Going back: what fears and hopes do mothers have before returning to the workplace?
From being there for your kids to coping with the stresses of working life, Mumsnet users share their thoughts on returning to work after having children. This article was originally published on Mumsnet. Above and beyond the important stuff like HR policies and procedures, mothers’ fears and hopes on returning from maternity leave are often focused […]
Beyond the nappy zone: Why older people and carers need flexibility too
It isn't just the parents of young children who need flexible leave – older people and carers also need the chance to work flexibly. This article was originally published on Mumsnet. Flexible working is an idea constantly associated with parents of young children, and (things being the way they are) specifically with mothers. Of course, […]
Before we fix the gender pay gap, let’s fix gender opportunities
As HR professionals around the country are busy helping their organisations comply with the gender pay gap legislation that comes into force in April, new research tells a story of another burning platform that if left unaddressed, threatens to marginalise a highly educated, highly experienced and talented group of people both now and for future […]
“It’s nice to have an ad-hoc conversation where you can help someone”
We're always curious to hear how our members and contributors tackle the challenges that the ever-changing world of HR throws at them. We've got a wealth of experience and knowledge across the site, and what better way to showcase the diversity of our community than to get them to walk us through an average day? Want […]
Why a family-friendly approach is good for business
Having an engaged workforce is all about providing rewarding work in a positive environment, so that employees want to deliver their best for the business every day. To be truly effective, employee engagement strategies must take into account the changing needs of employees as they enter new stages of their life; the biggest of which is […]
WHSmith’s plan to increase number of ‘mental health first aiders’
It's HR in Retail month on HRZone! We're focusing on all things retail – check out our HR in retail hub to read all our great content! ‘We all need to look after each other and ourselves.’ This is the mantra that is driving WHSmith, as we seek to deliver a comprehensive mental health wellbeing strategy that will […]
Coworking – the opportunities and challenges for HR
Multiple firms, entrepreneurs and freelancers working in the same office space, an arrangement known as coworking, is one of the most recent trends to sweep across the world of work. Firms of all sizes, the length and breadth of the country, are beginning to supplement their traditional, static offices with a range of flexible and […]
The ‘gig economy’: how does HR need to adapt to this new breed of employee?
The “gig economy” has firmly entered employment vocabulary, becoming a catch-all term for anything from Uber taxi drivers and Airbnb hosts to freelance professionals. But what does this highly flexible way of working mean for HR? Until recently, the only people who looked to get a “gig” were musicians. The rest of us found “proper” jobs that […]
In defense of night: we treat it with disdain yet spend 26.5 years asleep
Society is starting to pay attention to sleep. This is important because for something so critical to our survival and wellbeing, sleep has a chequered history with researchers. “Scientists in the 1950s said that ‘sleep is of no medical importance,” says Guy Meadows, Clinical Director at Sleep to Perform. “That’s an actual quote. Now in […]
Tackling presenteeism in the banking sector: the role of work-life integration
Presenteeism is an issue facing businesses of all shapes and sizes up and down the UK. The implications of this phenomenon are well known. Presenteeism has been referred to as the single biggest threat to UK workplace productivity by Robertson Cooper’s Professor Sir Cary Cooper. It poses a substantial risk to workers’ health and wellbeing, […]
Men ‘twice as likely’ to have flexible work hours requests knocked back
Stat attack gives you the facts, figures, numbers and survey results you need to keep on top of developments and changes in sentiment in the HR and L&D industries, all in an easy to digest format. It’s your regular dose of facts and figures, parcelled up for easy reading. Context: These statistics are from an […]
Do I have to agree to a flexible working request?
Originally, the right to request flexible working was a family-related right. In order to qualify to make a request, it was a criterion that the employee had to be a parent of a child under a particular age or have caring responsibilities and the reason for the request had to be in relation to providing […]
Will Zuckerberg’s move shake up paternity culture?
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO, Facebook recently announced he is taking two months paternity leave. His move has been met with much praise, especially in the States, where neither paid maternity or paternity leave is a legal requirement. What’s happening in the world of paternity leave? Are big brand digital companies, such as Facebook, leading the way in […]
The beautiful benefits and challenges of whole business offshoring
Expensify offer ‘hassle-free’ expense reporting built for employees. Each year they engage in ‘offshoring’ – taking their workforce to a foreign location where they’ll work on specific projects for a month. This benefit is challenging to make work but very rewarding. David Barrett, Expensify’s founder and CEO, tells HRZone about offshoring, how it helps the […]
Will flexible forms of working be the answer to work-life balance?
This issue was tackled in-depth in our latest report, ‘Workplace trends of 2015: What they mean for you,’ which has been produced in association with Acas and the CIPD, and looks at five key workplace trends for the year ahead and explores what they mean for HR professionals. Each trend has three expert contributions. We […]
How to make flexible working work for your business
There are numerous studies to suggest that flexible workers are more productive and engaged. However, many businesses are still unsure about the impact of new legislation allowing all employees to request the right to work flexibly. Many companies already recognise flexible working as a powerful business tool – particularly when it’s not just managed as […]
Flexible working changes – a smorgasbord of opinions on right to request
From today, 20 million people (according to BIS) now have the right to request flexible working from their employer. BIS have said that over half of businesses who allow flexible working see improved relationships, 40% report productivity boost and 38% see drop in staff absence. The salient points: The change affects those who have over […]
Employers urged to be more transparent about flexible working
Two in every five full-time employees are keen to work flexibly, yet only 25% of job adverts state whether flexible working is even a possibility, according to new research. This is despite the fact that 91% of managers would be happy to talk to candidates about flexible working options during the recruitment process, the report […]
Are the parents on your side?
Companies keen to support parents, create a legacy that lasts and engage their workforce can sign up for our free webinar on 4th December. When HR debates parenting it has tended to be about maternity/paternity leave and flexi-working. It’s time the debate moved on. Whereas most employers seem to behave as if parenting stops when the […]
Yahoo’s Marissa Mayer hits on HR blunder again
Yahoo CEO Marisssa Mayer has again hit on HR controversy with a new policy that forces managers to rank their employees on a bell curve, with those at the end heading for the chop. The story was reported by website AllThingsD.com, who said that Yahoo employees were increasingly venting their frustration at the policy on […]
