Search Results for: covid-19

Business needs to do more to address lockdown mental health issues

Business needs to do more to address lockdown mental health issues

Mental health and the pandemicEmployers must do more to support the mental health of their staff during the Covid-19 pandemic, as new research suggests up to 23 million people in the UK could be struggling with poor mental wellbeing as a result of the current situation. The research, carried out by not-for-profit healthcare provider Benenden Health, claims that 35 percent of people are thought to be struggling with their mental wellbeing as a result of the pandemic, with many saying support from employers could help ease the stress they’re experiencing day-to-day. More →

Government publishes guidance on how people should safely return to work

Government publishes guidance on how people should safely return to work

The UK Government has issued new guidance to help people return to work safely. Measures include redesigns of all workplaces including offices to maintain social distancing, staggered times of work, the use of as many entrances to a building as possible and changed layouts. The guidelines cover eight workplace settings including construction, offices and contact centres, factories, plants and warehouses and shops. More →

Digital Twins will change our relationship with buildings post lockdown

Digital Twins will change our relationship with buildings post lockdown

Digital Twin technology will be catalysed in the wake of the coronavirus, transforming the way we construct, design manage and occupy buildings. That is the key finding of a new white paper from Cityzenith, which includes contributions from a number of global practitioners and technology experts. More →

Hygiene remains main concern of people returning to work

Hygiene remains main concern of people returning to work

As lockdown measures begin to ease, many UK office workers are concerned about going back to the office – with worries rife over being able to maintain social distancing (59 percent) and appropriate hygiene and cleaning standards (44 percent), according to new research. The YouGov poll, for the Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management (IWFM) surveyed office workers across the country to reveal that over a third (34 percent) are concerned about getting used to a corporate office culture again after the lockdown. More →

Employee productivity proves remarkably resilient during pandemic

Employee productivity proves remarkably resilient during pandemic

The surge in remote working coupled with the rapid adoption of communications and collaborative technology means many companies have seen no significant change in employee productivity, according to a new report from Willis Towers Watson. Organisations have responded to the rapid disruption caused by the dramatic spread of COVID-19 by finding innovative ways to help their workers cope with the impact of the pandemic, while at the same time preparing for an eventual return to the workplace for many employees, according to the  survey of employers’. More →

Coronavirus crisis drives freelancer confidence to unimagined lows

Coronavirus crisis drives freelancer confidence to unimagined lows

Freelancers’ confidence in their businesses and the wider economy has been driven to record lows by the Coronavirus crisis, according to research by IPSE (the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed) and PeoplePerHour, Europe’s largest freelance marketplace. Freelancers’ three month confidence in their businesses had already fallen to a six-year low last quarter because of concerns about the changes to IR35 tax regulations. More →

Employees reluctant to give up flexible working after lockdown

Employees reluctant to give up flexible working after lockdown

New working patterns prompted by COVID-19 could cause employees to permanently reduce time spent in the office, as nearly half (45 percent) of Brits predict a permanent change to their employers’ approach to flexible working when lockdown lifts. O2 Business’ new report – entitled The Flexible Future of Work, conducted in partnership with ICM and YouGov – claims that employees will be reluctant to give up their new way of working after lockdown. Nearly half the workforce think flexible working will increase, with a third (33 percent) of this group expecting to increase the amount they work from home by at least three days a week after lockdown, and 81 percent expecting to work at least one day a week from home. More →

Three quarters of workers want the choice to work from home after lockdown

Three quarters of workers want the choice to work from home after lockdown

Seventy-seven percent of the workforce say they want to continue to work from home, at least weekly, when the pandemic is over. That represents a 132 percent increase over those who did so before COVID-19. These and other findings from the Global Work-from-Home Experience Survey, which claims to be the largest post-COVID survey on the topic to date, will lead to profound changes in office space needs, workplace design, workforce policies and practices, and employer, employee, and environmental outcomes. More →

An opportunity to take business relationships with charities to a new level

An opportunity to take business relationships with charities to a new level

COVID-19 can be a catalyst for transforming how businesses and charities collaborate, with significant benefits for both. Companies and charities working together is nothing new. For many years Corporate Social Responsibility has had a place on the business agenda, as a means of doing some good while boosting companies’ reputations in the process. More →

Organisations should seize this opportunity to look at their values

Organisations should seize this opportunity to look at their values

Not since 911 has one event triggered such global impact and uncertainty across all businesses and industries. The unprecedented speed and scale of organisational change has challenged even the prepared leadership team. More →

Immunity certificates could lead to a two-tier workplace

Immunity certificates could lead to a two-tier workplace

Proposed “immunity certificates” allowing individuals to move freely in society could lead to discrimination, claims Edgar Whitley, Associate Professor from London School of Economics’ Department of Management, and other contributing experts in a new report. More →

Less desk sharing and more screens for receptionists, say property industry experts

Less desk sharing and more screens for receptionists, say property industry experts

Shared desking is likely to become less popular as a result of COVID-19, but we are likely to see an increase in the use of unisex superloos and screens for receptionists, according to a new thought paper by the British Council for Offices. The paper claims to outline how the workplace may change as a result of COVID-19, and how Britain can safely return to work in the coming weeks and months. More →