Search Results for: society

Flexible working mothers more likely to work the most unpaid hours

Flexible working mothers more likely to work the most unpaid hours

by • Legal news, News, Workplace

Flexible working mothers more likely to do most unpaid hoursFlexible working is supposed to be a boon to working parents, but it seems it’s not without its disadvantages, as a new academic study has found that part-time working mothers who have the ability to control their own schedule often end up working an increased amount of unpaid overtime.  The research from the University of Kent found that for those who gained schedule control over their work there was an increase in the amount of unpaid overtime worked, as on average in the UK men work an extra 2.2 hours a week in unpaid overtime while for women it is about 1.9 hours.

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Anti-team legislation can make us slaves to individual rights

by • Comment, Flexible working, Workplace

Society is becoming more selfish. At least that’s what the most commonly held view on the issue suggests, and it’s only set to get worse. Whether or not you believe the headlines, my 20 plus years’ experience as an HR consultant has led me to believe the hype. Increasingly many (I stress, not all) employees no longer see themselves as part of a team, but are increasingly ‘lone wolves’ single mindedly pursuing their needs and wants above those of the team. Each decision they make is with ‘I’ first and foremost, with ‘we’ maybe just a passing thought. It could be argued this was inevitable. How do you create a culture of team engagement, and group morale when for decades UK workplace legislation has focused almost exclusively on Individual Rights, rather than the ‘rights’ of the group? I’d argue it is simply not possible to develop successful teams where each individual has numerous legal rights but no corresponding responsibilities. My wish for 2019 would be for the government to set out a ‘responsibility’ alongside every ‘right’ it confers.

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How our body clocks affect our mental and physical performance

How our body clocks affect our mental and physical performance

by • Features, Wellbeing

Whether you’re a morning person or love burning the midnight oil, we’re all controlled by so-called body clocks. These body clocks (which regulate your circadian rhythms) are inside almost every cell in the body and control when we feel awake and tired during a 24-hour period. But as it turns out, our latest study found that our body clocks have a much bigger impact on us than we previously realised. In fact, our body clocks actually effect how well a person performs on both mental and physical tasks.

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Accelerating rate of digital tech and smart buildings to transform the built environment

Accelerating rate of digital tech and smart buildings to transform the built environment

by • AI, Cities, Facilities management, News, Technology, Workplace design

Accelerating rate of technological change will have big impact on built environmentTechnology is in the process of transforming almost every aspect of society, with change happening at an “accelerating rate,” and this is being made possible due of simultaneous rapid advances in several key areas of technology. This is according to a new White Paper on ‘Megatrends: Smart Building Technology’ from BSRIA (registration required) that predicts this will have a huge impact on construction and building services; from the way buildings are constructed to how they are managed and interact with occupants. (more…)

2019 will be the year of the data-driven digital ecosystem, claims Dell

2019 will be the year of the data-driven digital ecosystem, claims Dell

by • News, Technology

Dell Technologies have shared their predictions for 2019. Its central forecast is that this will be the year of the data-driven digital ecosystem, bringing us one step closer to 2030, which Dell describes as the next era of human-machine partnerships and a society where we will be immersed in smart living, intelligent work, and a frictionless economy. This includes: The spark of the next gold rush in tech investments, spurred by the greater value to be derived from data; 5G paving the way for micro-hubs to line our streets, and the opportunity for real-time insights; Multi-cloud environments driving automation, AI and ML processing into high gear; Making room in the workforce for Gen Z; and stronger, smarter and greener supply chains

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Large numbers of ethnic minorities in UK prevented from meeting career goals

