July 24, 2019

New government has unprecedented chance to transform buildings

by Neil Franklin • Environment, News, Property

The new UK government led by Boris Johnson has an unprecedented opportunity to dramatically shift policy on the built environment and deliver higher standards of safety, sustainability and social justice, according to the Building Engineering Services Association (BESA). It urged the new administration to back up rhetoric around climate change with robust legislation; to enshrine the recommendations of the Hackitt Review to improve fire safety in buildings; and tackle the scourge of late payment that is undermining thousands of SME and driving many into insolvency. (more…)

July 23, 2019

Two million workers miss out on holiday entitlement

by Neil Franklin • Legal news, News, Wellbeing

Around seven percent of UK workers are not getting or taking their legal holiday entitlement, according to a new study from the TUC. The analysis estimates that nearly two million employees (1.960 million) are not getting the minimum paid leave entitlement they are due. And over a million (1.145 million) are not getting any paid leave at all. The analysis shows that women workers (8.3 percent) are worse affected than men (5.9 percent). In addition, the sectors with the highest numbers of staff losing out on their legal holiday paid entitlement are education (341,000), retail (302,000), and health and social care (264,000). (more…)

July 22, 2019

A new generation of smart cities is with us

by James Ransom • Cities, Features

An abandoned mine shaft beneath the town of Mansfield, England is an unlikely place to shape the future of smart cities. But here, researchers from the nearby University of Nottingham are planning to launch a “deep farm” that could produce ten times as much food as farms above ground. Deep farms are an example of what the latest wave of smart cities look like: putting people first by focusing on solving urban problems and improving existing infrastructure, rather than opening shiny new buildings. (more…)

July 22, 2019

Problems with noise at work? A lot of it is in our heads ⁰

by Anna King • Comment, Wellbeing, Workplace design

When it comes to working in an office, hell really can be other people. Many staff can have enormous difficulties coming to terms with the sounds that form the backdrop to their working day, especially if they work in open plan areas. The problem of noise at work is particularly acute right now because most UK employees now work in open plan offices and at workstations that are on average about 20 percent smaller than they were ten years or so ago. Yet, on the face of it, the business case for working in open plan offices is pretty clear cut.

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July 19, 2019

The Age of Blorp, a dead tulip, no muggles allowed and some other stuff

by Mark Eltringham • Architecture, Features, Technology, Wellbeing, Workplace design

First the good news. Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has rejected the proposals for Foster+Partners’ godawful 300 metre tall ‘Tulip’ viewing tower in London. The reasons given for the refusal from the Mayor’s office include the fact that the thing didn’t represent the sort of “world class architecture that would be required to justify its prominence”. A nicely dressed up way of saying it’s a terrible idea, a terrible piece of architecture and has absolutely no place in London. (more…)

July 19, 2019

Outdated technology remains a massive waste of time

by Neil Franklin • News, Technology

Two new studies suggest that the failure to keep workers equipped with the latest technology is having a huge impact on their productivity and causing them to waste large amounts of time. According to the first piece of research from tech provider Insight, UK office workers waste 1.8 billion working hours every year because the outdated technology they’re given isn’t good enough to meet their needs. (more…)

July 18, 2019

Ergonomics regulations are no longer fit for purpose

by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Legal news, Technology, Workplace, Workplace design

The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there. We can apply LP Hartley’s legendary opening lines from his novel The Go Between to many of the ways the world of work has changed over the last quarter of a century. And perhaps especially to The European Display Screen Equipment Regulations which were first introduced in 1992 as a way of improving the posture and wellbeing of people working with computers in the office.

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July 18, 2019

Demand for four day week continues to rise

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News

With a recent report from Henley Business School highlighting that a shorter working week could add to businesses’ bottom lines through increased staff productivity and uplift in staff physical and mental health, a study from ADP (registration) has further emphasised these findings. ADP’s research claims almost two-thirds of UK workers (61 percent) would opt for a four day week at work if they had the choice. (more…)

July 18, 2019

Employment rights to be enforced by new single body

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, Legal news, News, Workplace

The government has launched its latest Good Work Plan consultation which proposes a new single body for employment rights enforcement. The new body would replace the current seven organisations that have responsibility for employment rights enforcement. The proposals include the body having powers to enforce payment of the minimum wage, labour exploitation and modern slavery, along with holiday payments for vulnerable workers and safeguarding agency workers. The consultation considers whether the body should also enforce laws related to workplace discrimination, harassment and bullying. (more…)

July 17, 2019

CoreNet Global Summit to focus on workplace experiences

by Freddie Steele • Company news, Events, Property

Corporate real estate and workplace association CoreNet Global has announced that its Global Summit taking place in Amsterdam in September will examine the role that corporate real estate can play in leading, creating and fostering experiences that enable business success. The Summit, Amsterdam, which takes place this September, expects to bring together more than 650 corporate real estate executives, 100 speakers across 50 sessions. (more…)

July 17, 2019

Rise in employment led by self-employed and older workers

by Tony Wilson • Flexible working, News

As with the last few months, the latest UK employment figures look like a sea of tranquillity. The number of people in work is up ever so slightly (setting another record), unemployment down slightly again (ditto) and earnings continuing to grow. After a couple of months where there were hints that the labour market might be cooling down, today’s figures suggest that it is heating up once more. However beneath the surface, the numbers highlight some big changes in employment trends – with two things in particular standing out. (more…)

July 16, 2019

New BCO specification guide addresses “exponential times”

by Neil Franklin • News, Property, Technology, Wellbeing, Workplace design

The British Council for Offices (BCO) has published its new Guide to Specification, which provides guidance on industry standards for workplaces across the UK. The Specification Guide, last published in 2014, sets out to help office developers address the key issues for the UK workforce in the coming decades, namely wellbeing, technology and sustainability. The authors claim that the new edition addresses the “exponential times” in which we now live, with sections focusing on wellbeing, the Fourth Industrial Revolution and sustainability. (more…)