yahoo home working ban debate uncovered a lot of exasperation and suspicion towards this trend, it’s interesting to see two separate studies, from the UK and the U.S. that show a far less combative attitude. But, as the U.S study discovered, while a majority of employees enjoyed real productivity benefits from home working, nearly half would still go into the office because it is what is expected of them and a small percentage still go because it gets them out of the house. More →