Search Results for: people

April 28, 2017

Flexible working can be the key to lower stress levels at work ⁰

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, Wellbeing

A survey of over 1,000 British workers by the Institute of Leadership & Management, claims that flexible working can be an important way to reduce stress and increasing general wellbeing among the workforce. The study (login required) claims that over 4 in 5 (85 percent) managers feel that allowing staff to work flexibly enhances staff wellbeing and reduces overall stress ; two thirds (65 percent) believe flexible working encourages more commitment and motivation amongst staff; and over three quarters (78 percent) say flexible working helps to retain staff. Speaking to 1,026 managers, the study claims that flexible working increases productivity and wellbeing. The study also claims that learning the tools or techniques of how to be happy in one’s working life can empower major breakthroughs for people and their wellbeing. The Institute claims its research means that there needs to be broader communication in the workplace regarding flexible working policies from senior management. Openness and honesty about flexible working policies can alleviate worries and uncertainty.

April 27, 2017

Remote access to the workplace may be doing staff more harm than good ⁰

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

Employees are divided on whether remote access to the workplace is really a positive or negative development, with almost a third of UK workers (32 percent) feeling that having remote access to the workplace means they can’t switch off in their personal time. According to the latest CIPD/Halogen Employee Outlook report, two-fifths of UK workers (40 percent) admit to actively checking their work mobile or emails at least five times a day outside of working hours. Nearly a fifth (18 percent) feel as though they are under surveillance with remote access to work, and 17 percent say it makes them feel anxious or even impacts their quality of sleep. However, almost a third (30 percent) of employees say they feel empowered by having remote access to the workplace, showing a divide in opinion. Indeed, more than half of employees (53 percent) say it helps them to work flexibly and more than a third (37 percent) say it makes them more productive.

April 27, 2017

London businesses lead the way in uptake of flexible working ⁰

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News

London-based businesses are leading the way in flexible working in the UK, according to a new report from conference call provider Powwownow. The study of 2,000 people claims that business leaders in the capital let their staff spend the most time working out of the office during an average week – a total of 3 hours and 31 minutes, compared to the UK average of 2 hours and 34 minutes. The survey also suggests that young people, many of whom are graduates with sought-after skills such as digital and cybersecurity expertise, are the most likely to consider flexible working a main attraction of a new job, with three quarters (76 percent) agreeing. While young people in London (18 – 24 year olds) are the most likely to want flexible working (85 percent), they are the least likely to be offered it by businesses. Over half of young people (53 percent) are not proactively offered flexible working, compared to just a third (33 percent) of 35-44 year olds who also have to ask for it.

April 26, 2017

Best workplaces in London honoured by British Council for Offices ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Facilities management, News, Property, Workplace design

The British Council for Offices has announced the six winners of regional property awards for London and the South East of England. The winning entries, announced at a lunch at the Park Lane Hilton were Sky Central (main image), 8 Finsbury Circus, The Estée Lauder Companies, 20 Eastbourne Terrace, 67-71 Beak Street and Sea Containers House by BDG architecture + design. The prestigious BCO awards programme claims to recognise ‘the highest quality developments and sets the standard for excellence in the regional and national office sector.’ The winner of the Best Commercial Workplace was 8 Finsbury Circus while Sky Central took home the prize in the Best Corporate Workplace Category.

April 25, 2017

Study confirms effect of workplace autonomy on wellbeing and job satisfaction ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Flexible working, Knowledge, News, Wellbeing

New research into workplace culture has found that employees with higher levels of autonomy in their work reported positive effects on their overall wellbeing and higher levels of job satisfaction. Researchers at the University of Birmingham Business School examined changes in reported well-being relative to levels of autonomy using two separate years of data for 20,000 employees from the Understanding Society survey. The research, published in the journal Work and Occupations, found that levels of autonomy differed considerably between occupations and by gender. Those working in management reported the highest levels of autonomy in their work, with 90 percent reporting ‘some’ or ‘a lot’ of autonomy in the workplace. The finding backs up research from Cass Business School, the German Institute for Economic Research, Abraham Maslow and elsewhere.

April 25, 2017

Proactive approach needed to improve accessibility within the built environment ⁰

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, Legal news, News, Property, Public Sector, Workplace design

Inaccessible workplaces are too common problem that disabled people face in accessing buildings and public spaces, and the Government must lead a charge in improving access and inclusion in the built environment, according to a report by an influential cross party committee published today. The Women and Equalities Committee’s Disability and the Built Environment inquiry has been examining the extent to which those with accessibility issues are considered and accommodated in our built environment, and whether more could be done to increase the accessibility and inclusivity of both new and existing properties and spaces. The report recommends public procurement, fiscal initiatives and transparently modelling best practice, while bringing the full range of work on improving access and inclusion in the built environment into a coherent and transparent strategy, with the Department for Communities and Local Government held responsible for making this happen. The report found that many workplaces are inaccessible, there is very little choice of where to live and the public spaces through which people need to move can be prohibitively excluding; all of which constitute an unacceptable diminution of quality of life and equality.

