Search Results for: workforce

Quarter of the UK workforce report they’re suffering long-term ill health

by • Facilities management, News, Workplace

Quarter of the UK workforce report they're suffering long-term ill health

Administrative and support activities, which includes facilities management, is one of five UK industries where employees have reported the highest levels of long-term ill health. However across all the sectors a staggering eight million people, or a quarter of the UK’s workforce (27%) say they suffer from a health problem that’s lasted more than a year. According to the new Health at Work Index from the British Heart Foundation (BHF) one in ten workers (12%) – approximately 3.5 million people – said their ability to do their job is limited by poor health. This includes over half of diabetes sufferers (58%) and the same proportion of people suffering from depression, mental illness or panic attacks (58%). More →

‘Beleaguered’ UK workforce is poorly motivated and unproductive

by • Flexible working, News, Workplace

UK workers are lacking motivation and job satisfaction, with over half either feeling neutral or unhappy about going to work most days, only one in four very satisfied with their jobs and 20 per cent who dread going to work. According to a new report, ‘The Forgotten Workforce’ a series of blows to UK workers, including cuts to their working hours, increasingly inconsistent working patterns, pay freezes, and introduction of zero hours – coupled with little or no investment in technology to support employees – has led to a UK workforce lacking morale and disengaged from the business. An efficient business needs an efficient workforce. If this cycle continues, businesses will face increasingly poor productivity and the UK economic recovery will suffer warns the report. More →

Open source talent could rewrite the meaning of the term workforce

by • Flexible working, News, Technology, Workplace

Open source talent could rewrite the meaning of the term workforce

The digital revolution has changed the definition of the “workplace”, from a physical building where employees go to perform the tasks for which they get paid – to a more flexible model that allows staff to perform and deliver work from a variety of locations. But the employers’ role, i.e. managing the talent wherever they are based, has remained the same. Not for much longer – suggest analysts from Deloitte in a new paper, The Open Talent Economy, which describes the evolving workforce as a mixture of full-time employees, contractors and freelancers and – increasingly – people with no formal ties to a business at all. What’s more, in the future this “open source talent” will ultimately rewrite what the term “workforce” actually means. More →

What Jeremy Clarkson can’t teach us about workforce productivity

by • Comment, Workplace

In 2011, one of Top Gear’s regular bits of lazy casual racism caused a bit more fuss than the rolling of eyes it typically deserves. The presenters had mocked a Mexican sports car with Richard Hammond – who has never said anything interesting or funny in his life – claiming  that ‘cars reflect national characteristics. A Mexican car’s just going to be a lazy, feckless, flatulent oaf with a moustache, leaning against a fence asleep, looking at a cactus with a blanket with a hole in the middle on as a coat.’ There was a bit more of this kind of stuff with Jeremy Clarkson suggesting that the Mexican ambassador to Britain would be too lazy to make any kind of complaint. He was wrong about that (he did) and they were all wrong about Mexicans anyway because according to a new report into global productivity,  Mexico has the world’s most productive workforce.

More →

CIBSE creates diversity panel to reflect varied workforce

by • Facilities management, News, Property, Workplace

Diversity in the workplace

Efforts to encourage a more inclusive culture within the built environment appear to have moved up a gear. RIBA President Angela Brady has voiced concerns on the “gender inequality that continues to pervade the profession,” and now the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineering (CIBSE) has launched a Diversity Panel. Formed to encourage diversity in all its forms, whether race, gender, age, sexual orientation or disability, it is made up of CIBSE members who are keen to increase the routes to the profession through educational paths and by promoting a diverse workplace. Commented CIBSE: “The employment and retention of a varied workforce is integral to meet the building services engineering skills gap and to therefore improve building performance.” More →

Change of ways needed to tackle ailing UK workforce

by • News, Workplace

Staff ill health

The best way of tackling ill health is to stop workers from getting ill in the first place, suggests new guidance from the TUC. It may seem as if the union is stating the obvious, until you reflect on the news, reported exclusively by HR magazine earlier this week that the UK was among the 10 worst performing countries for employee wellbeing last year, according to the Workforce Quality of Life Index (WQLI) report  by Kenex, which measures wellbeing from the employee’s perspective. Now the TUC report, Work and well-being, provides evidence that employers who create healthy workplaces can reduce employee absence and boost productivity. More →

