July 26, 2023

Two thirds of bosses think people should ask permission before using AI at work

A new survey commissioned by Tech.co claims that 68 percent of business leaders think it’s unethical for employees to use AI at work without the permission of a manager. The firms believes that the rise of generative AI tools has emphasised the need for complex ethical AI frameworks to govern its application in the workplace. Without these ethical frameworks, the technology risks threatening human roles and intellectual property in morally dubious and potentially harmful ways. More →

July 25, 2023

Office lease lengths may be decreasing but majority of firms will increase their footprint

by Neil Franklin • News, Property, Workplace design

Responding to reports from property management platform, Re-Leased, that UK office lease lengths has fallen to the lowest on record and that vacancies rates had soared, office designers Unispace are suggesting firms should be wary of making ‘rash decisions’ regarding their office footprint over the long term. A study published by the firm – Returning for Good – which surveyed 9,500 employees and 6,650 employers from 17 countries worldwide – claims that while employees in the UK spend the least amount of time in the office compared to any other country, there is an expectation that this will increase as workers face limited access to career progression opportunities while working remotely. More →

July 22, 2023

Flexible working bill gains royal assent, but doubts remain

by Jayne Smith • Flexible working, News

Employees across the UK will be given even more flexibility over where and when they work, according to the government, as the Employment Relations (Flexible Working) Bill receives Royal Assent. Originally a 2019 manifesto commitment to encourage flexible working, and now a private members bill from Labour MP Yasmin Qureshi, the Act will require employers to consider and discuss any requests made by their employee – who will have the right to two requests a year – within two months of a request, down from three.

However some employment law experts have highlighted some of the Act’s limitations. “It is absolutely crucial to bear in mind that this is still only a right to request – not a right to receive flexible working’, warns Hina Belitz, Partner and employment law specialist at Excello Law. “In that sense, in order to assess its efficacy and whether it will truly make a difference to the day-to-day lives of employees struggling with flexibility issues, we need further information and consideration on whether this will actually lead more people to get the flexibility they need.”Will we just see employers get better at finding clever and ostensibly fair ways to refuse these things? Will we see an increase in discrimination or similar claims linked to supposedly unfair refusals of flexible working requests? Potentially, which may prove a strain on our already full to bursting employment tribunal system.”

CIPD research shows that 6 percent of employees changed jobs last year specifically due to a lack of flexible options and 12 percent left their profession altogether due to a lack of flexibility within the sector. This represents almost 2 and 4 million workers respectively.

Workers will benefit from the following new protections once the Act is in force:

New requirements for employers to consult with the employee before rejecting their flexible working request.
Permission to make two statutory requests in any 12-month period (rather than the current one request).
Reduced waiting times for decisions to be made(within which an employer administers the statutory request) from three months to two months.
The removal of existing requirements that the employee must explain what effect, if any, the change applied for would have on the employer and how that effect might be dealt with.

Alongside the measures in the Bill, millions of workers will be given the right to request flexible working from day one of a new job. This will bring an estimated 2.2 million more employees in scope of the entitlement following a change in regulations.

The Government is also today launching a call for evidence on non-statutory flexible working to improve on knowledge of the extent of flexibility in the labour market. The aim is to increase understanding of the role of informal flexible working in meeting the needs of both employers and employees.

In response to this legislation, Acas will be updating its statutory Code of Practice following a consultation, which was launched on 12 July. The aim of the Code is to provide employers, employees and representatives with a clear explanation of the law on the statutory right to request flexible working, alongside good practice advice on handling requests in a reasonable manner.

July 21, 2023

It is possible to balance the positives and negatives of stress at work

by Lisa Gunn • Comment, Wellbeing

Stress is an inevitable part of everyday life, and our bodies are hard-wired to respond to it. However, it’s clear stress takes a regular, negative toll on organisations across the country. Last year, 17 million days were lost due to stress, depression or anxiety, which accounted for 51 percent of all work-related ill health cases and 55 percent of all working days lost due to ill health. Poor mental health costs employers between £1,205 and £1,560 per employee, per year. Some of the main causes of stress in the workplace include mounting workload pressures, increased responsibilities, and a perceived lack of support from senior management. More →

July 20, 2023

Are you ready for the latest family friendly employment laws?

