Search Results for: employer

December 22, 2017

Most US employees will work and stay in touch with colleagues during the holiday season

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News, Technology, Wellbeing

Over Christmas and New Year, 43 percent of US workers say they plan to take a holiday, and of that group, roughly half — or 21 percent of all workers — will completely disconnect from work. Meanwhile, 22 percent of workers will be taking a holiday but checking in with work via email or other means. These findings, from a poll of over 500 people from earlier this month claims that the majority of workers will be connected to their jobs over the holidays — either because they are not taking a vacation at all or because they will check in during their vacation days. US workers are more likely to say they plan to take holiday than they were when Gallup last asked the question, at the beginning of the millennium. The 43 percent of US employees who plan to take a break this holiday season is up from about a third of workers (34 percent) in 2000.

December 22, 2017

Five employment law milestones from the past year we need to remember in 2018

by Lucy Gordon • Comment, Workplace

The past twelve months have been an eventful period for employment law; from the uncertainty surrounding Brexit and the rights of EU Nationals working in the UK, to the mounting attention on employee data protection as the GDPR edges ever closer. Issues of Employment Tribunal fees, holiday pay and the gig economy have similarly captivated headlines, and these significant milestones from the past 12 months are set to have a big impact on the challenges facing the sector into 2018. More →

December 20, 2017

CIPD predicts tighter labour market and continued poor productivity next year

by Sara Bean • Legal news, News, Workplace

There is little evidence that the pay squeeze will end soon, with only falling inflation likely to lead to meaningful wage increases next year. This is according to a CIPD analysis, which predicts that 2018 will see pay, productivity and migration top the agenda as the UK looks ahead to its exit from the European Union. It adds that the UK workforce could tighten, and with increased constraints on labour supply, 2018 could be the year that the UK finally runs out of people to fill jobs, despite unemployment levels being unlikely to see much change. There are also indications there will be no improvement in productivity, with continued stagnation in UK productivity, which will remain well below pre-crash levels. In the CIPD’s annual labour market predictions, Ian Brinkley, Acting Chief Economist, anticipates a flattening of employment growth and weak pay growth as the UK continues to struggle with its productivity problem.

December 20, 2017

Companies must reveal gender pay gaps or face unlimited fines

by Neil Franklin • News, Workplace

Businesses failing to comply with gender pay gap reporting regulations could face unlimited fines and convictions, the Equality and Human Rights Commission has warned as it published its enforcement strategy. As the regulatory body responsible for ensuring that all employers with over 250 employees report their gender pay gap statistics, the Commission has set out its enforcement policy for consultation. Although it will take steps to encourage compliance and engage informally with employers who are in breach of the regulations as a first port of call, it will ultimately enforce against all employers who do not publish their gender pay gap information. The Commission’s policy – which is open for consultation from today until 2 February 2018 – explains how the Commission will use a range of its powers.

December 19, 2017

We need to have an honest conversation about presenteeism

by Steve Brewer • Comment, Flexible working, Workplace design

We have talked before about the risks of over thinking problems. It is not just something that consultants, designers and the workplace intelligentsia are guilty of – everyone does it. It is why we do not switch off when we are ill and still insist on going to work. We over think the consequences of not being in our workplace. Likewise, many traditional line managers simply cannot get their head around their teams working from home. After all, modern management mantras all talk about creating a great atmosphere in which teams all work together – in the same space at the same time? We all tend to over complicate most things and that is one of the main reasons in the UK we struggle with the concept of working from home. A consequence of this is the rise in presenteeism, which is mainly linked to illness, people ignoring how bad they feel and because of a perceived pressure, still turning up for work.

December 18, 2017

Productivity plummets as majority of staff now concentrate on Christmas

by Sara Bean • Flexible working, News, Workplace

Productivity plummets from today as over half of staff prepare for Christmas Over half of the workforce (57 percent) of employees admit to officially downing tools today (Monday 18 December) as the festive period gets well and truly underway, claims new research by Peakon. The HR analytics firm’s survey of more than 2,000 people reveals that, as Christmas creeps ever closer, employees admit to a whole raft of distractions from their everyday work duties. Two in five people (42 percent) confess to clocking off to Christmas shop online, a third (35 percent) say they’re planning Christmas day and almost one in three (30 percent) are planning their Christmas break instead. One in six (16 percent) confess to indulging in the odd Christmas tipple on the job – with men twice as likely to take advantage of a festive drink than women (22 percent and 11 percent respectively). 17 percent of those surveyed leave work earlier than usual, and one in 10 (12 percent) take longer lunches. A small percentage (4 percent) confess to calling in sick. But offering staff more flexible hours for shopping and Christmas prep would help maintain performance.

