August 5, 2022

The four day week might be the wellbeing solution workers need

by Mark Hall • Comment, Flexible working, Wellbeing

It’s been a couple of months now since 70 companies in Britain began their four day week pilot program, where thousands of employees went from celebrating the Queen’s 70th Jubilee to celebrating shorter work weeks without reduction in pay for the remainder of 2022. The pilot had been highly anticipated by workers and employers alike – and has already seen tremendous results — but it’s also created a heated debate on whether it’s actually workable across industries, demographics, and different sized companies. More →

August 5, 2022

Zumtobel create a consistent corporate identity with light

by Freddie Steele • Company news

The Zumtobel MIREL and PANOS infinity luminaires have been chosen for the latest FinTrU office refurbishment. A good brand provides a distinct experience and evokes emotion from its customers, which is why a business needs to care about branding all the way through to its interior spaces. Extending branding to the working environment helps staff and customers understand who the company is and what makes them unique. FinTrU, a multi-award-winning company specialising in the areas of KYC, Compliance, Legal, Risk & Controls, and Operations, works with Investment Banks around the globe designing technology-enabled solutions to help its clients meet their regulatory obligations. More →

July 18, 2022

The future of work is asynchronous

by Adam Dover • Comment, Flexible working, Technology

In our pre-, post-, and mid-pandemic worlds, the corporate workspace landscape underwent – and continues to undergo – a great many adaptations. It is changing out of necessity so firms can survive in a new present and future of work. The way we work had never evolved as much as it has in the past 2 years. It was dominated by strict schedules, physical meetings and on-site technology only. As time passed and technology evolved, the 9-to-5 in-office schedule remained, and teleworking, despite being possible, was extremely rare.

July 14, 2022

Six ways to get into the entertainment industry

by Freddie Steele • Company news

So you want to break into the entertainment industry? It’s not as impossible as it may seem. In fact, there are many different ways to make your dream a reality. You could be an actor, singer, writer, or director; the list goes on and on, but how do you get started? In this article, veteran sports and entertainment agent Nancy Etz advises aspiring artists. Stay tuned to learn how to get your foot in the door of the entertainment industry. More →

July 14, 2022

There are now fewer taboo workplace subjects, and we should talk about that

by Peter Nagle • Comment, Wellbeing

Rewind even a few years and issues like mental health were not really talked about in the workplace. Now we’ve seen dramatic improvements around certain topics, we should ask what other areas of employees’ lives could employers help with? There’s been a lot of discussion around what employers can do to support women going through the menopause. Though the construction industry is a traditionally male dominated sector, NHS Employers says that “Menopause is not just a gender or age issue as it can impact on colleagues both directly and indirectly and it should therefore be considered as an organisational. issue.” More →

July 4, 2022

Milliken publishes annual sustainability report

by Freddie Steele • Company news, Works Magazine

Milliken & Company has published its fourth annual Sustainability Report, as part of the company’s progress toward its 2025 Sustainability Goals. In 2019 Milliken laid out 12 sustainability goals, focused on its people, its products and the planet, as a roadmap to achieving a healthier tomorrow. Guided by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, these 12 goals signal the company’s commitment to sustainability in all forms. More →

June 30, 2022

The fifteen minute city will transform the way we think about workplaces

by Wybo Wijnbergen • Cities, Features, Flexible working, Property

For most of history, there have been a small number of immovable truisms that formed the nature of what work is, and how communities form around it. While individuals have long held some agency around the structure and pattern of their work, being present in a communal workplace has been a non-negotiable reality. This need to work from an office comes wed with parallel requirements to help facilitate it. Employees have been willing to strike a compromise between where they wish to live and where they want to work through commutes, with the financial and time cost and associated stress that comes along with it. More →

June 23, 2022

We need to stop misusing the term ergonomic

by Guy Osmond • Comment, Flexible working, Wellbeing, Workplace design, Works Magazine

You don’t have to search for long to find the word ergonomic; it pops up everywhere, in connection with every sort of product and device for the workplace (and elsewhere). You can – so the marketeers will tell you – buy an ‘ergonomic’ chair, desk, keyboard or mouse. What’s wrong with that? An awful lot actually. The word ergonomic has a particular meaning. Ergonomics (note the crucial addition of an ‘s’ at the end), from the Greek ‘Ergos’ for work or labour and ‘Nomos’, meaning natural law, is the discipline of designing and arranging an environment to optimise the comfort and performance of the individual. More →

June 22, 2022

Four day week demands intensify as workers crave flexibility

by Jayne Smith • Flexible working, News, Workplace

According to a new report from ADP exploring employees’ attitudes towards the current world of work, six-in-ten (60 percent) UK workers would like more flexibility as to when they work, such as condensing hours into a four day week. This number increased to two-thirds (67 percent) in Greater London. This desire for great flexibility comes at a time when there is a mental health ticking timebomb happening in offices up and down the land. Over half (51 percent) of men and 45 percent of women admit that their work us suffering due to their poor mental health. This is leading to over a quarter (29 percent) of workers actively trying to change their job and/or move into another industry. More →

June 22, 2022

Dogs Trust urges businesses to open a dialogue about bringing dogs to work

by Neil Franklin • News, Workplace

Businesses participating in ‘Bring Your Dog To Work Day’ on Friday 24 June should see it as an opportunity to open an honest and frank dialogue with their workforce about the benefits, challenges and feasibility of bringing dogs to work, says Dogs Trust. Britain saw a rise in dog ownership during the pandemic, particularly among younger people, aged 25-34. As more people return to their place of work, there are concerns among dog owners about what this means for their dogs, who have become used to them working from home over the last couple of years. More →

June 15, 2022

Poor mental wellbeing costs UK contact centres almost £1 billion each year

by Neil Franklin • News, Wellbeing

People working in contact centre roles say that work-related poor mental wellbeing is making them less productive, including answering fewer calls and taking more sick days – costing the industry over £990m in lost productivity every year. That’s according to a new study, Duty of Care Gap [registration] from MaxContact. The contact centres industry is a huge contributor to the UK economy, employing over 800,000 people across the country. Yet the industry is facing a mental health crisis, with 83 percent workers saying their work is taking a toll on their mental wellbeing, with staff reporting high stress levels (62 percent), anxiety (48 percent) and feeling overwhelmed (46 percent). More →

June 10, 2022

Young people should optimise the time they spend in the office

by Gemma Dale • Features, Flexible working

During the pandemic, around 100 million people in Europe switched to working from home – nearly half of them for the first time. This shift was rapid, with employees quickly noticing the benefits of remote work. These can include freedom from commuting, more time for personal wellbeing and increased productivity. As we move on from pandemic restrictions, we’ve seen a strong, global demand for more flexible forms of working, particularly to retain an element of remote work. While some employees want to work from home permanently, most want what’s coming to be regarded as the best of both worlds: hybrid working. Only a minority of workers now want to return to the office full time. More →