by Adrian Lewis • Comment, Workplace

It’s increasingly important for employers to have family-friendly employee benefits and policies to support recruitment and retention. These need to recognise the diverse needs and responsibilities of employees today and enable them to effectively balance their work and family life. Now to support employees and give them more protection in law three new ground-breaking employment laws will transform the employee benefit landscape. More →

July 12, 2023

Generations in the workplace: setting the record straight

by Jo Sutherland • Comment, Workplace

If there were an algorithm to create a word cloud in response to searches for ‘What millennials want in the workplace?’, you’d expect to see Google spew out terms such as ‘flexibility’, ‘meaning’, ‘fairness’, ‘equality’, ‘inclusivity’, ‘opportunity’, ‘connections’, ‘socialising’ and ‘experience’. Do the same with ‘Gen Z’ replacing ‘millennials’ and – guess what – you’ll see the exact same word cloud, although perhaps in a different colour and order so you don’t think it’s based on the same homogeneous assumptions about younger generations. More →

July 11, 2023

Workplace generations express different demands of their jobs

by Neil Franklin • News

Even though people who belong to so-called Generation Z are often described as digital natives, it is actually ‘Baby Boomers’ who are most focussed on workplace technology, a new poll claims. The report from interior design and fit-out business Claremont claims that firms are having to work increasingly hard to address the needs and priorities of different workplace generations. It claims that Baby Boomers (born 1946 to 1964) want better technology in the office to help them be more productive. They also want more face-to-face collaboration and team spirit more than any other generation. More →

July 7, 2023

While most people feel they belong at work, many also complain about being silenced

by Jayne Smith • News, Workplace

Although two thirds of people feel a sense of belonging in the workplace, half also think they are unable to share their opinions freely at work, according to a a new poll of 4,500 individuals working for large organisations around the world and commissioned by facilities management firm ISS. While the poll found that 69 percent of workers do feel a sense of belonging at work, it also discovered that feelings of not belonging were linked to “decreased productivity, worsened mental health and an increased risk of employee turnover”. More →

July 5, 2023

Most UK workers now expect to retire at 62 years old

by Jayne Smith • News, Workplace

A new poll of people aged between 35 and 55 suggests that most workers expect to retire at around 62 years old, four years earlier than the UK state pension age of 66. The report called Providing for tomorrow today: understanding an ageing workforce was commissioned by law firm Osborne Clarke. It surveyed employees aged 35-55 working in seven industry sectors across the UK. The report claims to identify workers’ current and future employment and retirement expectations and the impact these may have, not only on the shape of the future UK workforce, but also on employers in the industry sectors surveyed. More →

July 3, 2023

Two in five people are working extra hours as cost-of-living crisis bites

by Jayne Smith • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

A new poll suggests that the continuing cost-of-living crisis is now affecting a greater proportion of employees, with more people working extra hours, more struggling to buy food or pay their bills, and fewer being able to afford to take sick days, compared to mid-2022. HR software provider Ciphr surveyed 1,000 employees across the UK about their experiences of rising living costs in 2023, and any actions they’ve taken, or have considered taking, because of financial pressures. More →

July 3, 2023

‘Performative work’ is holding back productivity, poll claims

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Technology

A new poll from Slack claims that a focus on performative work, rather than impact, is holding back UK businesses; leading to them falling behind the likes of Germany, France, India and Singapore when it comes to adopting, and gaining, the efficiency benefits of technological advances in AI and automation. Based on findings from 2,000 desk workers in the UK, only 21 percent say their company is using AI tools to improve productivity, compared to 75 percent in India, 35 percent in Singapore, 29 percent in Germany and 23 percent in France. Meanwhile, 37 percent of UK workers say their productivity is measured on visibility (i.e. hours spent in the office or online). As a result, almost one third (30 percent) of the average day is lost to performative work that doesn’t contribute to company goals, but is simply done to appear productive. More →

June 29, 2023

Half of traditional non-tech firms now consider themselves tech firms

by Jayne Smith • Business, News, Technology, Workplace

The pandemic years forced traditional industries to digitise their operations at speed, but three years on, non-tech enterprises across the UK – from sectors including finance, advertising, manufacturing and more – are actively embracing the ‘tech mindset’ more than ever, according to a new report. The poll from Pendo [registration], claims that nearly half (49 percent) of ‘traditional’ enterprises now consider themselves tech firms, and are adopting more ‘tech-like’ strategies, roles and tools to drive innovation and growth. More →