Search Results for: economic

June 23, 2016

How could UK employment laws be affected by the outcome of the Brexit vote? ⁰

by Sathesh Alagappan • Comment, Legal news, Workplace

The result of yesterday’s EU referendum vote will dominate the UK’s political scene for months now and the outcomes will be followed with particular interest by business owners, who currently have to adhere to a range of employment laws that either originate from the EU itself or have been developed within the context of our membership of the organisation. Therefore, a vote for Brexit today could fundamentally change the way businesses operate in the UK. This is particularly true given that a large amount of the UK’s employment law has its roots in Brussels. Article 153 of The Lisbon Treaty set the precedent for this. It allowed the EU to create a base level of legislation that applies to all facets of the workplace. This includes working hours, workers’ rights, and health and safety. Individual nations are free to supplement this with their own legislation. For example, the minimum wage is an example of employment legislation that is independent of the EU.

June 22, 2016

Brexit uncertainty leads to drop in cost of living rankings for UK cities ⁰

by Sara Bean • Cities, Facilities management, News, Property

UK cities have dropped down the ranking in Mercer’s annual Cost of Living Survey this year as Brexit fears weaken the value of the Pound, whilst the Euro stays strong against the Dollar. Although the UK’s capital remains in the top 20 costliest cities worldwide, London (17) has dropped five places, whereas Aberdeen (85) and Birmingham (96) have fallen seven and 16 places respectively. Further down the list, (119) has dropped 10 places and Belfast (134) three. The survey finds that factors including currency fluctuations, cost inflation for goods and services, and instability of accommodation prices, have all contributed to the cost of expatriate packages for employees on international assignments. Mercer’s survey covers 209 cities across five continents with Hong Kong ranking highest, pushing Luanda to second place. Ranking 3rd, Zurich is the most expensive European city, followed by Singapore (4) and Tokyo (5).

June 21, 2016

London office rents predicted to stay strong provided there’s no Brexit ⁰

by Sara Bean • Cities, Facilities management, News, Property

The continuing imbalance between the supply and demand for office space throughout London is resulting in a shift in the balance of negotiating power away from tenants, according to the latest London Office Update from Carter Jonas. Rents across Central London have, on average, risen by over 50 percent over the last five years in the West End, Midtown and South Bank office markets, and by over 30 percent in the City of London. Rent free periods have typically fallen by up to six months over the same period. In the next 18-24 months, the trend will continue to be higher rents and shorter rent free periods as availability remains low. While some occupiers may leave London altogether, others may adopt a ‘spoke and hub’ strategy, whereby back office functions relocate to peripheral, lower cost, areas while ‘client facing’ operations are retained in Central London. This prediction assumes that Britain rejects Brexit however, and there are no major economic shocks.

June 17, 2016

Poor office acoustic design biggest issue for workers, but bosses aren’t listening ⁰

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, Flexible working, Wellbeing, Workplace

Open-plan offices are meant to encourage collaboration and contribute to a collegial workplace culture, but they also come with serious drawbacks like noise and distraction. New research claims that more than half of employees said poor office acoustic design reduces their satisfaction at work. Many feel compelled to solve the problem on their own, blocking out distraction through visits to break out spaces, taking walks outside, or listening to white noise and music on headsets or headphones. The survey of more than 600 executives and 600 employees by Oxford Economics and Plantronics set out to understand what works for employees—and what doesn’t—about open-plan layouts, and to test for disconnects between workers and their managers. The results show that threats to productivity and worker peace of mind are bigger issues than most executives realise, and most do not have the technology or strategies in place to deal with the problems.

June 15, 2016

Edinburgh most attractive city for commercial property investors outside London ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Cities, News, Property

Edinburgh is the most attractive British location for commercial property investment outside of London, according to new research by law firm and real estate consultancy Morton Fraser. Research amongst investors by the law firm’s commercial real estate division ranks a list of ten British cities outside of London according to their attractiveness as investment options. Edinburgh, Bristol and Manchester are the most appealing regional locations for investors, based on an indexed score of how many more investors found them attractive propositions compared to those who did not. However, the remaining seven cities did not appeal to the majority of investors, with more rating them an unattractive investment proposition rather than an appealing one. Aberdeen is rated the least attractive location for investors, coming after its energy-dependent economy was hit by falling oil prices, leading to thousands of job losses and the contraction of the oil and gas industry.

June 14, 2016

JLL survey claims occupiers and investors think voters will shun Brexit ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • News, Property

According to a new survey from JLL of top international corporate occupiers and UK-based investors into their business attitudes to the EU referendum, 80 percent held the view that the UK will vote to remain in the EU. The survey claims that investors are less fearful of impact of Brexit on their long term property strategies than corporate occupiers and that the London office market is viewed as the property sector that would be most impacted by a vote to leave. The survey also revealed attitudes of corporates and investors to future property market decisions in the event of a Brexit. 60 percent of the investors surveyed felt that there would be no changes to their property strategy in the short or long term as a result of a leave vote. Only 30 percent expect reduced allocations in UK property. Of the corporate occupiers surveyed, almost half foresaw they would need to review their UK business space in both the short or long term.

