Search Results for: working parents

Survey into UK culture of overwork highlights need for better worklife balance

by • Knowledge, News, Workplace

UK culture of overwork highlights need for better worklife balance

A new study is published today which reveals how the UK’s long hour-culture is damaging family life, causing high stress levels, cutting time spent with loved ones and creating an inability to switch off from work. A survey of more than 1,000 working parents throughout the UK, commissioned by health cash plan provider Medicash, found that 83 per cent of working parents feel guilty about the amount of time they spend working, with 50 per cent saying it has a negative impact on relationships with their children, and almost half (45.9%), saying it caused problems in their relationship with their partner and caused them to neglect friends (25%).

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New mothers return to work early as financial pressures shorten maternity leave, report finds

New mothers return to work early as financial pressures shorten maternity leave, report finds

by • News, Wellbeing

Financial pressures are prompting many new mothers to return to work before the end of their statutory maternity leave, according to new researchFinancial pressures are prompting many new mothers to return to work before the end of their statutory maternity leave, according to new polling from campaign group Pregnant Then Screwed. The organisation’s State of the Nation 2026 survey, conducted in partnership with Women in Data, suggests the impact is greatest on single parents, lower income families and parents of disabled children. (more…)

How AI is already changing the world of work

How AI is already changing the world of work

by • AI, Comment, Workplace

AI is already changing the world of work, but not everybody is reacting to it in the same way, writes Laura AndersonAI is rapidly transforming the world of work. That much is clear. Understanding how different generations are adapting to this shift is therefore crucial for any organisation looking to the future.  Our recent study focusing on the generational differences in attitudes towards some of today’s biggest topics sheds some light on what might be driving these trends. Perhaps the most important finding was that nearly two-thirds of Gen Z feel concerned about AI’s impact on their future (only Baby Boomers reported more concern) – even though over half are still using AI day to day. (more…)

Reactions to the UK’s new Employment Rights Bill

Reactions to the UK’s new Employment Rights Bill

by • News, Workplace

Details of the UK's new Employment Rights Bill were released yesterday. The legislation represents what the government claims is a significant overhaul of workers' rights, offering more protections and benefits and helping to promote practices like flexible workingDetails of the UK’s new Employment Rights Bill were released yesterday. The legislation represents what the government claims is a significant overhaul of workers’ rights, offering more protections and benefits and helping to promote practices like flexible working. Key elements of the bill include granting workers access to statutory sick pay and parental leave from the first day of employment, and introducing a ban on exploitative zero-hour contracts. It also aims to curb controversial “fire and rehire” practices and gives employees the right to claim unfair dismissal from day one, rather than after two years of service. However, businesses will still be allowed to operate probationary periods to ensure fit for roles, with discussions suggesting a maximum of six months. (more…)

We can have a dramatic impact on people’s lives with simple, small and cost-free changes

We can have a dramatic impact on people’s lives with simple, small and cost-free changes

by • Cities, Comment, Flexible working, Wellbeing

London, the crouching monster, like every other monster has to breathe, and breathe it does in its own obscure, malignant way. Its vital oxygen is composed of suburban working men and women of all kinds, who every morning are sucked up through an infinitely complicated respiratory apparatus of trains and termini into the mighty congested lungs, held there for a number of hours, and then, in the evening, exhaled violently through the same channels. (more…)

The significance of women’s health is increasingly acknowledged in the modern workplace

The significance of women’s health is increasingly acknowledged in the modern workplace

by • Comment, Wellbeing

addressing the disparities in women's health could dramatically reduce this statistic, enhancing the lives of billions globallyWomen, on average, outlive men but, as reported by the World Economic Forum (WEF, 2024), spend approximately 25 percent of their lives in poor health. According to the WEF, addressing the disparities in women’s health could dramatically reduce this statistic, enhancing the lives of billions globally. Notably, strategic improvements in women’s healthcare could add an average of seven days of healthy living per year for each woman, cumulatively offering more than 500 additional healthy days over a lifetime. This progression not only promises to elevate the quality of life for women but also holds the potential to boost the global economy by at least $1 trillion annually by 2040. (more…)

Are you ready for the latest family friendly employment laws?

