Search Results for: education

Survey reveals rising confidence of UK workers

JobsCompetitive pay and benefits are the most important requirements of a new employer, before job security, according to new research from recruiter Randstad. In 2012, 27 per cent of people said long-term job security was the most important factor in choosing to work for a specific company – more than any other issue, but this has now fallen to 16 per cent, the lowest it has been in three years. Mark Bull, Randstad’s UK CEO, said: “The UK’s workforce appears much more bullish. In 2011 and 2012 the number one priority for people was job security – now it is salaries and benefits.”

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Third of global employers have formal wellness plans

Bosses favouritesLess than half of organizations worldwide actively apply the basic elements of a health management programme, with just a third having a formal strategic plan for health and wellness. This is according to Mercer’s Talent Barometer research which explores key accelerators of talent effectiveness – education, health and wellness, and career experience – and their impact on successful workforce practices. While employers are investing in talent, with 60 per cent of organizations increasing spending in this area in recent years, only 24 per cent say their current plans are highly effective in meeting immediate and long-term human capital needs.

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Job dissatisfaction highest amongst Gen Y workers

Gen YHot on the heels of the news this week that generation Y workers are more risk averse than older employees, it seems they’re also more dissatisfied with their jobs than other age groups. A new survey by Office Angels shows that over a quarter (27 per cent) of 25-34 year olds are unhappy in their current job, compared to just a fifth (20 per cent) of those aged over 55. This backs up the Monster.com survey, which found more than half of Gen Y employees (55 per cent) see their current employer as a mere stopping off point in their career path.

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Companies failing to communicate flexible working policies

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Less than one fifth of staff are being encouraged to work flexibly, with businesses failing to reap the rewards of increased productivity and employee well-being resulting from modern work practices and technology. New research by O2 reveals that whilst staff are ready to embrace new ways of working and understand the benefits, it is employers who are holding them back. More than three quarters (77 per cent) of employers say that flexible working is actively encouraged across their organisation but less than a fifth (19 per cent) of staff say their company encourages them to work flexibly. More →

Room for improvement in public sector workplace management

Portcullis HouseLast week technology company Citrix announced that the UK Government could cut its property costs by a third by adopting flexible working policies. It used a Freedom of Information request to discover how much space each public sector employee in the UK is allocated and how much it costs then applied a formula to work out how this would be affected by greater adoption of flexible working. What was interesting was not just the up-front argument you would expect from an ICT provider but also the discovery that the average employee is allocated 1.1 workstations with some enjoying 1.6. More →

Teams perform better when bosses pick favourites

 Bosses favourites

Bosses should pick favourites if they want top performing teams, a new study from the University of British Columbia Sauder School of Business reveals. “Conventional wisdom tells us that we should treat everyone the same to create a collegial and productive work atmosphere,” says Sauder Professor Karl Aquino, who co-authored the forthcoming study for the Journal of Business Ethics. “But our research shows this can be a disincentive for workers who would otherwise go above and beyond on behalf of the team with a little bit of extra attention.” More →

Gulf construction and fit-out continues to boom, claims report

Abu DhabiThe total value of building projects in Gulf Cooperation Council states will exceed $80 billion this year according to a new report from dmg::events* in conjunction with consultancy Ventures Middle East. The survey concludes that this year will see a near one fifth increase in the overall value of projects up from nearly $69 billion in 2012 to $81.6 billion in 2013. Meanwhile the interlinked market for interior contracting and fit-out in 2012 was valued by the report at $7.86bn – a 56 per centincrease on 2011. The UAE continues as the the region with the largest interiors spend ($2.83bn), followed by Saudi Arabia ($2.6bn) and Qatar ($1.49bn). More →

Wellness linked to job satisfaction and engagement

Did ‘Blue Monday’ really get you down, or are you happy in your work? If you are engaged with your work, research suggests you’re most likely to have a healthier lifestyle. The findings from Gallup Daily tracking found that engaged employees are deeply involved in and enthusiastic about their work, those not engaged may be satisfied, but are not emotionally connected to their workplaces and are less likely to put in discretionary effort. And employees who are actively disengaged are emotionally disconnected from work and workplace and jeopardise their teams’ performance. More →

Build upon creative success urges design campaign

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The #includedesign campaign has urged policy makers to revisit proposals to include creative subjects in the English Baccalaureate and build upon the success of initiatives like Tech City. This is the ‘brand’ name for the creative technology community around Shoreditch in east London, with more than 3,000 creative tech firms, employing over 50,000 people. Last December the design industry wrote an open letter to the Secretary of State for Education warning him against the omission of Design & Technology and Art & Design from the EBacc. More →

CPA: UK construction activity will fall in 2013

The UK’s Construction Products Association (CPA) has today reported that it expects overall construction activity in the UK to fall by around 2 per cent this year, with most of the decline attributed to a greater than 5 per cent drop in commercial projects. Particularly concerning is the fact that the Government’s austerity measures with regard to public sector investment have not been offset by an increase in private sector activity. However these figures still represent an improvement on the 9 per cent fall of 2011.  More →

It pays to check the green credentials of manufacturers

Generation from Knoll

Generation from Knoll

There is a theory that when companies talk about issues such as corporate social responsibility they are doing so because it helps them to achieve their business goals. This is the coldly rational thing to do according to people like free market guru Milton Friedman who argues that companies should not actively pursue altruistic ends unless that pursuit is ultimately in the interest of their shareholders. As Friedman puts it: ‘Hypocrisy is virtuous when it serves the bottom line. Moral virtue is immoral when it does not’.

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