Search Results for: workplace

Improved employment rights would boost number of gig workers claims PwC survey

Improved employment rights would boost number of gig workers claims PwC survey 0

by • Flexible working, Legal news, News

While most workers favour full time employment, significant numbers of people would consider gig work and other flexible options such as zero hours contracts, according to a PwC survey of more than 2,000 UK adults. But key concerns remain job security, the ability to earn sufficient income and losing out on workplace benefits. The findings come ahead of the much anticipated Taylor Review into Modern Employment practices, expected this week. While 77 percent of the people surveyed prefer full time employment, 45 percent of the respondents would consider gig work (defined as short-term, casual work, typically organised or facilitated via mobile phone apps) or already work in this way. This number would rise if employment rights improved significantly, with two in five people saying it would make them more likely to take up gig work. Flexible options are most popular with ‘millennials’ – some 58 percent of 18-34 yr olds would consider taking gig work compared with 30 percent of those over 55. Likewise, while zero hours contracts would be considered by 35 percent of respondents overall, 45 percent of millennials say they would take a zero hours contract., falling to  just 24 percent of over 55s.

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Job mobility and labour markets in Europe continue to be shaped by last recession

Job mobility and labour markets in Europe continue to be shaped by last recession 0

by • News, Workplace

A new report from the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound) claims that the recent global recession continues to have significant and lasting effects on Europe’s labour markets, including a big drop in employment levels and job mobility, which are yet to recover in many countries almost a decade later. It also affected the structure of employment, accelerating changes and patterns of job polarisation across Europe, in which employment in middle-paid jobs declined more than in jobs at the top and bottom of organisations.

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Third of UK workers are dealing with anxiety, depression or stress

Third of UK workers are dealing with anxiety, depression or stress 0

by • News, Technology, Wellbeing, Workplace

One in three (34 percent) UK workers are dealing with anxiety, depression or stress, which is affecting their ability to carry out their day-to-day roles, claims a new report. Two in five (39 percent) have taken time off work or reduced their responsibilities because of their health, and of those, 39 percent did not feel comfortable telling their employer about the issue according to the PwC research. Nearly a quarter (23 percent) think their organisation does not take employee wellbeing seriously and more than half (54 percent) work for companies which do not offer health benefits such as counselling, health screening and subsidised gym memberships. The research suggests that Health and wellbeing has a significant impact on performance with four out of five workers (83 percent) believing that their wellbeing influences how productive they are. Pressures such as dealing with customers and clients, and long hours have the biggest impact on workplace wellbeing. The survey respondents also indicated a belief that technology can play a part in addressing health, with almost half saying they would be open to using an app to improve their wellbeing.

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Twenty-first century construction is increasingly environmentally friendly

Twenty-first century construction is increasingly environmentally friendly 0

by • Environment, Facilities management

One thing is clear — within the next 20 years, we will reach our peak capacity in terms of oil consumption as a planet. Although, as demand for oil appears to increase year upon year, the global production of oil appears to decrease. As a result of this growing problem, the construction industry still derives most of its energy sources from oil-based fuels. Throughout the Western world, it is evident that the construction sector is heavily reliant upon crude oils. The reason for this is that without them, the construction process would not be able to function in its current form. This is however, having a detrimental impact on greenhouse gas emissions. Within the UK, 50 percent of carbon emissions are accounted for by the construction industry and machinery within the production process.

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“World first” biophilic design research project to explore impact of nature on buildings and people

“World first” biophilic design research project to explore impact of nature on buildings and people 0

by • Environment, Facilities management, News, Wellbeing, Workplace design

biophilic designBRE have launched The Biophilic Office project, a ‘groundbreaking’ office refurbishment in test conditions that will seek to provide quantified evidence on the benefits of biophilic design on health, wellbeing and productivity of office occupants. The project centres on a 650 sq. m. 1980s office building on the BRE campus in Watford, which will be refurbished according to biophilic design principles. BRE are partnering with architect and interior designer Oliver Heath, who will lead on the design element of the refurbished building.

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UK remains stuck in stubborn low productivity trap

UK remains stuck in stubborn low productivity trap 0

by • News, Workplace

The persistently low productivity of UK workers has dropped back to pre-financial crisis levels, according to official figures. Hourly output fell 0.5 percent in the first three months of the year, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reports in its latest update. At the end of 2016, productivity returned to the level seen before the 2008 recession. But it has now slipped back again and is 0.4 percent below the peak recorded at the end of 2007, according to the ONS. It was the first quarterly fall in productivity since the end of 2015, according to the ONS. Economists have consistently warned that the UK’s low productivity continues to mean it lags behind its major trading partners such as the US, France and Germany.

