July 15, 2020
UK commercial investment activity rose 42 percent in June compared to May, up from £755m to £1.3bn, taking total volumes for H1 2020 to £15.6bn, according to the latest market update from Savills. With the all-sector prime commercial property yield remaining stable at 5.21 percent in June, Savills says that together this may signal some stability is now returning to the UK investment market. More →
July 13, 2020
There are so many unknowns about the ways in which the Covid-19 pandemic will shape our world in the coming months and years but what it has highlighted are the strengths and weaknesses in the global and UK economy and their implications for the commercial property sector. In its latest white paper, property consultancy and chartered surveyors Bruceshaw examines the macro and micro economic challenges that will shape the property sector for many years to come. More →
July 13, 2020
New research by the Institute for Employment Studies (IES) think tank, funded by Standard Life Foundation, suggests that low paid workers are bearing the brunt of the Covid-19 crisis. The analysis provides what it says is the first detailed assessment of official Labour Force Survey data for the post-crisis period. More →
June 24, 2020
New research suggests that almost half (44 percent) of working carers in England and Wales, equivalent to around 1.6 million people, are struggling to cope with the pressures of balancing their work and caring responsibilities – and that a quarter (24 percent) have considered giving up their job entirely. These are the findings in a newly published report, titled “Supporting working carers: How employers and employees can benefit”, from the CIPD and The University of Sheffield. More →
June 19, 2020
New figures published today claim that more than 9 in 10 working parents and carers surveyed by work-life balance charity Working Families want their workplace to retain flexible working post-COVID-19. More →
June 9, 2020
After months of lockdown nobody can be certain how the world will look when we eventually re-emerge from the Covid 19 crisis. Yet something seems certain – things will never be the same again. Just as the Second World War spawned the NHS, it’s clear that society is going to be re-shaped quite possibly around a bigger, more proactive government, forced to step in to help any number of industries. Unlike the banking crisis of 2008, the powers that be won’t simply be able to re-assembled the shattered economic jigsaw as it once was. More →
June 2, 2020
The future of work is likely to be even more precarious and unequal, according to a new research review from academics at Durham University Business School, Kings College Business School and University Paris-Dauphine. Dr. Jeremy Aroles, Assistant Professor in Organisation Studies at Durham University Business School, alongside colleagues, Dr. Nathalie Mitev (King’s College) and Professor François?Xavier de Vaujany (University Paris-Dauphine), reviewed a wide range of research related to working life new work practices and summarised this into a number of predictions for the future of work. This research review paper was published in the journal ‘New Technology, Work and Employment’, which is open access throughout June. More →
May 29, 2020
A new report from Aon claims that the so-called gig economy will continue to flourish but many employers are still adjusting to its realities. Using research from HR and gig workers across Europe, the report, Gig Economy: Financial Security or Greater Control, claims that 26 percent of European HR directors believe their workforces will have 51-75 percent of gig workers in five years’ time, while 18 percent of UK HRDs believe 75 percent or more of their workforce will be made up of contractors in 5 years’ time. Nearly all HRDs believe providing health and benefits packages would improve gig worker recruitment (94 percent), engagement (93 percent), productivity (88 percent) and retention (95 percent). More →
May 22, 2020
COVID-19 will change the world in innumerable ways. It is already affecting how we think about disease transmission, consumption, labour, travel, and even space and distance. And it will change how we think about work. Almost immediately, however, designers, architects and everyone else with a stake in the future of workplace have spotted an opportunity to get creative and solve a problem that we don’t yet understand. More →
May 12, 2020
As workplaces around the country prepare to adapt to the various social distancing and personal safety measures they will have to put in place, many will be wondering what the typical working day will start to look like. Some of the activities we take completely for granted like commuting, meal breaks and even talking to colleagues, will have to be carefully considered from now on as routines change to avoid any unnecessary human contact. More →
May 6, 2020
Climate action is often about sacrifice: eat less meat, don’t fly, and buy less stuff. These things are essential. But climate action can also be about gain. Many causes of climate change make our lives worse. So transforming our societies to stop climate change offers us the chance to make our lives better. More →
June 26, 2020
Work from home advocates beckon us to a living hell
by James Woudhuysen • Comment, Flexible working, Wellbeing