Search Results for: Gen Z

UK government unveils £1 billion ultrafast broadband fund to aid remote working

UK government unveils £1 billion ultrafast broadband fund to aid remote working 0

by • Flexible working, News, Technology

The UK’s faltering move towards ultrafast broadband has been given a much-needed boost with the launch of a new fund, which will support the rollout of cutting-edge connections across the country. The government’s £400 million Digital Infrastructure Investment Fund (DIIF) will unlock over £1 billion for full fibre broadband, and kick-start better broadband connections across the country. Its aim is to revolutionise Britain’s digital infrastructure, making internet access more reliable for homes and businesses, and enabling more people to enjoy remote working without disruption. According to the Treasury, the flexibility to work remotely is pivotal for driving the economy forward; reducing overheads and helping businesses to start and grow.

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UK workers are wasting their allocated holiday allowance

UK workers are wasting their allocated holiday allowance 0

by • Flexible working, News, Workplace

A new survey claims that UK workers waste on average five days of annual leave each year with one in six having more than a full working week of holiday leftover in 2016. The new study, commissioned by Airtours, has found that 40 percent of workers did not use up their full holiday allowances, and those who did spent less than half of their time off relaxing. Of the reasons given for not taking their allocated leave, 25 percent of people asked said they didn’t need to take it or even want to, 36 percent had too much on at work to take time off, and 26 percent weren’t allowed to take holiday as it meant being off at the same time as colleagues. When people did take a break last year, the research suggests that most of the time people weren’t using their holiday how they should have been by recharging their batteries. On average people spent seven holiday days at home and 56 percent admitted to doing boring chores instead of getting out and enjoying themselves. A further 32 percent used their holiday to go to medical appointments and 17 percent used it to deal with those unexpected family emergencies, like illness or injury or taking the dog to the vet. (more…)

Fourfront Group announces merger of commercial interior businesses

Fourfront Group announces merger of commercial interior businesses 0

by • Company news, Workplace design

Fourfront Group has merged design and fit-out company Area Sq with contractor Cube to create Area, one of the largest workplace design and fit-out firms in the UK. The move comes off-the-back of an 80 percent increase in Group turnover over the last three years. Fourfront Group now consists of three businesses: Area, Sketch Studios which specialises in office furniture and logistics, and 360 Workplace which provides workplace consultancy services. Area’s CEO Gary Chandler, said the merger was agreed to ensure that Fourfront Group “can deliver a single, focused offering to the market, allowing professional teams to engage with one business irrespective of procurement criteria, for the first time. The commercial design and fit-out market is evolving at rapid pace, as professional teams become more prevalent in the procurement of projects, acting on behalf of end-user clients. This bold move of merging two well-recognised brands will enable us to be more agile and aligned to our clients and their diverse requirements. With the creation of Area, we are bringing together expertise, market knowledge and skills to create a platform for delivering excellence.”

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Automation and data need radically new systems of governance according to scientists

Automation and data need radically new systems of governance according to scientists 0

by • AI, News, Technology

automationThe current framework for governing automation and the management and use of data cannot keep pace with technological advances, according to a new report by the Royal Society and the British Academy. The report calls for the establishment of a new, independent body to steward an overall framework that can safeguard public confidence and ensure that the potential benefits of data use such as improved public services, better healthcare and business innovation are fully realised. The two National Academies convened leading figures from the Sciences, Humanities and Social Sciences to undertake a detailed review of the current governance landscape for data usage and management. Data Management and Use: Governance in the 21st Century found that data usage, data collection and management are increasingly intertwined, and new ways of using data make it difficult to define which data is sensitive.  It found that, while the current governance architecture provides a lot of what is needed to deal with these challenges, there are clear gaps and too many silos, such that tensions between how individual and collective benefits and risks are negotiated are not always identified and addressed in a transparent and inclusive way.

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Stress levels at work have grown, while productivity fell, but there is some good news

Stress levels at work have grown, while productivity fell, but there is some good news 0

by • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

Stress and anxiety treatments have doubled over a decade, while 44 percent of workers say the world around them has become more stressful and complex. In the ten years since Bupa launched its first Wellbeing Report; people are working an extra 15.4 million hours every week, but productivity remaining low. However, on a more positive note, more employees than ever are prepared to talk about mental health issues with their employer. The research, which coincides with the launch of the Bupa Wellbeing Edit – a report into the key themes in workplace wellbeing, which includes insights from business and wellbeing experts, shows the number of people receiving mental health treatments has increased by 53 per cent in the last decade. Treatment for stress and anxiety have more than doubled over the last 10 years, which now stand at just under 70,000. However, although working longer hours has contributed to higher stress levels, the analysis based on businesses of all sizes, suggests that employers’ openness towards mental health is also increasing levels of self-reporting.

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Self-employed would value receiving sick pay above other benefits

Self-employed would value receiving sick pay above other benefits 0

by • Flexible working, News

UK micro-business owners and freelancers would be more interested in receiving sick pay than any other statutory benefit, according to new research carried out in collaboration between cloud accounting software firm FreeAgent and The Freelancer & Contractor Services Association (FCSA). A poll of nearly 900 UK micro-business owners conducted by FreeAgent and FCSA claims that sick pay provision is the benefit that self-employed workers would most welcome, coming way ahead of other benefits such as maternity pay, job seekers allowance and pension auto-enrolment. The survey claims that 76 percent of respondents currently do not have any method of providing sick pay, maternity/paternity leave, holiday or redundancy pay in their business. Projected across the country’s 5.2 million-strong micro-business sector, this potentially equates to millions of people working without the same kind of basic entitlements that employed workers have. Notably, people’s appetites for additional benefits varied depending on the structure of their business with sole traders more likely to value benefits (rating sickness provision 8.7 out of 10) compared to those working through their own limited companies who gave a score of 6.4 out of 10 for sickness provision.

