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Levels of employee engagement are declining around the world

Levels of employee engagement are declining around the world 0

 

As the UK triggers Article 50 to leave the EU, France goes through what could be a game changing Presidential election and the United States continues to struggle with an increasingly divisive administration it’s perhaps not surprising that global uncertainty appears to be pushing up levels of employee scepticism. Globally, employee engagement declined for the first time since 2012, according to a report from Aon Hewitt. According to an analysis of more than five million employees at more than 1,000 organisations around the world, levels dropped from 65 percent in 2015 to 63 percent in 2016. Less than one quarter (24 percent) of employees are highly engaged and 39 percent are moderately engaged. “The rise in populist movements like those in the U.S., the U.K. and other regions is creating angst within organisations as they anticipate the potential for a decrease in free labour flow,” explained Ken Oehler, Global Culture & Engagement Practice leader at Aon Hewitt.

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Social technology has the power to make the workplace more humane

Social technology has the power to make the workplace more humane

Coloured-Social-Media-Icons-RoundSocial technology can, and should, make the workplace more humane. That’s because it has the potential and ability to shift the power dynamic from the few to the many. It gives more people a voice: one that they’re not afraid to use. You’ve only got to look at the uprisings, and the overthrowing of governments, in Egypt and Tunisia, to see the power of greater connectivity enabled by platforms such as Facebook. What was dubbed the Arab Spring was change on a grand scale. But, as Seth Godin points out in his book Tribes, it’s “tribes, not money, not factories,” that will change the world. The consequences of this are not lost on the people and cultural practices within organisations. The functions of how we recruit, how we learn, and how we communicate are all under pressure to bring greater humanity into the approach.

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Third of HR professionals say Brexit will impact the profits of their business

Third of HR professionals say Brexit will impact the profits of their business 0

Today (29 March) the Prime Minister triggers Article 50 to begin the UK’s exit from the European Union, and a new piece of research claims that almost two thirds (62 percent) of HR professionals expect this to impact their HR strategy and more worryingly, over a third (35 percent) say that the leave vote will impact the profits of their business. According to the research from employee benefits specialist Secondsight, 37 percent have opted not to hire over the coming year, and 39 percent agreed that recruiting the right people into their business will now be more difficult than before the decision to leave was made. However, on a more encouraging note, 95 percent of the HR professionals surveyed will see their budget rise in 2017, and 18 percent plan to introduce new benefits in the year ahead.

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Post Brexit UK sets out its case at MIPIM 2017

Post Brexit UK sets out its case at MIPIM 2017 0

Cannes-based international real estate fair MIPIM has always been a magnet for cities, determined to extoll their virtues to investors, developers and occupiers, but this year the UK was in charm overdrive. Buoyed no doubt in part by the presence of the UK government’s Department of International Trade (DIT), waving its ‘open for business’ flag for UK PLC, many of the towns and cities that would normally have ploughed their own furrow, instead came together to leverage critical mass. So Bradford and Leeds combined, conurbations across the central belt conjoined on a Midlands pavilion, and so on. Whether it was panic or confidence, the net result was an unusually prominent UK presence, up a quarter on last year. Of course the UK is just one nationality among the 24,200 real estate and city professionals from 100 countries who come together in Cannes every March.

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Communication key to allaying employee concerns about automation

Communication key to allaying employee concerns about automation 0

Organisations need to strike a balance between capitalising on the benefits of automation and managing employee concerns, according to a study by Capita Resourcing. The research claims that whilst over half (54 percent) of UK organisations are already automating business processes once performed by people, employees are concerned about the social impact this will have on the workplace. The ‘Workplace More Human’ report claims that the majority of employees (67 percent) fear that the rise of robotics will make the workplace less sociable and friendly in the future. The biggest concerns around introducing more automation in the workplace were the loss of their job (36 percent), losing the social relationship with colleagues (27 percent) and having to reskill/train to do another job (23 percent).

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New wellbeing index measures level of support for staff with poor mental health

New wellbeing index measures level of support for staff with poor mental health 0

New wellbeing index measures level of support for staff with mental ill health

Just over half (53 per cent) of staff who had disclosed poor mental health at work said they felt supported, and 72 per cent said they’d been made aware of the support tools such as Employee Assistance Programmes (EAPs), counselling, staff support network or informal buddying systems, a new piece of research has disclosed. The data has been gathered by mental health charity Mind to give an insight into the mental health of 15,000 employees participating in Mind’s first ever Workplace Wellbeing Index, a brand new benchmark of best policy and practice when it comes to staff mental health. Thirty organisations participated in Mind’s first ever Workplace Wellbeing Index, including Deloitte, HMRC, the Environment Agency, Jaguar Land Rover and PepsiCo. Over half (56 per cent) of employees who reported mental ill health were offered reasonable adjustments or support measures, such as changes to hours worked or the nature of some of their duties.