Are you ready for the latest family friendly employment laws?

by • Comment, Workplace

Three new ground-breaking employment laws will transform the employee benefit landscapeIt’s increasingly important for employers to have family-friendly employee benefits and policies to support recruitment and retention. These need to recognise the diverse needs and responsibilities of employees today and enable them to effectively balance their work and family life. Now to support employees and give them more protection in law three new ground-breaking employment laws will transform the employee benefit landscape. (more…)

Workplace generations express different demands of their jobs

Workplace generations express different demands of their jobs

by • News

A report from interior design and fit-out business Claremont claims that firms are having to work increasingly hard to address the needs and priorities of different workplace generationsEven though people who belong to so-called Generation Z are often described as digital natives, it is actually ‘Baby Boomers’ who are most focussed on workplace technology, a new poll claims. The report from interior design and fit-out business Claremont claims that firms are having to work increasingly hard to address the needs and priorities of different workplace generations. It claims that Baby Boomers (born 1946 to 1964) want better technology in the office to help them be more productive. They also want more face-to-face collaboration and team spirit more than any other generation. (more…)

How businesses can support employee wellbeing over a difficult festive period

How businesses can support employee wellbeing over a difficult festive period

by • Comment, Wellbeing

Wellbeing at ChristmasWhen we think about the festive period, the financial pressures that Christmas brings, amid rising energy bills and not having enough to eat shouldn’t be first and foremost on our minds. With thirty million people employed by businesses in the UK, that is a huge number of employees who could benefit if employers acted now to support them and their wellbeing. This winter has been extremely challenging for many people across the UK. And for the first time since 2009, the UK is in recession. (more…)

Always connected in the age of disconnection

Always connected in the age of disconnection

by • Features, Flexible working, Wellbeing

All of humanity’s problems,” the French scientist and philosopher Blaise Pascal wrote in 1654, “stem from man’s inability to sit quietly in a room alone.” He may have been right, but then again, sitting in a room alone isn’t necessarily a great state of permanent being either. There was a time we used to talk with dismay about the Japanese phenomenon of intense social distancing known as hikikomori. We would consider with horror the isolation, lack of engagement with society, poor mental health and loneliness of the people who had almost completely withdrawn to their rooms. Those poor bastards locked up in enclosed spaces linked to the outside world only by screens. (more…)

One in four pregnant women reluctant to share news with employers

One in four pregnant women reluctant to share news with employers

by • News, Wellbeing, Workplace

An exasperated woman at a desk rests her head on her laptop to show how women, including pregnant women, can feel let down by outdated attitudes More than one in four (26 percent) pregnant women feel reluctant to share their pregnancy news due to fear of the stigma they may face from colleagues and managers, according to a new poll from Culture Shift. This jumped to almost half (46 percent) for those who had been in employment for less than six months when they fell pregnant. The survey conducted among mothers who worked while pregnant reveals more than one in five (21 percent) know someone who has faced maternity discrimination at work, while one in eight (12 percent) have experienced it themselves. More than one in ten (11 percent) say it was their manager who discriminated against them. (more…)

Are these the best countries in Europe for work-life balance?

Are these the best countries in Europe for work-life balance?

by • News, Wellbeing, Workplace, Workplace design

work-life balanceA new study from recruitment firm Remote claims to analyse how European countries are looking after the work-life balance of their employees. The report sets out to take an ‘holistic’ view on work-life balance taking into account of factors such as minimum wage, maternity leave, statutory annual leave, sick pay, the country’s healthcare system and the country’s overall happiness level to help workers determine the best locations for life-work balance. The UK comes in a lowly 28th place, in case you didn’t want to click on the report link. (more…)

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