Search Results for: initiatives

Insurance claim data suggests that musculoskeletal disorders dominate workplace health

Insurance claim data suggests that musculoskeletal disorders dominate workplace health

by • News, Technology, Wellbeing, Workplace design

According to an analysis of the private medical insurance (PMI) records of over 45,000 UK employees carried out by Aon Employee Benefits with its largest clients, the highest claims are for musculoskeletal disorders- almost double those for cancer related illness. In a study of reports from private medical insurers (PMI), Aon found that 31 percent of claims were for musculoskeletal concerns, while 15 percent were cancer related, 4 percent were for mental disorders and 4 percent for urology. The data forms part of its new report, Wellbeing: Examining the correlation between employee health and financial wellbeing. Among the remaining 46 percent of claims, problems included gastrointestinal issues, diagnostic and treatment planning (equally prevalent), followed by obstetrics, heart, respiratory, head/neck, trauma/injury, nervous system, and eyes, ears and dermatology.

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Employee wellbeing rising up UK corporate agenda in comparison to other countries, claims report

Employee wellbeing rising up UK corporate agenda in comparison to other countries, claims report

by • News, Wellbeing

A study from the Top Employers Institute claims that employee wellbeing in the UK has risen up the corporate agenda with 82 percent of many large companies consistently defining an organisation-wide total wellbeing programme in 2017, increasing from 73 percent in 2016. What’s more, the impact and effectiveness of programmes are evaluated consistently with 71 percent doing so, up from 65 percent last year, while employee wellbeing education has also jumped from 61 percent to 85 percent in the last year. This compares to global Top Employers increasing employee wellbeing programmes from 67 percent to 68 percent, evaluation increasing from 55 percent to 57 percent and employee education increasing from 20 percent to 21 percent in the last year. The data comes from research into 71 companies certified as Top Employers UK for 2016, and 78 companies certified in 2017, plus a further 1,100 globally.

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Creativity is the new productivity in the modern era of work and workplaces

Creativity is the new productivity in the modern era of work and workplaces 0

by • Comment, Facilities management, Workplace design

Creativity is often thought of as a quality unique to artistic geniuses. When in reality, it is present in all of us, and something that can be enhanced and nurtured, given the right tools and environment. Creativity is the innate human ability to generate ideas, solve difficult problems and exploit new opportunities — it is the fuel for innovation. Many of today’s most pressing business problems require creative thinking to solve them, and creativity is an essential ingredient for business growth. However, 77 percent of CEOs name creativity as their company’s number one skill shortage (20th CEO survey, PWC, 2017). Being agile is critical in a world that is changing rapidly, with disruptive technology, globalisation and an increasingly complex landscape all playing a part. More than ever, supporting creativity at work is an essential part of driving value for both businesses and society. In days gone by, instead of focusing on their organisation’s creative output, most business leaders were obsessed with near-term goals such as productivity, efficiency, cost-cutting and reducing waste. But the landscape has shifted and creativity is emerging as an important dimension of productivity.

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Flexible and family friendly workplaces across the UK named in charity’s awards

Flexible and family friendly workplaces across the UK named in charity’s awards 0

by • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing, Workplace

Britain’s most family friendly and flexible employers have been recognised in this year’s Top Employers for Working Families Awards. Now in their 8th year, the annual Top Employers for Working Families Special Awards from the UK’s work life balance charity cover 11 categories across a range of work life policies and practices. Four new sector-specific awards are being introduced this year for the private, public and third sectors; as well as a category for small employers. Sarah Jackson OBE, chief executive of Working Families, said: “In many ways, flexible working and family friendly working have never been more part of the bloodstream of British business. We had a record-breaking number of entries this year, showcasing a wealth of exciting approaches to creating agility in the workplace. Congratulations to all this year’s Top Employers for Working Families award winners, singled out because they offer leading flexible workplaces that support the grain of their employees’ lives. I look forward to working with them to make work work, for people, families and the economy, so that families thrive and business prospers.”

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Twenty-first century construction is increasingly environmentally friendly

Twenty-first century construction is increasingly environmentally friendly 0

by • Environment, Facilities management

One thing is clear — within the next 20 years, we will reach our peak capacity in terms of oil consumption as a planet. Although, as demand for oil appears to increase year upon year, the global production of oil appears to decrease. As a result of this growing problem, the construction industry still derives most of its energy sources from oil-based fuels. Throughout the Western world, it is evident that the construction sector is heavily reliant upon crude oils. The reason for this is that without them, the construction process would not be able to function in its current form. This is however, having a detrimental impact on greenhouse gas emissions. Within the UK, 50 percent of carbon emissions are accounted for by the construction industry and machinery within the production process.

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Digital workplace accelerates blurring of lines between IT, HR and finance roles

Digital workplace accelerates blurring of lines between IT, HR and finance roles 0

by • News, Technology, Workplace

To help ‘organisations thrive in a competitive digital marketplace’, Oracle and the MIT Technology Review have released a new study that highlights the importance of collaboration between finance and human resources (HR) teams with a unified cloud. The study, Finance and HR: The Cloud’s New Power Partnership, outlines how a ‘holistic view into finance and HR information’, delivered via cloud technology, empowers organisations to better manage continuous change in the workplace. Based on a global survey of 700 C-level executives and finance, HR, and IT managers, the study claims that a shared finance and HR cloud system is a critical component of successful transformation initiatives.

