Search Results for: employee

February 13, 2014

Why do we bother going to work? Good question.

by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Facilities management, Flexible working, Workplace

While the UK Government continues to explore new ways of getting people back to work more quickly following (or even during) illness, there are a number of counterpart questions that they continue to fastidiously ignore, one of which is ‘why bother?’. We might all ask ourselves that from time to time, whether petulantly or as a pressure-relieving alternative to ramming a co-worker’s head through a window or a laptop in a dumpster. But there are also reasons to raise the question coldly, rationally and with full awareness of all the facts, not least when it comes to assessing the increasing cost of going to work in the first place. Put simply, for many people it makes little or no financial sense to go to work.

February 4, 2014

Arup announces first Manchester office relocation in over 40 years

by Sara Bean • Company news, Property

Arup has announced it is to take 20,000 sq ft of Grade A office space at the Carlyle Group’s Three Piccadilly Place in Manchester. The TSK Group has been appointed to design and deliver the engineering and property consultancy’s first new Manchester office relocation in over 40 years. Three Piccadilly Place comprises 190,000 sq ft of flexible workspace over 11 floors, with 9,300 sq ft of retail space on the ground floor. Keith Rudd, Arup Director and leader of Arup’s Manchester office explained: “The relocation has been a major decision, driven by the growth and breadth of services we now offer across a range of sectors. As an employee owned firm, it’s important we have the right environment to attract and retain the best people, to enable us to continue to deliver great work for our clients.” More →

January 31, 2014

Economic recovery may be constrained by lack of skills and office space

by Mark Eltringham • Property, Technology, Workplace

There are signs that the nascent recovery in the UK economy is already starting to put pressure on the availability of skilled employees and appropriate commercial property for the most rapidly growing sectors. While the Government has announced that the UK’s economy has been growing at its fastest rate since 2007, a new survey published by the UK Commission for Employment and Skills (UKCES ) has claimed that nearly a quarter of vacancies in the UK have gone unfilled because of a shortage of much-needed skills. At the same time, claims a new report from DTZ, demand for commercial property is strengthening with take-up growing across the country while the availability of Grade A office space is declining rapidly.

January 29, 2014

Modern romance: advice to employers on managing workplace relationships

by Pam Loch • Workplace

Despite all the cautionary tales regarding the dangers of office romance, countless employees start up relationships with co-workers every year. Whether sparks fly over the work photocopier or more likely, on a Friday night in the pub after work, the workplace still beats the internet for finding romance. The sheer number of hours we spend with colleagues together with the stresses and strains of work, can lead to close friendships that may go on to become a relationship further down the line. Research shows that couples who met at work are most likely to marry. However, the fact is that many relationships can and do fail and this is no less so for workplace relationships. Whilst clearly there are issues for the people involved to manage, it can also create headaches for employers. More →

January 28, 2014

New data suggests parents are frustrated at lack of flexible working

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, Legal news

Following last week’s revelation that the planned extension of Flexible Working Rights to all UK employees would be delayed beyond the proposed implementation date in April, new statistics released by the Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS) and a new report from the Working Families charity have revealed some of the disparities that exist in flexible working arrangements across the country. The Working Families survey of a little over 1,000 adults with dependent children, found that almost a third claim there are no flexible arrangements on offer where they work, leading many to feel resentful against their employers, with young fathers twice as likely to strongly resent the lack of flexible working affects their lives.