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State of the nation report sets out impact of digital transformation on the UK

State of the nation report sets out impact of digital transformation on the UK 0

The Institution of Civil Engineers has published its State of the Nation 2017 report, looking at how advances in digital technology and data are transforming how infrastructure is designed, delivered and operated. The report claims that digital transformation is bringing benefits to clients and end users as well as unlocking economic growth and productivity across the UK. The report, based on interviews with 350 organisations and industry figures discusses the practical steps firms and government need to take to maintain momentum and truly harness the benefits.

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Review advises employers should devise elder care policies as pension age increases

Review advises employers should devise elder care policies as pension age increases 0

Review advises employers should devise elder care policies as pension age increases

A review of the state pension age (SPA) led by former Confederation of British Industry (CBI) director general John Cridland has recommended that the State Pension age shouldn’t rise to 68 until between 2037 and 2039 and should not increase more than 1 year in any 10 year period. The report has also advised that all employers should have elder care policies in place which set out a basic care offer and that people should be able to access a mid-life career MOT and review which should be facilitated by employers and by the government using online support and through the National Careers Service. Commenting on the report, which will be considered before any decision is made on changes to the State Pension age timetable after 2028, the Centre for Ageing Better has welcomed its recommendations on wider actions to mitigate the impact of bringing the timetable forward for increases to the State Pension Age.

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The digital revolution is polarising the labour market and increasing wage inequality

The digital revolution is polarising the labour market and increasing wage inequality 0

The increasing ability of machines to perform cognitive, physical, and social tasks has polarised labour markets by “hollowing out” demand for middle-skill jobs, claims a new report published by IZA World of Labor based on research from economist Michael Gibbs of Chicago Booth School of Business. It suggests that analytical, problem solving, and social and communication skills are likely to be most valued in employees in the future. The new report finds that the advance of technology has opposing effects on jobs. It facilitates automation, creating fewer and less motivating middle-skill jobs. Conversely, it complements social and innovation tasks, creating more interesting low- and high-skill jobs. This causes labour market polarisation, “hollowing out” demand for middle-skill jobs, and increasing wage inequality.

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Employers in industries reliant on overseas workers will be hardest hit by Brexit

Employers in industries reliant on overseas workers will be hardest hit by Brexit 0

Brexit MigrationAccommodation and food services, manufacturing, and transport industries will be hardest hit by limits on movement of EU and non-EU workers following Brexit, a new report has claimed. The latest edition of Mercer’s Workforce Monitor has highlighted how reliant certain sectors of the UK economy have become on EU-born and non-EU born workers, as respectively, 33 percent, 23 percent and 20 percent of accommodation and food services, manufacturing, and transport are made up of non-UK-born nationals, meaning companies in those sectors, and those reliant on them, are especially at risk from the changes in the UK’s migration policy. According to Gary Simmons, Partner at Mercer, “Since 2013, the UK-born workforce has been declining as people retire and we can see how reliant certain industries are on overseas workers filling the gaps. The UK is likely to impose more stringent migration controls in the future and this will reduce the number of overseas workers available.”

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HR needs to help employers better prepare for the digitised workplace

HR needs to help employers better prepare for the digitised workplace 0

HR needs to help employers better prepare for the digitised workplace

HR leaders must take responsibility for bridging the gap between leadership and employees to help ensure organisations deal with the challenge of an increasingly digitised workplace and create a shared sense of direction, values and collaboration, a new piece of research suggests. According to the report, ‘Leadership Connections: HR’s role in business transformation’ from Ipsos LEAD and Cirrus, HR leaders are the crucial drivers of transformation in UK businesses through their roles of promoting devolved decision making, employee engagement and collaboration. Figures have shown that while half of CEOs expect their industries to be substantially or unrecognisably changed by digital, as of late 2016 10 percent of employees claim to have seen no significant change in their organisations at all – according to MORI’s Representative Employee Data (RED). This presents a significant difference between what we are being told by senior leadership and what employees believe to be the case.

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Global survey confirms the need for flexible working in order for businesses to thrive

Global survey confirms the need for flexible working in order for businesses to thrive 0

Productivity and teamwork are both significantly improved when employees can choose where they work, a global survey of on global flexible working trends claims. The survey commissioned by Polycom, Inc. a global leader in enabling organisations new levels of teamwork, efficiency and productivity by unleashing the power of human collaboration. The survey of over 24,000 people found that 62 percent of the global working population now take advantage of flexible working practices. Nearly all respondents (98 percent) state that flexible working has a positive impact on productivity. Although many remain concerned that their absence from the office may have a negative effect on their careers, they are drawn to flexible working to increase their productivity, achieve a better work life balance and avoid the problem of commuting.

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