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UK remains most attractive global commercial real estate market, despite Brexit

UK remains most attractive global commercial real estate market, despite Brexit 0

by • Facilities management, News, Property

UK remains most attractive global commercial real estate market, despite BrexitOne in three (31 percent) commercial real estate investors say that the UK remains their preferred region to invest in, with a figure that has remained the same since June 2016 despite the UK deciding to leave the European Union in that period. While a quarter (24 percent) of real estate investors favour Germany as their location of choice for commercial real estate opportunities; however, according to the latest BrickVest commercial property investment barometer this represented a fall from 28 percent in June 2016. More than one in five (21 percent) selected the US, the same as last June, while France saw an increase from 13 percent in June 2016 to 15 percent in June this year. The Barometer also revealed that French, German and US investors are more favourable towards the UK since June last year. Nearly a quarter (24 percent) of French, a fifth (19 percent) of German and 23 percent of US investors suggested they prefer the UK in June this year, representing an increase from last year across the board from 22 percent, 18 percent and 20 percent respectively.

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Happiest workers more likely to be based in start-ups and to stay long term

Happiest workers more likely to be based in start-ups and to stay long term 0

by • Flexible working, News, Workplace

Happiest workers are based in start-ups and they intend to stay long term

Employees in companies with nine members of staff or less are most likely to ‘love’ their jobs and are more likely to take personal pride from the companies’ achievements, and to stay there long term a new report suggests. Almost 1 in 3 (31 percent) of workers in businesses containing a maximum of nine members of staff said they “love” their jobs – according to a new survey of 1,220 workers, commissioned by the One4all Spotlight Awards, a free to enter awards scheme that rewards exceptional staff in the UK workforce. By comparision, those in companies with the largest workforces – more than 500 members of staff – were the least likely to love their jobs, with just 15 percent claiming this is the case. Workers in microbusinesses – those with 9 or fewer employees – were also the most likely to say they plan to stay with their current employer for the rest of their working lives, with 18 percent saying they feel this way. They were also the most likely to take a sense of personal pride in their company’s achievements (23 percent).

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Balfour Beatty predicts a human free construction site by 2050

Balfour Beatty predicts a human free construction site by 2050 0

by • AI, News, Property

Balfour Beatty has  published a paper called Innovation 2050: A Digital Future for the Infrastructure Industry, which predicts that the construction site of the future will be in stark contrast to what we see today. Most notably it will be human-free with work moved off-site with remote control of machinery and new materials and techniques exploited to improve cost, safety and efficiency. The report claims that technology has already revolutionised contemporary life to such an extent that it’s not so hard to imagine radical changes for construction not least the emergence of new roles and the requirement and evolution of new skills to support delivery of the future pipeline of construction projects.

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Minimum wage should be extended to the self employed and gig economy

Minimum wage should be extended to the self employed and gig economy 0

by • Flexible working, News

The government should extend minimum wage legislation to protect some of the UK’s 4.8 million self employed workforce as part of its drive to tackle low pay and insecurity in the modern workforce, according to a new report published by the Resolution Foundation. The Minimum Required? – which forms part of the Resolution Foundation’s submission to the Taylor Review on modern employment practices – sets out a number of proposals to tackle endemic levels of low pay among the self-employed. Its new analysis claims that that while around in one in five employees are low-paid (earning less than two-thirds of typical weekly earnings), last year around half of the full-time self-employed workforce (49 percent) fell below this threshold, earning less than £310 a week.

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UK government unveils £1 billion ultrafast broadband fund to aid remote working

UK government unveils £1 billion ultrafast broadband fund to aid remote working 0

by • Flexible working, News, Technology

The UK’s faltering move towards ultrafast broadband has been given a much-needed boost with the launch of a new fund, which will support the rollout of cutting-edge connections across the country. The government’s £400 million Digital Infrastructure Investment Fund (DIIF) will unlock over £1 billion for full fibre broadband, and kick-start better broadband connections across the country. Its aim is to revolutionise Britain’s digital infrastructure, making internet access more reliable for homes and businesses, and enabling more people to enjoy remote working without disruption. According to the Treasury, the flexibility to work remotely is pivotal for driving the economy forward; reducing overheads and helping businesses to start and grow.

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Skills gap costs British employers over £2 billion a year

Skills gap costs British employers over £2 billion a year 0

by • News, Workplace

A shortage of people with the right skills has cost companies more than £2 billion over the past year, despite employment being at a record high, according to the latest findings of The Open University Business Barometer. The study of hundreds of employers found that the majority of businesses have had to pay as much as £527 million above the market rate to recruit skilled workers. At small and medium-sized companies, the average salary increase amounted to £4,150 per recruit. At larger groups, it stood at £5,575. Companies said that they also had faced increased recruitment costs, including paying temporary staff to fill the gap while suitable candidates were found. Nine out of ten said that they had struggled to recruit people with the right skills.

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