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The onus is on employers to create working conditions that attract people

The onus is on employers to create working conditions that attract people 0

by • Comment, Facilities management, Wellbeing

Staff absenteeism is one of the most costly issues facing employers in the modern workplace. Absenteeism is defined commonly as an unscheduled, deliberate or routine absence from the workplace by employees. According to a new study by the Centre for Economic and Business Research (CEBR), people who regularly take days off are costing the UK economy billions each year, with the toll set to rise considerably over the next decade and potentially rising to £26bn by 2030.  The report also found that mental health issues are affecting 30-40 year olds who have to juggle various things such as home life, financial constraint and pressures from their day jobs and respective careers. Another recent study by AXA PPP healthcare found that over a third of employees living with a mental health condition (39 percent) are not open about it in the workplace. These findings highlight a clear disconnect between how employees are feeling and what their employers understand to be their state of mind.

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Major global study identifies the priorities of students and their most favoured potential employers

Major global study identifies the priorities of students and their most favoured potential employers 0

by • News, Workplace

A new study of 290,000 students worldwide claims that the majority studying business, engineering and IT would prefer to work for medium sized businesses and that they have a very clear idea about the sort of employer they would like to work for. The World’s Most Attractive Employers (WMAE) study from employer branding consultancy Universum Global is now in its 9th year and draws on data from the world’s 12 largest economies to rank the companies students find most desirable for employment. Overall, the majority of students (74 percent) reported that they would prefer to work for a company with fewer than one thousand employees. A larger proportion of talent from Germany, France, and Brazil would prefer to work for larger employers, but overall talent in these markets also said they would prefer to work for smaller firms. For business and engineering / IT students in all countries excluding Russia, India and Germany, work/life balance remains the overall top career goal. Results reveal Russian students in both fields of study still prefer job security, while Indian students in both fields of study are far more interested in having an international career than they are in other career goals.

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Employees unaware extent of digital monitoring their employers are legally allowed

Employees unaware extent of digital monitoring their employers are legally allowed 0

by • Facilities management, Legal news, News, Technology, Workplace

Employees unaware extent of digital monitoring access employers legally allowed

Most employees incorrectly believe the monitoring by their bosses of their personal social media and work email is illegal, but they’d be wrong, new data from Broadband Genie has revealed. The research found public ignorance over monitoring in the workplace, with the majority (79 percent) believing that workplaces weren’t legally allowed to monitor personal social media accounts. Similarly, the opening of work mail or email (58 percent), recording of work phone calls (53 percent) and checking logs of websites (36 percent) were all believed to be illegal. However, sources such as Citizens Advice explain workplaces in the UK can monitor employees use of phone, internet and email if, “it relates to business, the equipment being monitored is provided partly or wholly for work, [and] the employer has made all reasonable efforts to inform the employee that communications will be monitored”.

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The mere presence of a smartphone causes people to suffer brain drain

The mere presence of a smartphone causes people to suffer brain drain 0

by • News, Technology, Wellbeing

You may think it’s enough to mute or put away your smartphone when trying to carry out some focused work, but a new academic study suggests that the mere presence of a smartphone reduces our ability to concentrate. The study of over 500 subjects was carried out by researchers at the University of Texas and published in the Journal of the Association for Consumer Research, found that the brain suffers from the unconscious potential to browse, play games and communicate. Even when hidden in drawer or bag, the existence of a smartphone reduces people’s ability to carry out even relatively simple cognitive tasks.

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Largest trial of driverless vehicles takes to the streets of two cities in the UK

Largest trial of driverless vehicles takes to the streets of two cities in the UK 0

by • AI, News, Technology

The UK’s largest trial of connected and autonomous vehicle technology has been given the green light to move out onto city streets, after a UK consortium completed its final set of private test track demonstrations. Project partners Jaguar Land Rover, Ford and Tata Motors European Technical Centre (TMETC) are set to trial vehicles on the roads of Milton Keynes and Coventry, as Jaguar Land Rover announced the latest version of their automated, driverless vehicle technology. The three vehicle manufacturers are taking part in the £20 million UK Autodrive research and development project, jointly funded by government and industry. UK Autodrive claims to be the first project in the UK to showcase the benefits of having cars that can “talk” to each other across multiple makes of car. Three of the seven key features of connected cars (see full list below) will be trialled during the three-year programme.

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CoreNet Global to explore ‘Transcending Boundaries’ at EMEA Summit

CoreNet Global to explore ‘Transcending Boundaries’ at EMEA Summit 0

by • Company news, Events, Insight promotion

The CoreNet Global EMEA Summit will return to London in September 2017 for the fifth time, bringing together leading figures from the corporate real estate (CRE) profession to discuss how CRE can add value and be a true strategic advisor in today’s dynamic, rapidly changing environment. Under the theme Blurring the Lines: Transcending Boundaries, the summit will explore a range of shifts that demand transformational thinking and integrated solutions. In a world of continual and disruptive change, the summit will assist in identifying how CRE professionals can transcend traditional boundaries to uncover new opportunities. The three-day event will provide a wide variety of engaging and educational sessions, including keynote presentations from some of the profession’s most innovative thinkers, interactive seminars where attendees will be able to test new technologies and learn from one another’s experiences, networking sessions and dedicated teaching workshops.

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