December 14, 2017

One in three UK workers unhappy at work and a quarter plan career change

by Sara Bean • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing, Workplace

The majority (72 percent) of employees in the UK go to work just to afford to live rather than for job satisfaction and one in four are considering a career change in 2018, claims a new survey. According to research conducted by Paymentsense, over half of those questioned say money is their biggest motivation, 67 percent say their degree went to waste and they work in an unrelated role, and 25 percent are considering a whole career change in 2018. According to the 2,000 UK participants in the survey, a career peak occurs at 42 years old, which is when you start to lose passion for your work. At this age, opportunities to progress seem to be rare which is why when asking those in their 40’s ‘why do you go to work every day’? 76 percent say to be able to afford to live. 51 percent say they need to just pay the mortgage and 57 percent have responsibilities to support the family.

December 14, 2017

Soft skills are vital for organisational success, say business leaders

by Mark Eltringham • News, Workplace

A majority of business leaders see a positive impact on revenues following soft skills training investment as Apprenticeship Levy gathers pace, new research claims. Almost two-thirds (60 percent) of senior decision-makers said training employees in communication, leadership and sales skills leads to business growth. The findings suggest the new government-funded apprenticeship schemes introduced in April will improve companies’ bottom-lines, with 63 percent of respondents already seeing an increase in revenue from an investment in staff training. ‘Hard’ skills such as technical abilities were more of a focus under old apprenticeship schemes, but the data reveals business leaders want to invest in less quantifiable skills such as communication, leadership and customer service since the introduction of the Apprenticeship Levy.

December 13, 2017

The ups and downs of wearables for workplace health and wellbeing

by Lee Sadd • AI, Comment, Technology

Businesses in the 21st century have tried just about everything to improve productivity. For a long time, Google and its ilk were seen as model workplaces, with their open offices and abundance of ball pits and bean bags. Then the consensus shifted, and the cubicle or workstation was seen as the paradigm for employee concentration. Now the focus has shifted to technology, and the field of ‘wearables’. Devices like the Fitbit, Google Glass and Apple Watch have come and gone with significant consumer buzz, but relatively low uptake. What failed to impress consumers, however, may yet have a place in business. For better or ill, it seems the companies we work for are increasingly obsessed with collecting our data.

December 11, 2017

Hong Kong replaces London as most expensive place in world in which to rent a workstation

by Mark Eltringham • News, Property, Workplace design

Hong Kong has replaced London’s West End as the most expensive office market in which to accommodate staff, according to new research from Cushman & Wakefield. The annual Office Space Across The World report surveys occupancy costs across 215 office markets in 58 countries worldwide. Using proprietary data, it ranks occupancy costs per workstation and workplace densities for newly developed or refurbished office space globally. Limited availability and strong demand from mainland Chinese corporations have pushed Hong Kong costs up 5.5 percent to $27,431. Escalating rents are driving a growing number of multinational corporations to decentralise to lower cost areas.

December 8, 2017

Reduced hours do not necessarily lead to reduced workloads, study finds

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News, Workplace

Professionals who want to work part-time have to do more than renegotiate their working hours; they also have to redesign their jobs to reduce outputs. Research published in the journal Human Relations, by Dr Charlotte Gascoigne from the Timewise Foundation and Professor Clare Kelliher from the Cranfield School of Management, shows that employers often do not reduce workload when professionals transition to part-time. This is not an insignificant problem for employers: one in five professionals and managers in the UK works part-time already, with more than two in five working part-time in the Netherlands. According to previous studies, a quarter of full-timers in the UK would prefer to work part-time, and are prepared to earn less, but don’t believe it’s possible.