Search Results for: air quality

Automation will boost productivity, but risks leaving people behind

Automation will boost productivity, but risks leaving people behind

Automation of an eyeUnless 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.
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US firms dominate most desirable workplaces for tech workers

US firms dominate most desirable workplaces for tech workers

The BBC, Monzo and Skyscanner are the companies UK top tech talent wants to work for the most according to new research from Hired which has today released its annual Brand Health Report. However, despite the UK’s flourishing tech landscape, British business are not featured on the global list of the top 15 private or public companies indicating that UK brands are losing popularity. This is especially worrying at a time when 60 percent of London firms apparently anticipate a ‘Brexit Brain Drain’. More →

Working mums call for more flexible work options

Working mums call for more flexible work options

Women are a key part of a growing contingent workforce of freelancers, consultants and part-timers. Despite numerous government policies to attract more mothers back into the workplace, retention is still a significant struggle. Several data collected indicates working mums who return part-time, combining professional careers with raising a family, are increasingly frustrated.  The research shows that the modern workplace often fails to cater for the needs of mothers and carers as they face the pressures of combining busy working lives with lifestyle and family obligations.

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Governments should respond to needs of older workers

Governments should respond to needs of older workers

Illustration of older workers in an officeWhile firms are already being asked to do more to support their older workers by organisations like The Centre for Ageing Better, a new OECD report is arguing that it is an issue that Governments are not addressing as well as they might. It claims that the rapidly ageing population of countries around the world means that governments should promote more and better job opportunities for older workers to protect living standards and the sustainability of public finances.

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Coworking continues to reshape property markets worldwide

Coworking continues to reshape property markets worldwide

Epicenter Coworking Space in StockholmAgainst a global backdrop of diminishing business confidence and a weaker outlook for economic growth, a robust labour market in the world’s largest economies continues to underpin demand for office space with high employment levels prevalent across a number of major markets. Demand continues to be driven by the knowledge economy, with the coworking boom continuing to broaden its reach across major markets, forcing traditional landlords to adapt their offering in order to best accommodate existing and potential occupiers. More →

The office is increasingly able to recognise you, but will you recognise it?

The office is increasingly able to recognise you, but will you recognise it?

The office is changing in new waysOur lives at work are about to change—again. Just as the addition of PC’s and Wi-Fi re-drew the office blueprint, emerging technologies like robots, virtual agents, artificial intelligence (AI), and the Internet of Things (IoT) promise to radically revise the form and the function of work and the workplace. In the near future, your office will know who you are (if it doesn’t yet) and will be ready to greet you with your preferred lighting and the array of digital tools you need to do your job.

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Helsinki tops global rankings for work-life balance

Helsinki tops global rankings for work-life balance

Work-life balanceHelsinki is the world’s best city for work-life balance according to a new study from technology business Kisi which compares data on a range of factors such as “livability”, work intensity, institutional support, equality and legislation to rank cities. Helsinki, Munich, and Oslo are the three best ranked cities while the cities deemed as having the worst work-life balance were Tokyo, Singapore, and Washington DC. Using data relating to work intensity, social wellbeing, and livability to analyse the interplay between work and life, the index claims to assess how successful residents are at achieving a healthy work-life balance in 40 cities around the world. More →

Voices from the age of uncertain work

Voices from the age of uncertain work

A woman crosses on a tightrope, illustrating the problem of uncertain workOn 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 →

Political chat dominates watercooler moments

Political chat dominates watercooler moments

Political chat gets heatedUK workers are becoming increasingly saturated with political chat with just under half (46 percent) claiming they’ve noticed a significant increase in discussions had by colleagues since the EU Referendum. Despite once being considered the ultimate professional faux pas, new research from Jobsite.co.uk claims that political chat has now entered our workplaces in a big way with 3 in 5 comfortable discussing political matters. More →

GDP should be replaced by new indicators of prosperity and wellbeing

GDP should be replaced by new indicators of prosperity and wellbeing

Two people laughing together to illustrate the principle of wellbeingAs the consequences of climate change, social tensions and high levels of inequality are increasingly evident, the Bennett Institute for Public Policy at the University of Cambridge, led by Professor Diane Coyle, has published its initial report on how to improve economic measurement by replacing GDP as the standard measure for national prosperity with others that include wellbeing and social and environmental capital. More →

SMEs remain in dark about rights of disabled employees

SMEs remain in dark about rights of disabled employees

Firms unaware of rights of disabled employeesDespite ambitious government policies to get a million disabled people into work over the next ten years, the latest ONS data shows a minuscule 5 percent increase since the 2017 goal, which would only see a total of merely 5,800 disabled people in work by 2027 if the pattern continues. In light of the disability employment issue, a new survey of UK SME owners conducted by Bolt Burdon Kemp claims that 95 percent of respondents don’t know the full legal rights of disabled employees. More →

The Age of Blorp, a dead tulip, no muggles allowed and some other stuff

First the good news. Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has rejected the proposals for Foster+Partners’ godawful 300 metre tall ‘Tulip’ viewing tower in London. The reasons given for the refusal from the Mayor’s office include the fact that the thing didn’t represent the sort of “world class architecture that would be required to justify its prominence”. A nicely dressed up way of saying it’s a terrible idea, a terrible piece of architecture and has absolutely no place in London. More →