Search Results for: childcare

Staff at larger organisations take three times as many sick days as those at micro firms

Staff at larger organisations take three times as many sick days as those at micro firms

by • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

absenceEmployers with over 250 employees are more likely to have a significant absence issue among staff says new research from Group Risk Development (GRiD). According to HR decision makers companies with over 250 employees have the highest absence rates – averaging 7.5 days per year yet micro businesses with between 1-9 staff only see their staff take an average of 2.8 days absence per year. Five per cent of HR decision makers also admitted to not recording or monitoring absence at all, although this is more prevalent amongst SMEs (6 percent) than those with over 250 employees (1 percent). (more…)

The self-employed enjoy higher levels of wellbeing and happiness, but work still needed

The self-employed enjoy higher levels of wellbeing and happiness, but work still needed

by • News, Wellbeing

Policymakers and business leaders must work to improve wellbeing among the self-employed, a new report by the Centre for Research on Self-Employment (CRSE), has said. Instead of exploring self-employed wellbeing through the conventional prism of economic success, the report, The Way to Wellbeing, adopts a new approach. It considers people’s overall life satisfaction, based on their subjective assessments of various aspects of their lives – including jobs, income, health, family life and leisure. The report found that wellbeing was higher among self-employed people by using subjective assessments of different aspects of their lives. This is the first time a major report of its kind has taken a holistic view of wellbeing – looking at jobs, health, family life and leisure – to build an overall picture of life satisfaction, rather than just using a narrow measure of economic success.

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Take up of shared parental leave is held back by cultural inertia

Take up of shared parental leave is held back by cultural inertia

by • Comment, Flexible working, Workplace

A recent report by the House of Commons’ Women and Equalities Committee, Fathers and the workplace, has brought into sharp focus the problems fathers have juggling participation in family life with their employment obligations. We are moving away from the traditional gender stereotypes of the father being the breadwinner and the mother being responsible for childcare. Today, many families have two parents in either full or part-time work, with dual income households being far more common now than just 30 years ago. The pace of technological change and the growing gig economy have both contributed significantly to this shift in working patterns. As a result, some of the UK’s laws are becoming outdated, as many laws were formulated on the assumption that it would usually be the woman within a family who would have responsibility for childcare.

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Working fathers are being let down by workplace policies, claims Government report

Working fathers are being let down by workplace policies, claims Government report

by • Flexible working, News

The Government’s Women and Equalities Committee has published its report on fathers in the workplace. Its main conclusion is that current policies supporting fathers in the workplace do not deliver what they promise, despite good intentions and this is particularly the case for less well-off fathers. It claims that the Government must reform workplace policies to ensure they meet the needs of the 21st century family and to better support working dads in caring for their children, say MPs. The report concludes that the right to request flexible working has not created the necessary cultural change and the Government itself admitted to the inquiry that its flagship shared parental leave scheme will not meet its objective for most fathers.

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Equal Lives survey to look at ways men can better balance work and home life

Equal Lives survey to look at ways men can better balance work and home life

by • Flexible working, Legal news, News, Workplace

Equal Lives survey to look at ways men can better balance work and homeThe challenge to achieve gender equality at work isn’t made any easier by the attitudes of some employers. Although men increasingly want to be more present at home, currently fathers are twice as likely as mothers to have their requests for flexible working turned down. This means their work-life balance is increasingly a source of stress. For this reason a new survey is being launched to look at men’s roles at home and work with the hope that the results will support employers to help men take up more equal caring roles.The Equal Lives project, launched by Business in the Community in partnership with Santander UK, aims to highlight the issues men face when managing responsibilities at work and home and identify workplace practices and policies to help employers retain skilled male and female employees. The study is open to all men in work over 18, regardless of whether they have people who depend on them for their wellbeing. It is also open to women in work, but only those with care responsibilities.