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Firms still paying lip service to digital transformation, but change may be coming

Firms still paying lip service to digital transformation, but change may be coming 0

by • News, Technology, Workplace

Britain’s biggest businesses risk being disrupted by the pace of technological change because their senior leaders are paying lip service to the need for digital transformation, according to a study from tech startup AVADO. The study of senior managers responsible for the learning and development (L&D) of staff at Britain’s biggest firms with turnovers of over £100m found that the need for digital transformation is accepted, almost universally, among respondents. 86 percent say they have assessed the business risk of not taking action and 88 percent have taken steps to address this. Yet, despite 93 percent of L&D professionals saying a digital transformation strategy is in place, the report suggests critical top down buy-in is missing. Yet, a second report from recruiters Robert Half suggests that a growing number of firms in the key finance sector are now actively recruiting to improve their digital transformation strategy.

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The self employed have to rely on each other as government offers almost no support

The self employed have to rely on each other as government offers almost no support 0

by • Flexible working, News

The self employed are turning to one another for business and financial support, according to new analysis by the RSA think-tank. Commissioned by the Federation of Small Business (FSB) to examine how self-employed workers might manage the risks they face, the RSA report claims that growing numbers of workers are turning to collective sick-pay funds to manage ill health, cash pooling schemes to deal with late payments and micro-loan services to plug gaps in bank finance.  The RSA’s report, The Self Organising Self Employed concludes that, to date, both the state and the market have struggled to keep pace with the rising numbers of the self employed. Although successive governments have been vocal in their admiration of people who strike it out alone, holding up their attributes as ‘self-starters’ and ‘strivers’, this had led to a ‘non-interventionist, hands-off policy agenda, with the self employed broadly left to their own devices’.

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Billions of pounds in wages and holiday pay is underpaid every year

Billions of pounds in wages and holiday pay is underpaid every year 0

by • News, Workplace

Billions of pounds are denied to workers every year in wages and holiday pay, a new academic study claims. An interim report, The Weighted Scales of Economic Justice , from researchers at Middlesex University and the Unpaid Britain project shows £1.2 billion of wages are unpaid each year, along with £1.5 billion of holiday pay. The research, led by Professor Nick Clark, also found numerous breaches of employment rights, with one in 12 workers not receiving a payslip and one in 20 receiving no paid holiday. The report claims that many companies and directors were repeat offenders in withholding wages, and directors of half the companies that were dissolved and had defaulted on wages, returned as directors of other companies. Lead author, Nick Clark, said he believes these facts are the “tip of the iceberg” as accurate data around unpaid wages is difficult to uncover.

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Will battery storage be the next big energy trend for commercial buildings?

Will battery storage be the next big energy trend for commercial buildings? 0

by • Environment, Facilities management, News, Property, Technology

Building managers and FMs are under growing pressure to reduce costs and convince senior management about the need to take control of their energy needs according to a survey carried out a recent energy event; which also revealed that the majority (56 percent) believe that battery storage will be the biggest energy trend in the next decade. This was according to delegates at the recent Energy Live Future conference at Leicester’s National Space Centre where more than a third (38 percent) of delegates at the event, sponsored by British Gas Business, agreed that reducing energy costs remained the central energy issue for large organisations and those who manage commercial buildings. This was closely followed by the challenge of convincing business leaders to allow investment in new technology (35 percent). Nearly half (48 percent) of delegates suggested that political uncertainty, caused by the General Election, Brexit and changing regulation, could make it even more difficult for them to make significant energy changes.

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What will the UK General Election mean for the workplace? Some experts respond

What will the UK General Election mean for the workplace? Some experts respond 0

by • Architecture, Comment, Flexible working, Property, Workplace, Workplace design

Any residual feelings of certainty that anybody in the UK may have had about the country’s future following last year’s Brexit vote, will have had them pretty much eradicated by last Thursday’s General Election result. However, we must try to make sense of things for society and the wider economy as well as specific facets of it, such as the world of work. The whole thing looks like the pig’s ear that it is, of course. Fortunately, as some experts have already argued, there are some reasons to see some positive outcomes, including a soft (or softer) Brexit and the chance of a more positive approach to workplace rights, now that the Government needs to maintain a broader consensus. The fear or hope that the UK would lighten its already soft touch approach to workplace legislation would seem at least to be less well founded.

 

 

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Long term problems predicted for EU businesses if gender pay gap persists

Long term problems predicted for EU businesses if gender pay gap persists 0

by • Legal news, News, Workplace

As we reported earlier this week, more needs to be done to ensure that female representation in the boardroom increases; and now a new report paints a negative future for European businesses if the pay gap isn’t adequately addressed. Mercer has warned that a failure to address the EU’s substantial gender pension gap (40 percent), could cause long-term problems for businesses and governments alike; as through its analysis, the consultancy has found that the pension gap varies widely from one member state to another, however half have gaps of 30 percent or more. In its white paper The Gender Pension Gap – From Awareness to Action Mercer outlines the key drivers behind the pension gender gap, how it will impact companies and how they can start to address it within their workforce. Women continue to be significantly under-represented at all levels of the work force; in the EU their participation rate is 10 percent lower than men. The European Commission’s recent proposal for a directive on work-life balance for parents and carers, including the introduction of carers’ leave for dependent relatives, aims at addressing this under-representation.

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