September 22, 2020

Millions of working days lost each year through poor mental health

More than 11 million UK working adults have taken time off work for poor mental wellbeing, costing businesses an estimated 40 million working days each year, claims new research from healthcare provider, Benenden Health. As many as a third (35 percent) of UK employees took time off work due to poor mental health in 2019, with workers absent for between two and five days on average, costing UK businesses an estimated 4o million individual days of work. (more…)

May 21, 2020

Firms need to embed lessons from pandemic in a new work culture

by Neil Franklin • News, Technology, Wellbeing

Organisations should build on the lessons they have learned about themselves and their employees during the pandemic and embed them into their work culture. That is the main claim of the tenth annual Global Human Capital Trends report from Deloitte. (more…)

January 29, 2020

People ten times more likely to stay in their job for friendships than a pay rise

by Jackie Le Poidevin • News, Working culture

Following reports that job applications on the first working Monday of the New Year spiked by 89 percent compared to the average Monday in December, many UK businesses may be missing a trick in their efforts to retain staff, new research has suggested. When researchers commissioned by Eko asked 1,000 employees what factors would make them stay in their job for longer, they were ten times more likely to stay put for friendships than for a pay rise. Indeed, only 3 percent of workers cited a pay rise as something that would make them stay with their employer for longer. (more…)

January 27, 2020

Universal Music publishes new guide to neurodiversity in the workplace

by Neil Franklin • News

Universal Music UK has published what it claims is the first handbook for embracing neurodiversity in the creative industries. It defines neurodiversity as “the infinite variation in cognitive functioning that can lead to differences in thinking, attention and memory”. The handbook, which is titled Creative Differences, explores the experiences of people with specific facets of neurodiversity such as ASD, ADHD, dyslexia, dyscalculia, dyspraxia and Tourette Syndrome. (more…)

October 22, 2019

Women less likely to progress at work than male colleagues after childbirth

by Jayne Smith • Flexible working, News, Workplace

Women and men experience a ‘large divergence’ in their career paths in the years following childbirth, according to a study following more than 3,500 new parents. Only 27.8 percent of women are in full-time work or self-employed three years after childbirth, compared to 90 percent of new fathers. And while 26 percent of men have been promoted or moved to a better job in the five years following childbirth, the figure is just 13 percent for women.

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October 22, 2019

Remote workers struggle most to switch off from work

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News

According to a Remote.co survey of 200 full-time remote workers, unplugging after work hours (40 percent) is the biggest challenge remote workers face in their working lives. The survey, conducted in September and October of this year, claims that other challenges for people who work away from their firm’s main office for a significant proportion of their time include dealing with non-work distractions (32 percent), developing strong relationships with co-workers (25 percent), loneliness (23 percent), troubleshooting technology problems (21 percent), and working across different time zones (19 percent). (more…)

September 20, 2019

Flexible working now routine for two thirds of US workers

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Technology, Wellbeing

A new report from Owl Labs claims that although two-thirds of US workers now work away from their main place of work some of the time, there are still many people and organisations that are unaware of the benefits, processes and challenges involved in flexible working. The new report explores the effect flexible working has on personal happiness, recruitment, retention and skills as well as exploring the attitudes of people who are based in a fixed place of work.

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September 5, 2019

Men and women make different job choices based on commute times

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News

Women who have an hour-long commute are nearly a third (29 per cent) more likely to leave their current job than if they had a 10-minute commute, according to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The ONS concludes that this contributes to men doing the majority of higher paid jobs and that it’s likely women prefer short commutes because it allows them more flexibility for childcare and unpaid work. (more…)

September 3, 2019

Work-life integration is the new goal for workers

by Nicole Bello • Comment, Flexible working, Technology

The modern world of work is a stressful one, and the goal to progress in our careers brings on even more pressure. Tight deadlines and demanding workloads are the typical order of the day, but just as important is to have the time to wind down and recharge the batteries. Historically, this has been known as work-life balance.

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June 19, 2019

Culture clash means one in ten non-native workers leave jobs

by Neil Franklin • News, Workplace

A new report from Jobsite claims that almost one in ten (8 percent) non-native workers in the UK have had to leave a job because of a culture clash or they felt they didn’t fit in, and a quarter (23 percent) of those working in multicultural teams feel their workplace has become less accepting towards their non-UK colleagues since the EU Referendum. The survey claims that over a third (35 percent) of non-native workers believe their career progression has been impacted whilst a further 13 percent think they have been overlooked for a promotion due to their cultural background. (more…)

June 17, 2019

Worker confidence in the UK jobs market falls

by Neil Franklin • News, Workplace

The Monster Jobs Confidence Index, published for the first time by jobs board Monster.co.uk and the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr), claims that workers and job seekers confidence in the UK labour market has dropped by 10 percent, from 77 percent to 67 percent. The report defines confidence as how an individual feels about their ability to find a suitable job in the short-term, realise their career potential and build a better future for themselves.

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June 7, 2019

London workers more attracted to job than socialising

by Marie Hillen • Cities, Flexible working, News, Workplace

Socialising and drinking opportunities are some of the least enjoyable things about working in London, as loving their job and a chance to grow personally is more of an incentive for those who work in the Capital, a new report suggests. The survey of 1,000 London workers by Flexioffices, claims that 75 percent of employees in the city enjoy going to work for the personal development opportunities, training and the job itself. Flexible hours are becoming an increasingly enticing aspect of a job, with 21 percent of London workers liking their workplace because of the flexible hours available.