June 14, 2016

UK leads the world in serviced offices and demand is set to rise ⁰

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, Flexible working, News, Property

The UK is the leading global serviced office sector, with the largest and most mature market, accounting for over a third (36 percent) of the worldwide serviced office footprint, according to a new report commissioned by serviced office group Office Space in Town. The UK serviced office market has grown by 31 percent since 2008, and it is projected to increase in value significantly by 2025, to £62 billion on conservative projections and £126bn on more optimistic forecasts. There are three key drivers behind its rise: increasing numbers of growth businesses, expansion of key sectors that use serviced offices and the trend towards more flexible working. There are sound economic and business behavioural reasons to believe this growth in demand for serviced offices will continue over the next decade. This, in part, will come from growth in small firms and business start-ups, which comprise a large share of current serviced office users.

June 9, 2016

Commercial real estate investment strong despite Brexit-related slowdown ⁰

by Sara Bean • Cities, Facilities management, News, Property

Partly due to the uncertainty leading up to the EU referendum, employment intentions within Financial and Business Services (FBS) have slowed, but rental growth within the commercial property sector should remain healthy, particularly if the ‘remain’ vote prevails, the latest Real Estate investment forecasts from Colliers has revealed. Offices will continue to drive rental growth across the commercial property sector and it’s expected that rents will rise by 6.8 percent this year and average 3.9 percent in 2016-2020. Although it’s slowed a little, Central London will continue to attract demand and push the overall rate up, with a still strong growth of 8.4 percent in 2016. In addition, the artificial barriers between individual London ‘villages’ are increasingly breaking down, creating a fluid market for office occupiers in the capital, with more options for geographical relocations and expansions. This will continue to benefit the Rest of London, which is expected to see rents increase by 8.1 percent this year.

June 8, 2016

Cities must lead the way in cutting carbon emissions says IEA ⁰

by Sara Bean • Cities, Environment, Facilities management, News, Technology

With urban areas accounting for up to two-thirds of the potential to reduce global carbon emissions, cities must take the lead in the transition to low-carbon energy, says the International Energy Agency (IEA) in its annual report. Offering long-term pathways that could limit the global temperature increase to no more than 2°C, in line with the goals set at the Paris climate conference (COP21) in December 2015, the report suggests that the most cost-effective approach involves deploying low-carbon options in cities, especially in emerging and developing economies. Because buildings provide useful space to self-generate the electricity they consume: by 2050, rooftop solar could technically meet one-third of electricity demand. Such buildings offer significant demand potential for the roll-out of the most efficient technologies, like energy-efficient windows and appliances. However, international collaboration is essential, claims the report.

June 3, 2016

Uncertainty about the consequences of Brexit in construction sector ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Environment, News, Property

Uncertainty about the consequences of a possible UK vote to leave the EU is having an adverse effect on the country’s construction pipeline, according to the Markit/CPS survey of activity in the market. According to the study, new building orders declined during May for the first time in three years although at 51.2, the index remains above the neutral 50 threshold which indicates that the trend remains positive. The May study specifically asked respondents how their work had been affected by the Brexit vote with one third saying it had had a negative effect. Meanwhile, an April study from CBRE found that demand for office space in London had remained robust through the first quarter despite fears that uncertainty about the market and the wider economy related to the referendum would dampen demand. Meanwhile, a new survey from the IEMA claims that two-thirds of members believe environmental issues will be given lower priority if the UK leaves the EU.

June 1, 2016

Financial sector is rationalising real estate to remain in London ⁰

by Sara Bean • Cities, Facilities management, Property

A relentless drive to cut costs is forcing financial services occupiers to focus on reducing real estate costs and adopting strategies to use their space more efficiently in Central London. According to research from CBRE there has been an ongoing move by big banks to relocate non-core functions outside of Central London, as seen in HSBC’s decision to move 1,000 head office staff from London to Birmingham. However despite the inherent challenges, banks continue to cite client needs, recruitment, profile and presence as key reasons to keep office space in the Capital. This is reflected in last year’s leasing figures with banking and finance occupiers leasing 3.2m sq ft, 4.9 percent above the 10-year average. There are a variety of compromises companies may make as part of rationalisation strategies to maintain their position in London. Consolidation is an ongoing trend. But it is not a one size fits all approach.

May 19, 2016

High cost for UK’s working mothers as European gender gap persists ⁰

by Sara Bean • Comment, Flexible working, News, Workplace

New research has been added to the growing body of evidence that a gender gap in employment persists in the UK and across Europe, and that this increases in the UK among working women with children. According to a new report from Glassdoor Economic Research, in a ranking of 18 countries, the UK comes 11th for equality, behind the Nordics, France and Spain. In the UK there are fewer women than men in the workplace. However, this gap is considerably narrower for those with a university education. By contrast, Sweden, Norway and Finland all have an almost equal balance of men and women in the labour market. Of real significance though, is the high “cost of motherhood” in the UK, whereby the gender pay gap widens among working women with children. British working mothers are significantly worse off than those without family responsibilities, and this pressure will not help the UK address its workplace diversity issues.