Search Results for: work life balance

Cities worldwide are grappling with the delicate balance between nighttime charm and sustainability

Cities worldwide are grappling with the delicate balance between nighttime charm and sustainability

by • Cities, Environment, Features, Lighting

Cities worldwide, from London to Sydney, are grappling with the delicate balance between nighttime charm and prioritising sustainability. As well as the delights of daytime, cities around the world have long been defined by how their iconic landmarks come to life at night. Think of London’s illuminated riverside or Amsterdam’s canals lit up after dark. These vistas almost come to be synonymous with these places’ very identities. Aston Woodward, co-founder of asset management firm Oxygen also brings one of Australia’s best-known destinations into the mix. “Well-lit buildings at night in any city are attractive. Sydney is a good example and at night is dramatic. Many tourists as well as residents sit and admire a variety of size and colour and interactions generated from the buildings’ lighting.” More →

Employers ‘toughen’ remote working rules 

Employers ‘toughen’ remote working rules 

by • Flexible working, News

Employers are toughening up remote working rules according to a new poll Randstad UK. Three in every five workers in the UK say that, in the past few months, their employer has become stricterEmployers are ‘toughening’ up remote working rules according to a new poll from Randstad UK. Three in every five workers in the UK say that, in the past few months, their employer has become stricter about making staff come into the office. In a survey of 2,000 workers across the UK, 60 per cent agreed with the statement: “In the past few months, my employer has become stricter about making sure staff come into the office.” But the research claims that cutting remote working options may prove counterproductive for organisations. More →

Changing shape of workplace is creating new opportunities for property market

Changing shape of workplace is creating new opportunities for property market

by • Facilities management, News, Property, Workplace design

A new report claims that changing approaches to the workplace will create new opportunities for the quickest and smartest to adaptAfter a challenging environment for commercial real estate in 2023, its fallout provides investors, developers and corporate occupiers with significant opportunities for value creation and transformational organisational change in 2024, says leading property management and investment firm, Colliers (EMEA) in its new market commentary: ‘Engage, activate and accelerate performance: next generation real estate strategies’ [registration]. The report claims that new approaches to the workplace will create new opportunities for the quickest and smartest to adapt. More →

The average day off includes about two and a half hours of work

The average day off includes about two and a half hours of work

by • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing

the average Brit will spend up to two-and-a-half hours working while technically having a day off on holiday or leave.A recent study by Forbes Advisor claims that a quarter (25 percent) of UK employees will work between three and four hours on days when they are officially “off the clock”. The survey found that the average Brit will spend up to two-and-a-half hours working while technically having a day off on holiday or leave. More →

Forget all the talk of Blue Monday; work is still (largely) good for us

Forget all the talk of Blue Monday; work is still (largely) good for us

by • Comment, Facilities management, Wellbeing, Workplace

blue mondaySo here it is. Blue Monday. Today. Officially the most depressing day of the year. We say ‘officially’, but like the idea of ‘Body Odour’ its common usage hides the fact that it was originally created as part of a PR campaign, in this case one for Sky’s travel channel in 2005. The whole idea of Blue Monday is couched in a pseudo-mathematical equation which includes factors like the weather, levels of debt, time since Christmas, low levels of motivation and, apparently, an unspecified variable known simply as ‘D’. More →

Flexible working is delivering the gift of seasonal productivity

Flexible working is delivering the gift of seasonal productivity

by • Comment, Flexible working, Technology

business leaders are still keen to maintain productivity with flexible working amidst the seasonal rush while allowing their team to enjoy the holiday periodEmployees have made it clear that they are keen for flexible working arrangements to stay. In fact, according to the Owl Labs 2023 State of Hybrid Work report, 40 percent of employees would decline a job if they were required to be in the office five days a week. With the festive season in full swing, employees will look to utilise the benefits of flexible working as they return home to their families. More →

Oscillate wildly between the death of the office and the death of hybrid working

Oscillate wildly between the death of the office and the death of hybrid working

by • Comment, Flexible working

The media's twisting between the death of the office and the death of hybrid working shows we've reached a point of equilibriumIt’s March 2020, very early days of lockdowns and the first catastrophising headlines appear. Is this the death of the office? Is this the death of handshakes? Is this the death of the open plan? I dismissed them at the time in this piece from March the 19th, citing Betteridge’s Law which states: “any headline that ends in a question mark can be answered with the word no”. More →

Working parents yearn for more flexibility in their jobs

Working parents yearn for more flexibility in their jobs

by • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing

over three quarters (77 percent) of working parents remain passionate about their job, but in a bid to establish more flexibility in their working lives, nearly 9 in 10 (88 percent) would be interested in more part time or flexible opportunitiesResearch commissioned by the Department for Education’s Teach in Further Education campaign claims to set out the top three factors working parents consider when looking for a job. Work life balance came out on top (70 percent), while flexible working hours (43 percent) and a job where they can use their existing skills (26 percent) also ranked highly. More →

Many people would take a pay cut for more flexible working and shorter hours

Many people would take a pay cut for more flexible working and shorter hours

by • Flexible working, News

Two thirds of British workers would be prepared to take a pay cut for an overall better job according to a poll from the hiring platform Indeed. A survey of over 5,000 workers for its Better Work 2023 report found a desire for greater flexibility and less time at work is driving this trend, with a four-day work week (28 percent), a better work life balance (25 percent) and more flexible working opportunities (17 percent) the most likely factors to encourage Brits to take a pay cut.  The mean pay cut workers surveyed are willing to take is 9.2 percent. Given the average salary for UK workers is £33,000, that means the average worker is willing to take a pay cut of £3,036 per annum for a better job. More →

Half of workplace grievances down to spats between colleagues

Half of workplace grievances down to spats between colleagues

by • News, Workplace

Feuding and conflicting colleagues account for nearly half (47 percent) of all workplace grievances, according to a new pollFeuding and conflicting colleagues account for nearly half (47 percent) of all workplace grievances, according to a new poll from employment law and HR consultancy firm, WorkNest. Nearly four in ten (38 percent) businesses believe this is down to employees becoming less tolerant, with factors such as mental health and stress (24 percent) and organisational change (24 percent) also suspected to be contributing to conflict between employees or between employees and line managers. More →

Three days in the office seems to be the ‘sweet spot’ for hybrid working

Three days in the office seems to be the ‘sweet spot’ for hybrid working

by • Flexible working, News

A new report provides analysis into the impact that remote and hybrid working are having on employee experience, culture and productivityA new survey concludes that three days a week in the office appears to be optimal for many people to optimise key aspects of workplace culture and performance. The report claims to provide empirical analysis into the impact that remote and hybrid working are having on employee experience, culture and productivity. The report commissioned by Ipsos Karian and Box is based on a survey of 1,400 full-time UK office workers. More →

The workation is taking off – but it needs the right tech to make it effective

The workation is taking off – but it needs the right tech to make it effective

by • Company news, Technology

The trend for semi-nomadic working has grown in the past few months, and with it the ‘workation’, as people have looked for last minute sunny getawaysThe trend for semi-nomadic working has grown in the past few months, and with it the ‘workation’, as people have looked for last minute sunny getaways after a somewhat disappointing UK summer. For the unfamiliar, a ‘workation’ is essentially taking advantage of remote working to blend work and a holiday. This could involve taking a summer holiday, and then working from the destination for a further week or two. Some may plan a visit to stay with friends or family, building some days of work into the trip, so they still get the enjoy the evenings with their loved ones. Or they may simply plan a normal working week undertaken remotely from a different location for a change of scene – anywhere from a mountain lodge to city break. More →

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