November 25, 2019
Commuting, difficult colleagues and archaic tech are among the UK’s biggest office gripes, according to new research from Village Hotel Club. The study, which explores what makes UK workers tick and what ticks them off, also uncovered what benefits workers want to see most, with flexible working topping the list. More →
November 25, 2019
Over three-quarters (77 percent) of young workers in the UK have experienced mental health challenges, Accenture research suggests. In addition, nearly half (48 percent) of younger workers (aged 18-30) say they have experienced suicidal thoughts, but in organisations that are providing the right support, young workers were 37 percent less likely to have recent experience of a mental ill health challenge. More →
November 20, 2019
The World Green Building Council has launched a new digital case study library showcasing what it claims is excellence in sustainable development globally, featuring buildings that are net zero carbon and/or enhance human health. According to the WGBC, claims are verified by established certification schemes, rating tools or other third-party systems. Buildings and construction together account for 36 percent of global final energy use and 39 percent of energy-related carbon dioxide emissions when upstream power generation is included. Additionally, people spend 90 percent of their time in buildings, and there is a consistent association between unhealthy indoor environments and negative human health impacts. More →
November 20, 2019
A near universal 91 percent of UK workers believe collaborative work with colleagues is essential for their productivity and creativity, yet nearly three-quarters of them work in traditional, enclosed spaces non-conducive to active participation and spontaneity according to new research from Steelcase. The report claims that team-based work is fundamental to modern businesses with 55 percent of the UK spending their time working with others but workspaces are actually unable to support collaborative work. More →
November 19, 2019
Fewer than one-fifth of HR leaders believe that performance management is effective at achieving its primary objective, according to a report from Gartner (registration). Though companies have been prioritising performance management improvements for years, 81 percent of HR leaders are still making changes and experimenting with their organisation’s efforts, according to the report. Most efforts to fix the issues are centred on reducing effort with the survey claiming that two-thirds of HR leaders focused on making processes either easier or less time consuming. However, reducing the effort managers and employees must put into the systems has significant negative effects. More →
November 18, 2019
A new study from The Institute of Leadership & Management claims there is a significant gulf between the organisational values held by UK businesses and the personal values of their workers, and highlights the different values considered important to men and women, younger and older workers and between sectors. More →
November 15, 2019
The increasing migration of flexible offices to the outskirts of major UK cities is creating a ‘flex economy’ that could contribute more than £12 billion to local economies in the next decade. That’s according to the first comprehensive socio-economic study of second-city and suburban workspaces. The analysis, conducted by economists on behalf of Regus, claims that as Brexit uncertainty continues to impact the economic landscape, individual flexible workspaces in suburban areas could be a welcome lifeline for local economies.
November 13, 2019
It’s a shame that Rhymer Rigby’s piece in The Times on creativity at work is behind a paywall because it says something perfectly obvious and demonstrable about workplace creativity that more people should read. The gist is that a cult has grown up around creativity that should be subject to more scrutiny and we should stop thinking about all work as the potential outlet for the creative instincts of people who may not have any, may not work in a job that involves them or who may not want to express them during their shifts in the Amazon warehouse. More →
November 13, 2019
UK employees are having to work harder to pay the bills, with the vast majority (91 percent) working beyond their contracted hours on a weekly basis and almost half (43 percent) not leaving the office or taking a break at lunchtime according to an analysis of Morgan McKinley’s Working Hours and Flexibility reports. And the growing practice of flexible working appears to be having no impact on the overworking culture.
November 7, 2019
Absence rates dues to illness or injury for UK workers rose by 7 percent in 2018 to an average of 4.4 working days according to new figures, published by the Office for National Statistics. During the full year, people took 141.4 million sick days compared with 131.5 million in 2017, when the figure reached its lowest since records began. The long term trend remains positive despite last year’s spike.The rate of absence from work due to sickness in people in the UK with no long-term health problems has halved in the past two decades according to the government data. More →
November 7, 2019
Some things in life come around quickly, the changing of the clocks, birthdays, Christmas music in supermarkets – and the British Council for Offices (BCO) Awards deadline. Just four weeks remain for wannabe winners to submit their applications, with the call for entry closing at 5pm on Friday 29th November 2019. The BCO claims that its National Awards sets the standard for excellence across the office sector in the UK, attracting over 1,300 property professionals on the evening, as they hope to take home the National Award for their category. Entrants will be judged by a regional panel of judges in the Spring, with each local winner going on to compete for the National title in October. More →
November 5, 2019
A new study conducted by Love Energy Savings claims that more than 80 percent of British employees still continue to work when they are ill or sick. Love Energy Savings investigated which groups were most likely to continue to work when ill, with less than one-fifth of British workers (17 percent) admitting to taking sick days when they’re ill. And there is a widening margin when it comes to age groups.