Ageless workforce welcomed, despite sickness absence increase

by • News, Workplace

GRiD age research

One third (33%) of UK employers have seen the average age of their workforce increase over the last year, with three in five (59%) believing that the removal of the Default Retirement Age (DRA) meant they were more likely to recruit employees aged 50 and over. Older workers are viewed positively, despite the fact that, according to new research by Group Risk Development (GRiD), over a quarter (27%) of employers report increased absence rates or an increase in age related health conditions since the removal of the DRA. More →

Brain rot is the word of the year and we only have ourselves to blame

Brain rot is the word of the year and we only have ourselves to blame

by • AI, Comment

Brain rot is the word or phrase of the year 2024 according to the Oxford University Press. And right on time, we have the viral story of the hawk tuah girl meme coin rug pull to prove it. If you don’t know what any of that means, then do yourself a favour by not finding out. I do know and feel as if something meaningful and important has been cauterized from my brain for ever to make way for it. More →

Artificial intelligence is coming for the jobs of bosses first

Artificial intelligence is coming for the jobs of bosses first

by • AI, News, Workplace

Two thirds of firms expect the 'benefits' from artificial intelligence in the next three years to come from cost savings through elimination of management rolesA new survey of 252 senior executives within dedicated IT and artificial intelligence functions enterprises by Verdantix, claims that more than half (53 percent) of businesses expect 10 percent of job roles to be replaced by AI agents over the next five years. And even more (62 percent) expect the benefits from AI projects in the next three years to come from cost savings through elimination of management roles, more so than through savings from the elimination of frontline worker roles. More →

iON Ambulance Care selects Boostworks to supercharge employee perks and happiness

iON Ambulance Care selects Boostworks to supercharge employee perks and happiness

by • Company news, Wellbeing

Boostworks, a leading provider of employee reward and recognition, benefits delivery and wellbeing solutions, today announced that it has been selected as the benefits provider for iON Ambulance CareBoostworks, a leading provider of employee reward and recognition, benefits delivery and wellbeing solutions, today announced that it has been selected as the benefits provider for iON Ambulance Care, trading as Tricorder Care. With over 180 dedicated professionals working across its five sites, iON ‘s goal is to significantly enhance employee engagement and retention by implementing a comprehensive benefits platform tailored to the unique needs of its frontline workforce. More →

Working life in 2024 is defined by stress, poor management and loneliness

Working life in 2024 is defined by stress, poor management and loneliness

by • Flexible working, News, Wellbeing, Workplace

Despite living in an era of progress, people feel that stress, disengagement, and declining mental health are prominent in daily working lifeThe 2024 State of the Global Workplace report by Gallup sets out to provide a comprehensive analysis of employee experiences worldwide, revealing a large number of people who feel they are under increasing strain. Despite living in an era of remarkable technological and economic advancements, workers face significant challenges, with stress, disengagement, and declining mental health prominent in people’s daily working life. The report suggests that 41 percent of employees experience high levels of daily stress, with poor management practices being a major contributing factor. One in five workers report daily loneliness, an issue particularly pronounced among remote employees. More →

These are very early days in our relationship with Generative AI

These are very early days in our relationship with Generative AI

by • AI, Comment

The future of Generative AI in the workplace isn’t about replacing humans – it’s about enhancing what we do best.The launch of ChatGPT in late 2022 marked a milestone moment for artificial intelligence, bringing what was once a niche technology firmly into the mainstream. Suddenly, AI and especially Generative AI, wasn’t just the prerogative of data scientists and tech developers. It was a feature in everyday conversations, a presence in business strategies, and a catalyst for innovation across industries. In the months since, platforms like Gemini and Perplexity have emerged, pushing the boundaries of what AI can achieve while expanding its role in the workplace. More →

«< 7 8 9 10 11 >»