Opinion – Page 5
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OpinionSusan Mayall: How to consider HRT and menopause in the workplace
At Pearson Solicitors and Financial Advisers, which has three offices across the Manchester area, we announced that we will pay for any hormone replacement therapy (HRT) medication needed by staff from April. We have also developed a menopause policy to share across the firm, including training all teams on understanding ...
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OpinionHeather Taylor: How can employers make hybrid working effective in their organisation?
The pandemic has prompted a lasting shift in the ways we work. Employees are generally keen to continue working remotely at least some of the time, with 88% of those that we surveyed for Making hybrid inclusive - key priorities for employers and Government in October 2021 saying that they ...
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OpinionRichard Kay: How will the four-day week trial impact workplaces?
This week, thousands of UK employees started the world’s biggest four-day working week trial. Over the next six months, employers and employees involved in the trial will embrace a 100:80:100 model of working, meaning staff will work 80% of the time for 100% of their salary.Understandably, the four-day week pilot ...
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OpinionVerity Ingle: How Covid-19 may impact employees’ health, wellbeing and pay
As the world starts to learn how to safely live with Covid-19 (Coronavirus), employers are faced with the difficult decision of how to handle employees who are suffering from Covid symptoms, and whether to ask them to remain at home or come into work.An issue with this at present is ...
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OpinionLovewell's logic: Is hybrid working fuelling loneliness at work?
While the removal of Covid-19 restrictions has enabled friends and families to once again mix freely, the rise in hybrid and flexible working arrangements means that some individuals may feel less connected to colleagues than prior to the pandemic, resulting in increased levels of loneliness at work. In fact, a ...
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OpinionRichard Lane: Employees need wellbeing support to navigate through cost-of-living crisis
The events of the past two years have given many employers pause for thought on whether the package of support they offer fits the needs of their employees. Millions of people in employment have finely balanced finances and are vulnerable to shocks, never more so than with the cost-of-living crisis ...
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OpinionAmanda Lennon: Could the HRT shortage lead to discrimination claims?
Employers should be flexible and support employees who are affected by menopause and perimenopause symptoms due to the shortage of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) medication, or they could risk facing discrimination claims.A surge in demand for HRT treatment has left pharmaceutical manufacturers struggling to keep up. Many women are finding ...
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OpinionKen Akers: How employers can help employees experiencing grief at work
As a nation we have made good progress in supporting wellbeing at work and together we can improve how we handle grief, too. Coping with a bereavement at work is never easy but lack of support from an employer can make things so much worse.At Marie Curie, we know the ...
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OpinionLovewell's logic: Is Jacob Rees-Mogg right to force civil servants back to the office?
What is your view of working from home? That seems to be the current million dollar question. Something that millions of us adapted to at speed during lockdown now seems to be coming under increasing scrutiny as the UK adapts to living with Covid.The debate around this practice was re-ignited ...
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OpinionAnita North: Delay to Employment Bill is a blow to thousands of workers
In 2019, the Conservative Party stated in its election manifesto that it would “encourage flexible working and consult on making it the default unless employers had good reasons not to.” This came after public anger in relation to poor working conditions in UK factories and warehouses.These changes were wrapped up ...
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OpinionPhil Crowe: How the war in Ukraine highlights the value of employee benefits
When Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February, the world looked on in shock and wondered how this would reverberate around the globe. An important issue facing employers right now is how to best support employees who are directly affected by the war, whether they have family in Ukraine, or whether ...
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OpinionAndrea London: Attitude change needed to address ageism at work
With hybrid working models quickly becoming 'the norm' and the constant requirement instead for online productivity, virtual working and remote meetings or presentations, is our older generation cognisant of technological advances, and are they able to keep up?We seem to be noting an increased polarisation of the labour market in ...
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OpinionMichelle Last: Supporting employees through fertility treatment in the workplace
Employees will often face physical and mental issues associated with their fertility journey, which can impact workplace performance, conduct, relationships and job satisfaction. How can employers support employees receiving fertility treatment?Having a written policy dealing with potential fertility issues in the workplace undoubtedly gives an employer the opportunity to show ...
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OpinionAndrea London: Is there is a real risk of ageism in our hybrid future?
New hybrid working models are quickly becoming the norm, with their constant requirement for online productivity, virtual working and remote meetings/presentations. However, are our older generation cognisant of these technological advances and are they able to keep up?We seem to be noting an increased polarisation of the labour market in ...
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OpinionRebecca Berry and Sarah Taylor: Living with Covid raises questions for employers
The change in emphasis of the Government’s Living with Covid guidance raises many questions for employers; what does the lifting of the legal requirement to self-isolate for those who test positive for Covid-19 mean for employers? How should employers implement the guidance that those who test positive for Covid-19 should ...
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OpinionKatie Ash: Protecting employee mental health is more than just a workplace perk
As such a large part of an employee’s life is spent at work, it’s important that employers play an active role in ensuring that their workers develop and maintain a good quality of life and a healthy relationship with their place of work.This is particularly important post pandemic, when it ...
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OpinionDr Karen Michell: Employers can offer multiple support options for employees' physical health
The Covid-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic, we all know, took the world by storm. While we soon learnt that most people who contracted the virus would get better, what became apparent later was that full recovery was not going to be the reality for everyone.In the UK alone an estimated 1.3 million ...
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OpinionCherry White: Employers should promote physical activity through the workplace
When offices closed in March 2020, it forced a rushed transition to working from home (WFH) full time.Instead of sitting at ergonomically designed workstations, many employees suddenly found themselves hunched over kitchen counters or slouched on the sofa as they worked from tiny laptops. ‘Commuting’ simply meant stepping into a ...
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OpinionOscar Hodgson: Is unlimited holiday really without limits?
For the Zoom-weary worker emerging from the depths of the Covid-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic, a holiday sounds like a fantasy. It is no wonder that mention of unlimited holiday captivates the most sceptical workers.Imagine an unlimited number of days off each year, no holiday requests, and the ability to take it ...
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OpinionDanielle Ayres: Communication is key when considering a four-day week
As news circulates of the four-day working week trial set to get underway in the UK in the second half of this year, co-ordinated by 4 Day Week Global, both employees and employers alike are starting to wonder whether this would work practically for them.There are multiple factors to look ...