Search Results for: flexibility

Majority of employers fail to support workers’ efforts to lead an active lifestyle

Majority of employers fail to support workers’ efforts to lead an active lifestyle

by • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing, Workplace

Majority of employers fail to support workers’ efforts to lead an active lifestyleThe majority of UK employees (61 percent) do not feel encouraged by their employer to lead an active lifestyle, despite most managers agreeing that exercise positively impacts employees’ productivity (78 percent) and their ability to handle stress (82 percent) claims new research from AXA PPP healthcare. Of those British employees who do exercise after work, nearly half (46 percent) would prefer to do so before work but 79 percent blame a lack of time in the morning; yet for those who find time to be physically active before work, three quarters (75 percent) feel it spurs them on to be more effective in the morning while 69 percent feel more productive. More worryingly, nearly half of employees (45 percent) of employees admit they do not do the NHS recommended 30 minutes of daily exercise, five times a week, but finding time to be physically active during the working day can be difficult, or undesirable. Sixty?two percent of employees with good intentions to exercise at work find they’re cancelling their lunchtime exercise plans due to workload or work commitments.

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Employers unable to meet growing demand for flexible working, claims study

by • Flexible working, News

A growing number of employees are frustrated in their attempts to adopt flexible working by the inability of employers to offer it, a new study claims. Based on the survey of 3,001 British employees, recruitment firm Timewise and consultancy EY claims that fewer than a tenth of jobs offering more than £20,000 per year pro rata are advertised with a flexible working option. This puts employers at a disadvantage because around two fifths of people claim they would prefer some form of flexible working, according to the report Flexible Working: A Talent Imperative.

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Millions of older workers fear poor health will shorten their working lives

by • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

Even though the age of the working population in the UM continues to rise, more than half of over fifties people have concerns around work and its impact on their health as they age, with women (61 percent) particularly worried about this. According to the study from Aviva, 13 percent intend never to stop work completely although only 14 percent of older workers say their workplace culture is positive towards them. According to Aviva’s latest Real Retirement study, 55 percent admit to fearing that work will become detrimental to their health or they might not be well enough to keep working, including 13 percent who say this is already an issue for them. Fewer than one in five (17 percent) over-50s workers say they have access to wellbeing advice and initiatives in the workplace which could help prevent health issues from impacting their careers.

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Majority of US office workers demand technology that allows them to work anywhere

Majority of US office workers demand technology that allows them to work anywhere

by • Facilities management, News, Technology, Workplace

Majority of US office workers demand technology that allows them to work anywhereThe majority of North American office workers expect their employers to provide technology that allows them to work from wherever they choose and three quarter of employees (74 percent) would rather leave their job to work for an organisation that would allow them to work remotely more often, even if their salary stayed the same. This is because working remotely has moved from being a work perk to a necessity of 21st century living, claims a new study by Softchoice. Collaboration Unleashed: Empowering Individuals to Work Together from Anywhere, found that 85 percent of North American office workers expect their employers to provide technology that allows them to work from their desk, in a meeting room, at home, or the coffee shop down the street.

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High expectations mask large gap between understanding of artificial intelligence and its implementation

High expectations mask large gap between understanding of artificial intelligence and its implementation

by • AI, News, Technology

New research published by the Boston Consulting Group and MIT Sloan Management Review suggests that there remains a wide gap between the understanding and adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) at most companies. The global study of over 3,000 firms and industry experts claims that almost 85 percent of executives believe AI will allow their companies to obtain or sustain a competitive advantage. However, only about one in five companies has incorporated AI in some offerings or processes. The new report claims to identify the key characteristics of AI leaders and offers companies a starting point for developing an AI strategy.

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Quarter of women on maternity leave offered less training opportunities than colleagues

by • Flexible working, Legal news, News, Workplace

Quarter of women on maternity leave not offered same training opportunities as colleagues

One fifth of women (20 percent) feel overlooked by their employer during maternity leave and though three quarters (75 percent) see training as a key way to prepare for their return to work, nearly a quarter (24 percent) are not offered the same training opportunities as their colleagues. According to the new research from AVADO almost a third of women (32 percent) who’ve been on maternity leave in the past three years say they’d have felt more prepared to return to the workforce if they’d had the option to do some training; one in three (29 percent) would have felt better connected with their team members and for a fifth (24 percent), training would have allowed them to stay up-to-date with the latest developments in their industry. During maternity leave, an employee and employer can agree to have up to ten Keeping in Touch (KIT) days, which may include training, but the research found that just one in ten (16 percent) were given the option to use these for training. This is despite the fact that 72 percent of women see it as one of the key ways to help them successfully head back to work after having a family.