January 27, 2014

Latest generation Y survey reflects characteristically idealistic thinking of youth

by Sara Bean • Comment, News, Workplace

Maybe it’s the cynicism of middle age, but the most recent exploration of arguably, the most over-analysed cohort of workers in history – Generation Y – seems to reflect the archetypal idealistic thinking of youth. For example, while most Millennials (74%) believe business is having a positive impact on society by generating jobs (48%) and increasing prosperity (71%), they think it can do much more to address society’s challenges in the areas of most concern: resource scarcity (68%), climate change (65%) and income equality (64%). And quelle surprise, 50 per cent of Millennials surveyed wanted to work for a business with ethical practices. You have to wonder wouldn’t an examination of the hopes and aspirations of the last couple of generations of younger workers reveal similar ideologies, albeit without the benefit of their digital sophistication? More →

January 16, 2014

Workplace is in a state of flux, with many more changes to come

by Sara Bean • Flexible working, News, Workplace

Although we remain wary of predicting the workplace of the future, it is useful to discover what managers think is likely to happen, even if some of it is pretty obvious. In a new survey, HR decision-makers forecast the workforce of 2018 will look fundamentally different from that of 2013; including more workers opting to work part-time rather than retire (92%), managing an older workforce (88%), individuals maintaining and developing skill sets in multiple simultaneous careers (79%) and more than half of all workers being temporary / on contract or freelance (60%). A whopping 98 per cent of organisations have already experienced some kind of major organisational change over the last five years – the most common being restructuring (74%), a change in leadership (64%) and downsizing (64%). More →

January 15, 2014

Legal update – Employment Law changes ahead in 2014

by Pam Loch • Facilities management, Flexible working, Legal news, Workplace

Some of the most hotly debated employment law issues from last year; including flexible working, workplace wellbeing and the contractual rights of employees look set to make more headlines this year, because 2014 is shaping up to be another year of significant change in UK employment law. While the timetable is subject to amendment, currently the Government is intending to introduce a number of revisions. The key employment law events and cases to watch out for in 2014 will include changes to TUPE, flexible working, flexible parental leave, employment tribunal procedures, redundancy consultation, Acas conciliation, calculation of holiday pay and post-employment victimisation; which we list below in the date order in which they are proposed. More →

January 12, 2014

Latest issue of the Insight newsletter available to view online

by Mark Eltringham • Architecture, Facilities management, Newsletter, Workplace, Workplace design

The latest issue of our weekly newsletter is now available to view online. If you don’t already subscribe, please do so. Just submit your email address in the Subscription section on the right of this page and we’ll keep you up to date each week with a digest of the best news and views on the design and management of workplaces, the people who work in them and the technology they use. This week, we offer a timely warning of the perils of predictions while hypocritically predicting what we’ll spend most of 2014 talking about, ponder why wellness programmes are so popular given that they don’t appear to do all they claim, ask why so many UK employees are so keen on moving jobs, question the thinking behind the idea of creating a cycle lane in the sky in London and highlight the ongoing resurgence in the takeup of commercial property in the UK.

January 10, 2014

SkyCycle. Great idea, but how realistic is it really?

by Andrew Brown • Comment, Environment, Facilities management, Workplace

A cycle lane in the sky is a brilliant concept. The very name conjures up visual images of 21st century transport networks that HG Wells might have been proud of. But wedged above the Enfield Town to Liverpool Street line or its equivalent it seems very unlikely. So let’s assume this is an exercise in marketing, making use of good research and creative design as a means to kick start the debate about how we get to work and how we can accommodate more different and more sustainable methods of commuting. And let’s not restrict this to London either. The capital might have more obvious issues, more publicity; a larger than life Mayor; plus too many cycling fatalities, but they are problems shared across the UK.

January 7, 2014

Fifth of undervalued and disengaged staff plan to move jobs this year

by Sara Bean • News, Workplace

One of the most over used phrases of last year has got to be ’employee engagement’, with a mountain of research, blogs and features devoted to ways employers could and should enhance their relationship with employees. But those managers who question the validity of the arguments for addressing employee engagement should consider this; admittedly yet another survey, but one published by the respected Institute of Leadership & Management. According to its study of more than 1,000 workers, almost one in five (19%) of UK workers plan to leave their jobs this year. The reason? Almost one fifth (16%) of the people aiming to leave their job said they were moving on because they do not feel valued by their current organisation. More →