Search Results for: employers

October 2, 2018

Flexible and part-time workers outperform full-time colleagues

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News

A new report from the charity Working Families assessing the flexible, agile, and family-friendly working policy of its employer members claims that flexible and part-time workers appear to outperform their full time colleagues. The 2018 Top Employers for Working Families Benchmark report captures the experience of 630,000 employees across some of the UK’s leading public, private, and third sector organisations. The report was launched to mark the National Work-life Week, Working Families’ annual campaign to encourage employers and employees to talk about wellbeing at work and work-life balance.

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October 1, 2018

Fathers seek more flexible working, but remain concerned about impact on career

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News

As more and more women are staying in the workplace after having children – and often full time – parents are demanding greater access to flexible working, but dads are still being held back by old-fashioned policies and fears that their employer will react negatively to requests to work flexibly, according to two new Workingmums.co.uk surveys.

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September 28, 2018

Shift to agile working held back by ageing technology

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News, Technology, Workplace design

The digital transformation of organisations and a shift to agile working is being held back by a reluctance to invest in new technology, according to a new report from Citrix and Capita. The Workplace agility report claims that legacy applications are delaying digital transformation of the entire organisation for more than half of respondents (56 percent) of the 200 CIOs who took part in the study. The report also claims that the inability to introduce new tech also restricts the uptake of new ways of working and the creation of agile working environments.

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September 28, 2018

Change of mindset can transform workplace performance says Smart Summit

by Sara Bean • Events, Facilities management, News, Wellbeing, Workplace, Workplace design

Changing mindsets and the workplace through co-creative leadership was the theme of the latest Quora Smartworking Summit which took place this week at ExCeL London. Hosted by Quora’s Managing Director John Blackwell, the event featured a distinguished group of senior leaders who discussed under Chatham House rules, how they have helped change their organisation’s mindsets using leadership styles aimed at achieving successful work performance transformations.

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September 27, 2018

Staff prefer consumer digital comms platforms to corporate ones

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, News, Technology, Workplace

A new report claims that the way that workers wish to communicate digitally differs from the platforms that are actually sanctioned by their employers. The research by Maintel claims a substantial proportion of employees would like to use consumer-grade tools such as Snapchat or Facebook Messenger for work. According to the research, 24 percent say they would like Snapchat to be approved by their employer, 19 percent Twitter, while 17 percent say they would like to use Facebook Messenger and FaceTime to communicate with colleagues, customers and partners. (more…)

September 26, 2018

CIPD and Mind launch guidance for managers to support mental health at work

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing

The CIPD, the professional body for HR and people development, and Mind, the mental health charity, have today jointly published a revised mental health guide for managers to improve support for those experiencing stress and mental health issues at work. The updated guidance follows recent CIPD research which found that less than one in three organisations (32 percent) train line managers to support staff with poor mental health.

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September 25, 2018

Mid-life report published to help older workers manage their careers

by Sara Bean • Flexible working, Legal news, News, Workplace

Last year John Cridland published his Review of the State Pension age, and one of his recommendations was for a ‘Mid-Life MOT’ for people’s late 50s and early 60s. Now a joint report, ‘Developing the mid-life MOT’, published today by the Centre for Ageing Better, outlines the response by industry to the review’s call for a better way of supporting people in their 40s, 50s and 60s to think about their careers and future lives. The report presents case studies of different approaches to the ‘mid-life MOT’ being tried out by Aviva, Legal and General, The Pensions Advisory Service (TPAS) and Mercer and offers insights to other employers thinking about introducing similar support for their own workers. The report suggests it is important that a mid-life MOT is the start of an engagement process, with participants signposted and encouraged to take up further support. Mid-life MOTs need a clear purpose that is understood by all stakeholders and participants.

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September 25, 2018

Fifth of workers fake physical illness to cover up mental health issues

by Sara Bean • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

A fifth (42 percent) of UK employees call in sick claiming a physical illness, when in reality it’s a mental health issue and just 15 percent would tell their boss the truth about having a mental health issue a new report claims. According to the research from BHSF, over half (56 percent) of employees admitted to suffering from stress, a third from anxiety (36 percent) and a quarter from depression (25 percent). Despite 88 percent of employees suffering from poor mental health admitting that work is either the main cause or a contributing factor, just 15 percent would tell their boss if they were struggling with an issue of this nature. (more…)

September 25, 2018

Nearly a third of UK workers favour fines for companies who breach ethics

by Sara Bean • Legal news, News, Workplace

Almost two thirds (64 percent) of SME employees believe that companies should make a positive contribution to society, while half of all UK workers (50 percent) would be discouraged from working for an organisation with no interest in community or ethical goals. According to The Future Workforce from Unum and independent researcher The Future Laboratory this emphasis on a company’s ethical credentials comes in the wake of a movement towards greater awareness of global issues, which has led to demands for more transparency in how organisations do business and less tolerance of unethical corporate behaviour. As a result, an ethical employer can be an important factor when it comes to deciding whether to join or stay with an organisation –In addition, The Future Workforce report found that just under a third (30 percent) of UK workers believe that companies who are not participating in any civic or ethical contributions should be fined.

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September 25, 2018

Around half of workers expect to have multiple careers throughout their working life

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, News, Workplace

Just under half of UK workers (46 percent) expect to have multiple careers throughout their working life, as opposed to one structured and lifelong career, according to a new report from employee benefits firm Unum and researcher The Future Laboratory. The Future Workforce (registration required) sets out to examine the motivations and priorities of UK workers, to understand how the nation’s workforce will change over the next decade. Insights were drawn from a survey of more than 3,000 UK workers, as well as from interviews with a range of industry experts and business leaders.

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September 20, 2018

Working parents would like more flexible working, but most don’t have the option

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News

According to new research commissioned by McDonald’s UK, working parents want to move to a more flexible working culture, but around three quarters simply don’t have it as an option. The study was conducted over the summer by YouGov with 1,100 parents across the country. The research found that over three quarters of respondents think flexible working would allow them to juggle work with home commitments, yet 73 percent say they do not have that option in their current role.

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September 19, 2018

The main challenge of modern working life: finding the place just right to meet ⁰

by Jim Ware • Facilities management, Features, Flexible working, Work&Place, Workplace design

Every physical setting sends distinct signals to meeting participants – signals that set the tone and provide a context for the conversation, even when they are subtle or not in anyone’s conscious awareness. You understand instinctively that the place where a meeting occurs has an impact on the nature of the conversation. Just imagine the difference between a conversation around a large formal conference table with expensive executive chairs and one that takes place in an informal employee lounge, with the participants seated in a circle on soft bean-bag chairs. (more…)