Blog: The Olympics – Learning lessons in flexible working
RBS has announced that its staff will be able to work flexibly during the Olympics. This news echoes that of Whitehall who also recently announced staff would be permitted to work from home for the 7 week period covering the Olympics and Paralympics. Whilst the intentions of both these organisations is to help employees […]
Christina’s Counsel: How can I make my workplace more family-friendly?
The challenge If you are struggling to get the best people to come and work for you, have a high rate of unexplained absence or believe that your employees aren’t giving their best, not least due to stress because their work and domestic lives conflict, it may be worth reviewing how family-friendly your workplace culture […]
News: 60% of workers plan to watch Olympics – with or without consent
More than half of employers plan to enable their staff to work more flexibly during the Olympics – which is just as well as nearly three out of five employees intend to watch Games, with or without consent. According to the initial findings of a joint survey undertaken by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and […]
Legal Insight: Homeworking during the Olympics
So your company has decided that over the course of the Olympics period, it will allow staff to work from home. Great news – the business carries on as normal and employees don’t have to suffer the hassle of commuting. But it’s not just a simple case of plugging in a laptop. There are […]
Blog: Four managerial traits to ensure flexible working works
Earlier this year telecoms giant O2 announced that the vast majority of their employees (88%) were just as productive when working flexibly than when they are present in the workplace. Meanwhile a Stanford University study showed that one travel company noted a 12% rise in productivity when staff worked from home. The evidence would […]
News: Two out of five civil servants to home-work during Olympics
Up to 40% of Whitehall staff will be asked to work from home to help ease congestion on London’s transport network during the seven weeks of the Olympic and Paralympic Games this summer. According to the Telegraph, other employees may also be asked to change their working times or take annual leave from 21 July […]
News: ‘Dress down Friday’ becomes the new norm for workplace attire
It appears that workplace dress codes are starting to become casual, with ‘dress down Fridays’ becoming the new norm – all week. According to a survey undertaken among 2,000 UK adults by researcher Canadean Consumer, it is no longer just workers in the creative and media industries who are wearing more informal attire for work […]
Talking Point: Would you want to live in an ‘anywhere working’ city?
A study last year by the TUC found that employees in the UK spend almost 200 hours a year travelling to and from work. While an average of approximately four hours a week may not sound like a huge amount, it is the equivalent of around five weeks extra work per year. I remember […]
Blog: Cultivating your personal brand
It maybe unjust to judge a book by its cover, but its still what we do – nearly all of the time. Today it is much easier to be confused about what to wear in the workplace. There seems to be much advice on the internet about what you can and cannot wear in […]
Legal Insight: Health matters part 2 – Dealing with ‘problem absences’
In the first instalment of this three-part guide to managing sickness absence, we considered both the importance of developing a good policy and how to manage sickness absence on a day-to-day basis. And in this second article, it will become all too clear exactly how important these initial stages are when you are presented with […]
Legal Insight: How to cope with tube strikes
Passengers are expected to face widespread disruption on the London Underground from tomorrow (24 April) due to a four-day strike by maintenance workers that is likely to affect services. The action looks likely to go ahead as planned because talks to avert it ended yesterday without agreement, according to the conciliation service Acas. The […]
Talking Point: Why are there still so few women in the workplace?
Once upon a time, real work was for men and women were expected to stay at home and look after the wellbeing of their families. If anything, they were regarded as the ‘silent reserve’ of the labour market. In the 21st century, however, policy makers and businesses no longer need the devastating impact of the […]
Line manager training is key to flexible working success, advises O2
Although four weeks of “intense preparation” were the key to ensuring that O2’s flexible working pilot went off without a major hitch, providing training for line managers dealing with remote teams is now considered a priority. These are the main findings of a trial undertaken by the mobile phone operator in February. O2 asked […]
Best Practice: Five pointers to ensure flexible working works
A flexible working project at Wakefield Council has slashed costs and significantly boosted staff productivity since the first phase was introduced two years ago. The Council’s ‘Worksmart’ transformation programme is based on a property rationalisation initiative, introducing citizen-focused service guidelines and enabling all 2,500 employees to work more flexibly. Rationalising office space has saved […]
Ask the Expert: Do employers have to pay for post-natal time off?
The question A member of staff has just returned from maternity leave. She is still breast-feeding her child and needs to expel her milk at least twice a day. She works a 40-hour week, which is now being reduced by between 30 and 40 minutes each day due to this process. The employee […]
International Women’s Day: Making gender diversity a workplace reality
The aim of International Women’s Day today is to inspire women, celebrate their achievements and find ways of creating brighter and more rewarding opportunities for future generations. But in terms of the workplace, just how far has gender diversity actually come? The media is full of reports about the need for greater female equality. […]
HSBC guarantees parents part-time working options
HSBC has become the first UK corporate to guarantee all new parents returning from maternity or paternity leave a part-time working option in a bid to help them improve their work-life balance. The move comes as a charity called on the coalition government to reverse proposed changes to the Working Tax Credit, which it said […]
Anywhere Working Week: Helping employees switch off in an ‘always on’ world
Workplace change has never been as rapid as it is today. Globalisation and exponential increases in the use of technology have generated a 24/7 culture, where staff are often expected to work anytime and anywhere. Yet, as anyone working in HR knows, this ‘always-on’ situation is a double-edged sword. Employees today are generally […]
Blog: Why is staff engagement in decline globally?
Recognise This! – Employees worldwide are disengaging at work, leaving organisations at a competitive disadvantage. Recent research out of Kenexa is showing employee engagement on the decline globally. “EEI scores declined, not only in the aggregate of these economies, but in each individual country as well. The pattern of scores over time is fairly […]
Remote working: How to get started
Over the last ten years remote working has been steadily gaining a foothold in the UK workplace, changing the nature of work and the daily commute. For many businesses, it now also forms a key part of their contingency plans, enabling employees to carry on working should unexpected or even expected events such as the […]