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UK progress on opportunities for women in the workplace slows

UK progress on opportunities for women in the workplace slows

by • News, Workplace

New PwC research claims that the UK is not making progress fast enough to improve female economic empowerment in the workplace. Despite improvements since 2000, these gains have been outpaced by other countries’ efforts, according to the report. In particular, slow progress in closing the gender pay gap, coupled with a persistent low share of females in full-time employment, has put the brakes on the UK making bigger strides towards gender equality in the workplace. The latest Women in Work Index claims the UK has fallen slightly from 14th to 15th place in a ranking of 33 OECD countries based on five key indicators of female economic empowerment. Although labour market conditions for women improved, the UK was outpaced by better performance from other OECD countries. Since 2000, the UK’s position has improved from 17th place and it compares well to other G7 economies, being second only to Canada. The Nordic countries continue to lead the Index – with Iceland, Sweden and Norway rated as the top three countries for opportunities for women in the workplace.

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Report calls for greater equality and opportunities for over 50s in the workplace

Report calls for greater equality and opportunities for over 50s in the workplace

by • Flexible working, News, Workplace

Report calls for greater equality and opportunities for over 50s in the workplaceA new report a new report by the Centre for Ageing Better has called for government and employers to support older workers to stay in work for longer, help those who have fallen out of work involuntarily to return and to create workplaces that work for all, irrespective of age. The report claims that ensuring older workers are able to stay in good quality employment is essential to the future of the UK economy and will relieve pressure on public finances. It makes some key recommendations that include access to flexible working hours and workplace adaptations to help people manage pressures such as caring responsibilities and health conditions, which become more prevalent with age. It also calls for equality of opportunities in the workplace as older workers in the UK experience age discrimination in recruitment and progression. They are less likely to be offered opportunities for development – across the whole of the OECD only Turkey and Slovenia have lower levels of on-the-job training for older workers than the UK. Research shows they are also the most likely to be stuck on low pay and feel most insecure about their jobs.

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New government campaign sets out to increase take up of shared parental leave

New government campaign sets out to increase take up of shared parental leave

by • Flexible working, Legal news, News, Wellbeing

A new government campaigned launched today encourages more parents to take up the offer of Shared Parental Leave in their child’s first year. The workplace right for eligible parents allows them to share up to 50 weeks of leave and 37 weeks of pay after having a baby. They can take time off separately or they can be at home together for up to 6 months. Around 285,000 couples every year are eligible but take up could be as low as 2 percent, according to the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy and around half of the general public are unaware that the option exists for parents.

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New RSA report highlights increasingly precarious and diverse nature of work

New RSA report highlights increasingly precarious and diverse nature of work

by • Flexible working, News, Technology, Workplace

work gig economy flexible workingBritain is dividing into seven new classes of worker as the gig economy grows, according to think-tank the RSA (the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce). Striving, Thriving or Just About Surviving has been published to coincide with the launch of the RSA’s Future Work Centre, following RSA chief executive Matthew Taylor’s employment review for Theresa May last year. The report warns of a 30:40:30 society: while around 30 percent live comfortably, economic insecurity is “the new normal” with 40 percent just managing and a bottom 30 percent not managing to get by.

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Full time work has an adverse effect on wellbeing and happiness of mothers, study claims

Full time work has an adverse effect on wellbeing and happiness of mothers, study claims

by • News, Workplace

Mothers of children under the age of three who don’t work full time are generally more happy than those in full-time employment, a new study published in the Journal of Happiness Studies claims. The survey by Dana Hamplová of the Czech Academy of Sciences asked 5,000 mothers from 30 European countries to make a subjective assessment of their levels of wellbeing and happiness. It found that there was a small but significant increase in happiness among mothers who were not working, compared to full-time workers. The report found there were no differences in the self-reported levels of happiness of non-working mothers and those who work part time.

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One in three UK workers unhappy at work and a quarter plan career change

by • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing, Workplace

The majority (72 percent) of employees in the UK go to work just to afford to live rather than for job satisfaction and one in four are considering a career change in 2018, claims a new survey. According to  research conducted by Paymentsense, over half of those questioned say money is their biggest motivation, 67 percent say their degree went to waste and they work in an unrelated role, and 25 percent are considering a whole career change in 2018. According to the 2,000 UK participants in the survey, a career peak occurs at 42 years old, which is when you start to lose passion for your work. At this age, opportunities to progress seem to be rare which is why when asking those in their 40’s ‘why do you go to work every day’?  76 percent say to be able to afford to live. 51 percent say they need to just pay the mortgage and 57 percent have responsibilities to support the 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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