Large numbers of ethnic minorities in UK prevented from meeting career goals

by • Legal news, News, Wellbeing, Workplace

Large numbers of ethnic minorities in UK held back from meeting career goals

More than half (55 percent) of ethnic minority workers have been advised to be ‘more realistic’ about their career aspirations, according to The Equality Group, which commissioned a nationally representative study that delves into UK ethnic minority citizens, their career aspirations, and the inequalities that still challenge the nation’s BAME community in the world of work It found that while 59 percent of the ethnic minority workforce aspire to be on the board, just 2 percent make it and with 46 percent of ethnic minorities being advised to commence a career NOT relevant to their skills or interests it’s hardly surprising that half do not have any ethnic minority leadership role models.  The research is launched amidst industry data that shows only 84 of the 1,048 directors in the FTSE100, originate from an ethnic minority. (more…)

Line up of speakers announced for Workplace Trends: Research Spring Summit

Line up of speakers announced for Workplace Trends: Research Spring Summit

by • Events, Facilities management, News, Technology, Workplace design

The research-driven Workplace Trends Spring Summit returns for 2019. We have two sessions with invited guest speakers, our keynote and the after lunch debate. Following a recent Call for Abstracts and a blind peer review by our two moderators for the day, Nigel Oseland (Workplace Unlimited) and Mark Eltringham (Workplace Insight), the remaining sessions have now been filled with the highest ranked submissions.

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Meaningful work an important driver of health and wellbeing for men

Meaningful work an important driver of health and wellbeing for men

by • News, Wellbeing

Men’s care brand Harry’s has published the findings from their first US Masculinity Report in partnership with University College London psychologist John Barry, co-founder of the male psychology section of the British Psychological Society. The report surveyed 5,000 men aged 18-95 across the US, weighted for race, income, education, sexual orientation and other factors. Respondents were asked about their wellbeing, happiness, confidence, emotional stability, motivation, optimism, and sense of being in control. They were then asked how satisfied they are with their careers, relationships, money, work-life balance, physicality, and mental health. The reports key finding was the strong correlation between wellbeing and meaningful work.

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Older workers would like more flexible working opportunities

Older workers would like more flexible working opportunities

by • Flexible working, Wellbeing

A survey carried out on behalf of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has found that the majority of workers aged over 50 would ‘welcome more flexibility’ in the workplace. The survey, which polled more than 12,000 workers over the age of 50, revealed that 78 percent would like ‘more flexible hours’. A further 73 percent want to see more part-time positions being offered, while 63 percent wish for more training schemes to help them use new technology and gain new skills.

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Mental health problems are rife across Europe

Mental health problems are rife across Europe

by • News, Wellbeing

Greater efforts to promote mental health and improve early diagnosis and treatment of those with mental illness would improve the lives of millions of Europeans and contribute to stronger economic and employment conditions, according to a new joint OECD/European Commission report. Health at a Glance: Europe 2018 says that mental health problems, such as depression, anxiety disorders and alcohol and drug use disorders, affect more than one in six people across the European Union in any given year. Besides the impact on people’s well-being, the report estimates the total costs of mental ill-health at over EUR 600 billion – or more than 4 percent of GDP – across the 28 EU countries.

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Biophilic design the key to improving mental health, productivity and stress levels

Biophilic design the key to improving mental health, productivity and stress levels

by • Architecture, News, Wellbeing, Workplace design

An expert panel at this week’s Welcome to the Biophilic Concrete Jungle event in London made the case for incorporating the principles of biophilic design into the workplace, including for health and wellbeing considerations, the promotion of productivity and to address workplace stress and urban disconnection from nature. HOK organised the event.  Panellists included Joyce Chan, Head of Sustainability and Trina Marshall, Regional Leader of Consulting from HOK, Professor Derek Clements-Croome from Reading University, Alexander Bond from Biophilic Design and Dr Ed Suttie from BRE.

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Importance of mental wellbeing underlined on national stress awareness day

Importance of mental wellbeing underlined on national stress awareness day

by • Company news, Wellbeing

In the fourth of their series of wellbeing events leading flooring manufacturer Milliken invited Neil Shah (founder and Director or the Stress Management Society and best-selling author) to run an ‘excelling under pressure’ workshop. Interior designers and architects are known to be amongst the most stressed workers with tight deadlines, financial pressure and an ultra-competitive environment.

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