August 3, 2020

Working from home experience proves value of workplace counselling

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News

The Covid-19 pandemic has led to an upsurge of workplace stresses and concerns, with many employees experiencing significant changes to work and life. Finding the best forms of support for employees will be an essential concern for employers, especially as they begin to manage future workplace adjustments and the possible return to the office That is the main finding of a new report which looks at the effects of various interventions on people’s mental health during lockdown. (more…)

July 24, 2020

Half of firms set to adopt flexible working

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News

As employers have been given the green light to encourage staff to return to the office should they want to, new research from Hays claims over half (55 percent) of employers predict staff will transition to a new era of predominantly flexible working in six months’ time. (more…)

July 9, 2020

Three quarters of furloughed employers are worried about redundancy

by Neil Franklin • News

A new report claims that the majority of people who are currently on furlough are concerned about being made redundant when the scheme ends. Two thirds (67 percent) feel there’s been a lack of communication from their employer. The platform surveyed professionals currently on the government job retention scheme to find out if they are worried about job security, along with how being furloughed has impacted them. The survey revealed that the hospitality industry is where staff feel the least amount of job security, closely followed by travel/tourism and sales. (more…)

July 8, 2020

Mental health of finance workers seriously harmed by lockdown

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing

More than eight-in-ten London-based banking and finance professionals (86 percent) say Covid-19 lockdown has affected their mental health, according to a new survey of white-collar employees by Helix Resilience. According to the survey of 352 banking and finance professionals, over half (52 percent) of respondents claim to be less productive, and nearly four-in-ten (39 percent) say they find it difficult to concentrate outside the office. While most working in the sector (53 percent) feel their employer is doing enough to support their wellbeing during lockdown, a third (33 percent) do not feel supported. (more…)

June 29, 2020

Recruitment firms remain upbeat about longer term economy

by George Eltringham • News, Workplace

Research conducted by Bullhorn, suggests that recruiting professionals are optimistic about COVID-19’s future economic impact. According to Bullhorn’s Global Recruitment Insights and Data (GRID) COVID-19 Impact Survey, only two percent predict a sustained depression that extends past 2021, and more than half (56 percent) expect the economy to improve by the end of the year. (more…)

June 26, 2020

Work from home advocates beckon us to a living hell

by James Woudhuysen • Comment, Flexible working, Wellbeing

Look, I work from home. The liberal in me says: if you want to and can work from home, then why not? Yes, few of Britain’s cramped homes – especially those occupied by young people – are well equipped for home working, which can be stressful. But, as I say, I see no problem in working from home if you choose to. It’s one thing to say people should be free to work from home (WFH). It’s quite another to endorse it as the New Normal, the way to go, and as a path to a low-pollution, low-emissions paradise on Earth, as many are now doing. (more…)

June 24, 2020

The traditional commute to work may be a thing of the past

by Neil Franklin • News, Working lives

A majority of corporate real estate professionals (58 percent) in a recent survey say that the traditional nine to five, Monday to Friday work pattern is a thing of the past. The survey was conducted by CoreNet Global, the professional association for corporate real estate professionals – those who have responsibility for managing the real estate, including workplace configuration and locations, at large corporations globally. The survey was conducted among “end-users” only from May 27 – June 16. (more…)

June 17, 2020

Time to apply the lessons we learned during lockdown

by Louise Bancroft • Features, Flexible working, Wellbeing

So far, 2020 has not gone to plan. For businesses, and the people they employ, the next few months may be just as bumpy, as each country, state and city takes its own approach to a phased return to work after lockdown. Today, in Houston, offices are limited to 25 percent capacity, in London, the underground is capped at 13-15 percent capacity, while in New Zealand and other countries hospitality and retail are returning with heightened hygiene measures and social distancing in place. (more…)

June 16, 2020

Workplace technology enters new `golden age`

by Neil Franklin • News, Technology

A ‘golden age’ of workplace technology could be coming, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic according to a new report, co-authored by Professor Michael Dickmann from Cranfield University which investigated the Global Mobility response to COVID-19. The report claims that some multinational companies were completely lacking crisis response plans when the pandemic hit, and many are now adjusting their goals because of movement restrictions and employee wellbeing. (more…)

June 11, 2020

Mental health in UK tech deteriorates in lockdown

by George Eltringham • News, Wellbeing

The easing of lockdown restrictions and a return to offices is raising the stress levels of over a quarter of UK tech professionals (26 percent) at a time when over 1 in 3 (36 percent) report that their mental health has deteriorated during Covid-19, according to a new Harvey Nash Study. The relaxing of restrictions has left tech professionals worrying most about bringing Covid-19 back into the home, and the health risk of their daily commute. (more…)

June 10, 2020

IWBI launches WELL health and safety rating for buildings

by George Eltringham • News, Wellbeing

The International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) has annouced the launch of the WELL Health-Safety Rating for all building and facility types, an “evidence-based, third-party verified rating focusing on operational policies, maintenance protocols and design strategies to address a post COVID-19 environment”. The new health and safety rating is one of the earliest outcomes of IWBI’s Task Force on COVID-19, a group of nearly 600 public health officials, virologists, government officials, academics, business leaders, architects, designers, building scientists and real estate professionals, which was established in late March to help guide a response to the pandemic. (more…)

June 4, 2020

Right, said Fred. Here I am again

by Mark Eltringham • Comment, Technology, Wellbeing

If there has been an underlying driver of workplace thinking over the past several decades, it has been a rejection of the principles of scientific management. These begat the idea of the office as a factory, subject to the same rigid times and places of work and the same culture of process, efficiency and productivity. This made a pantomime villain of its key figure Frederick Taylor. The worst adjective you could use to describe a working culture was Taylorist. (more…)