November 13, 2019
UK employees are having to work harder to pay the bills, with the vast majority (91 percent) working beyond their contracted hours on a weekly basis and almost half (43 percent) not leaving the office or taking a break at lunchtime according to an analysis of Morgan McKinley’s Working Hours and Flexibility reports. And the growing practice of flexible working appears to be having no impact on the overworking culture.
November 7, 2019
Some things in life come around quickly, the changing of the clocks, birthdays, Christmas music in supermarkets – and the British Council for Offices (BCO) Awards deadline. Just four weeks remain for wannabe winners to submit their applications, with the call for entry closing at 5pm on Friday 29th November 2019. The BCO claims that its National Awards sets the standard for excellence across the office sector in the UK, attracting over 1,300 property professionals on the evening, as they hope to take home the National Award for their category. Entrants will be judged by a regional panel of judges in the Spring, with each local winner going on to compete for the National title in October. More →
October 29, 2019
With recent research showing that over half of young dads (58 percent) are more actively involved in day to day parenting than ever before, it is increasingly important that employers put health and wellbeing and other workplace values at the heart of their offer to employees. In particular, they should be able to offer flexible working options in order to retain their best staff. Our research looking at the Millennial Dad at Work also highlighted starkly that some business sectors are more accommodating than others when it comes to flexible working. Perhaps surprisingly, the construction industry came out of the research very well with 48 percent requesting a change in working hours since becoming a father of which 78 percent of those were successful. The retail sector and the pharmaceutical industry also did well. More →
October 21, 2019
Banning email outside of normal office hours could do more harm than good to employee wellbeing, a new study suggests. The newly published research, led by the University of Sussex, states that while blanket bans could help some workers to achieve certain goals, they could impede other employees’ progress towards their own targets. More →
October 16, 2019
More women than ever before occupy senior executive positions, but true gender parity hasn’t yet been reached and women continue to face unique challenges in their careers according to the latest Women in the Workplace Report from LeanIn.Org and McKinsey & Company. This year’s study—which is based on data and insights from 329 companies employing over 13 million people and more than 68,500 employees—identifies a key point on the corporate ladder where women lose the most ground: the first step up to manager. If companies fixed this broken rung, it could add one million more women to management in corporate America over the next 5 years. More →
October 10, 2019
On October 5th 2018, Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda and Morrisons said sorry about something on social media 151 times between them. There were no product recalls. It was just a normal day on corporate social media. I picked that date because it just happened to be the same day that Topshop apologised for removing a feminist book display and it made for a handy comparison. The book display apology got the headlines, but in the shadows of Topshop’s high-profile faux pas, four of Britain’s largest retailers were busy asking forgiveness too. More →
October 8, 2019
As reported recently, Labour’s John McDonnell says that his party would introduce a 32-hour working week. Very French. What’s more, he states that this should not impact on people’s wages because ‘People should work to live, not live to work’. Don’t disagree there. However, for a vast number of workers this isn’t viable; especially in the knowledge economy. Admittedly, there will be people in factories, call centres, etc who will be relieved at the prospect of fewer working hours and more hours with loved ones. More →
September 26, 2019
Once upon a time the concept of ‘remote working’ beyond outsourced contractors was almost unheard of. Employers viewed remote work as an opportunity for workers to be less productive, out of contact and generally more inefficient. As an employer myself, I would have agreed with these misconceptions early on in my career. However, after many years of hiring staff that either work part- or even full-time remotely, I can confidently say the myths are unfounded; even I am now more prone to remote working. More →
September 19, 2019
The number of highly paid workers offered some form of flexible working has trebled in the past four years, according to the latest Flexible Jobs Index from flexible work consultancy Timewise. It found that the proportion of jobs with salaries of more than £80,000 advertised with flexible working options is up to 16 percent, compared to 9 percent last year and 5 percent in 2016. More →
September 18, 2019
Unless the Government steps up efforts to manage the transition to automation, many people and entire regions of the UK face being left behind and British businesses could find themselves becoming less competitive, says the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) Committee in a report published today.
More →
September 13, 2019
Several months ago when we invited Jonty Bloom, one of the media’s most respected journalists to come and speak to our guest audience, we knew it would be informed, relevant and fascinating. What we didn’t know was that the day before (4th September 2019) Boris Johnson would deliver a stunningly inelegant performance at his inaugural Prime Minister’s Question time, the day after losing his first vote in parliament to prevent a further delay in delivering Brexit. More →
November 25, 2019
Working carers occupy a blind spot and are suffering because of it
by Vivek Patni • Comment, Wellbeing, Workplace