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Parents asking for flexible working face sanctions from bosses, claims study

Parents asking for flexible working face sanctions from bosses, claims study

by • Flexible working, News

Asking for family-friendly flexible working patterns can lead to many people getting fewer hours, worse shifts and in some cases losing their jobs altogether, claims a new report from the TUC. Half (47 percent) of low-paid young mums and dads are struggling to manage work and childcare, according to the Better Jobs for Mums and Dads report. More than two in five (42 percent) said they felt penalised at work when they asked for flexibility – telling the TUC they are subsequently given fewer hours, worse shifts or even losing their job.

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UK serviced office take-up more than doubles in first half of 2017

UK serviced office take-up more than doubles in first half of 2017

by • News, Property

Serviced office take up across the UK has increased by 176 percent in the first half of 2017, reaching 1.07 million sq ft compared to the same period in 2016, which saw 386,750 sq ft acquired, according to real estate adviser Savills. The firm claims that while Central London saw a significant increase with take-up reaching 860,368 sq ft in the first six months, property markets outside the capital also saw substantial growth. Savills research shows that the M25 office market saw take-up by serviced office operators rise from 44,676 sq ft in the same period last year to 109,886 sq ft in the first half of 2017, while in the regional markets, serviced offices, including coworking spaces, accounted for 4 percent of overall office take-up in the first half of the year at 95,987 sq ft, compared to 41,568 sq ft during the same period in 2016.

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Half of UK workers plan to leave their current job over the next year

Half of UK workers plan to leave their current job over the next year

by • Cities, Flexible working, News, Workplace

Half of UK workers want to move jobs over the next year

Fifty percent of full or part-time workers in the UK want to leave their current job in the next 12 months claims a new study conducted by Citation. London businesses will be the worst hit, with two thirds (64 percent) of workers in the capital planning on eyeing up other employers. Furthermore, those aged between 18 and 24 are most likely to jump ship (64 percent), and men are 10 percent more likely to leave than women. For two in five workers, it’s salaries that’s forcing them to look elsewhere – this is most likely to be the key driver for 18 to 34-year-olds. Better career prospects (22 percent), drab company cultures (16 percent), dislike of managers (11 percent) and loathing of their job (10 percent) were other reasons given for wanting to leave. With, according to a study by Oxford Economics the average cost of recruitment costing £30,000, UK business owners look set for a costly year ahead. (more…)

People claim to be more productive outside the traditional office, claims report

People claim to be more productive outside the traditional office, claims report

by • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing

According to FlexJobs’ 6th annual survey of more than 5,000 respondents interested in flexible working, 66 percent of workers think they would be more productive telecommuting than working in a traditional office environment. Fewer interruptions from colleagues (76 percent), fewer distractions (76 percent), reduced stress from commuting (70 percent), and minimal office politics (69 percent) are the top reasons people prefer their home office. Only 7 percent of workers say they are most productive in the office during regular hours. The study claims that respondents think they would not only become more productive if allowed to work remotely, but also that they would be more loyal to their employers and would have stronger working relationships.

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Flexible working is the solution to limited career choices for women and closing the gender pay gap

Flexible working is the solution to limited career choices for women and closing the gender pay gap

by • Flexible working, News

Flexibility in the workplace is the key to offering women the freedom to choose a career path after childbirth, new research by the University of Kent claims. The study suggests that it is ‘the ability to take advantage of the opportunity for flexible working that is most useful in preventing women from dropping out of the labour market after having their first child. The research, led by Dr Heejung Chung, of the University’s School of Social Policy, Sociology and Social Research, found that women who were able to use flexible working were only half as likely to reduce their hours after the birth of their child. This effect was especially the case for women who used flexible working prior to the birth of their child as well as after, the researchers found. The researchers observed that more than half of women in their study sample reduced their working hours after the birth of their child, while less than a quarter of women who were able to use flexible working reduced their hours.

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KI launches new Ruckus seating collection for active learning spaces

KI launches new Ruckus seating collection for active learning spaces

by • Company news, Products

KI’s new Ruckus seating collection disrupts and redefines the boundaries of learning spaces. It’s not so much an evolution as a revolution. It looks like nothing else, it can be used like nothing else. This game-changing chair optimises student engagement, facilitates a wide range of teaching styles, and adapts to a variety of users and uses. Today’s educational environments are required to support ‘active learning’. Maker-centred and project based learning models are replacing linear, more traditional instructor-based lessons. Innovative curricula and pedagogies can only succeed if students are able to move freely and engage with their teachers, their materials and each other. Ruckus is a unique approach to facilitating this essential movement – it allows the user to rotate 360 degrees within the chair, rather than having to move the chair itself. Regardless of starting position, the user can quickly pivot and reorient themselves to where they need to direct their attention. This has been proven to enhance concentration, retention and engagement with materials, tools, instructors and fellow students.

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