April 25, 2017

Over a quarter of employees don’t think they’ve acquired the skills to do their job ⁰

by Sara Bean • News, Workplace

Four in 10 employees (39 percent) feel they are not well managed at work and are out of their depth in their roles, and 26 percent of employees don’t believe they have the right skills or experience to do their job properly in the first place, a new report claims. The research by recruitment firm, Robert Half UK also found that nearly one in five employees (18 percent) are not clear of what is expected of them at work. The research shows employees want better management and guidance from their bosses, particularly as they progress in their careers. Employees currently feel they have more support and training early on in their careers, with 71 percent of 18-34 year olds, claiming they are well managed. In comparison, just over half (56 percent) of 55+ year olds feel the same. To resolve this, managers need to set out clear expectations, offer regular training and opportunity for assessment, while employees also need to assume responsibility and ask for help.

April 24, 2017

Many workers believe AI and automation will increase employment and flexible working ⁰

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Technology

A new study from Adecco suggests that a large number of employees have a generally positive attitude towards technology in the workplace with many seeing it as increasing employment opportunities and nearly half believing that the advent of artificial intelligence and automation will enable a greater uptake in levels of flexible working. According to the Humans vs Robots report, two-thirds (65 percent) of employees believe that overall, technology has actually increased the number of jobs available to them, 54 percent believe that advances in technology will continue to create more jobs than it destroys over the next decade, 48 percent think AI will positively benefit them, by helping them to work more flexibly and a large majority of workers (87 percent) think that computers will make their role easier within the next ten years

April 20, 2017

Walking or cycling to work associated with lower risk of cancer and heart disease ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • News, Wellbeing

A new study published in the British Medical Journal suggests that cycling to work could halve the risk of cancer and heart disease and that any active form of travel to work offers similar health benefits. Although the report does not claim to establish the direct causal links, the five year study of 250,000 commuters in the UK concludes that “cycle commuting was associated with a lower risk of CVD, cancer, and all cause mortality. Walking commuting was associated with a lower risk of CVD independent of major measured confounding factors. Initiatives to encourage and support active commuting could reduce risk of death and the burden of important chronic conditions.” The five-year study compared people who had an active commute with those who were mostly sedentary in cars and public transport. The report found that regular cycling to work cut the risk of death from any cause by 41 percent, the incidence of cancer by 45 percent and heart disease by 46 percent.

April 19, 2017

Jobs should be redesigned to improve wellbeing ⁰

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

It’s not just the nascent fourth industrial revolution that is challenging our traditional views of work, but also the growing realisation that we could be doing things so much better anyway. The author Douglas Coupland and the World Economic Forum are already holding conversations about the fundamental issues with work and how we go about it. At the heart of this is the very design of jobs and what it means for us and our wellbeing. Only 28 percent of people in the UK are highly satisfied with their jobs, and yet, estimates suggest that an adult in work would spend an average of 57 percent of their waking hours working. A new international study from the University of East Anglia and the What Works Centre for Wellbeing based on a review of 4,000 pieces of research claims to show why organisations often fail to improve staff wellbeing. It suggests that employees should be encouraged to design their own jobs, and find ways to help managers better understand their concerns.

April 19, 2017

UK lags behind international competitors in key employment skills, warns CIPD ⁰

by Sara Bean • News, Workplace

As the country gears up for another general election, the CIPD warns today that the UK lags well behind its competitors in Europe and much of the OECD in literacy and numeracy, learning and development, and digital skills. According to the new analysis, this is largely due to the fact that UK employers train less and invest less in skills than most other EU countries. In its report – From ‘inadequate’ to ‘outstanding’: making the UK’s skills system world class’ – the CIPD warns that the UK is sleepwalking into a low-value, low-skills economy which leaves the nation ill-prepared for its post-Brexit future, particularly if the UK is to face restrictions on accessing talent from outside of the UK. The HR body is urging the Government to make funding available to tackle the problem in the workplace. The analysis, which forms part of the CIPD’s formal response to the Government’s Industrial Strategy Green Paper, highlights multiple failings in the UK.

April 14, 2017

Gender pay gap legislation may be aiming at the wrong target, claims report ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • News, Workplace

Britain’s new gender pay gap legislation is addressing the wrong issue and so will fail to do what it sets out to do, according to a new report from executive search firm Korn Ferry Hay Group. The firm claims that its analysis of over 570,000 people on its UK database shows that the gender pay gap is “virtually non-existent” when men and women do the same job at the same level in the UK, but that the differences become pronounced in senior and executive arenas. The study backs up data from the Office for National Statistics which recently began publishing details of pay differentials by age and sex and the results are eye opening. The most startling finding was that women in their 20s and early 30s earn slightly more than men of the same age and in the same job. However, as people get older, the pay gap goes into reverse, with men marginally out earning women at the age of 35, with the pay gap then widening rapidly into early middle age. As we reported earlier this week, the major issues arise both at a senior level of organisations and when women start families and begin paying a ‘motherhood penalty’ in terms of their pay and careers.