How companies can successfully manage the four-day working week
Growing employee interest in working a four-day working week, as well as hybrid and flexible working could present challenges for businesses unless they have systems in place to effectively manage staff, warns Adrian Lewis, Commercial Director at Activ Absence. A recent survey from the charity Be The Business found that more than a million British companies employing three million workers could move to a four-day working week after...
Mental Health in the Workplace: 6 Tips from HR Experts
Research from Natural HR found that 65% of HR leaders are prioritising health and wellbeing in 2021. Throughout a challenging year, HR professionals have taken it upon themselves to prioritise employee health and wellbeing in the wake of the coronavirus. All employers have a duty of care which means they must do all they reasonably can to safeguard their employees’ health, wellbeing and safety when they are at work. This includes...
Mental health and wellbeing drive the return to the workplace for the majority of office workers
Research released today by Ambius, the experts in workspace plant design, reveals that the appeal of working from home could be waning amongst office workers. The majority (52%) look forward to returning to the office for mental health and wellbeing reasons. This rises to almost two thirds (64%) amongst 18-34 year olds. While physical health elements such as social distancing, hygiene, and ventilation are high on the list of...
British employers shun workplace mental health support for their staff
With Mental Health Awareness Week 2021 taking place, people management platform Employment Hero reveals new data on how employees and employers are managing mental health support in the workplace. In a survey of more than 500 employers and 500 employees in the UK in March 2021, 48% of employers stated that they do not have budgets available to help support their employees’ mental health whilst 30% of employers do not know how to...
Monitor mental health and presenteeism more closely says Activ Absence
Worsening mental health in the workplace is a growing issue, which employers need to get on top of urgently, says Adrian Lewis, commercial director at Activ Absence during Mental Health Awareness Week (10-16 May). New research from the Office for National Statistics[i] shows that one in five adults experienced some form of depression in 2021 – more than double the level recorded before the pandemic. Women and younger adults are most...
HALF of UK tradespeople experience mental health problems due to work
Nearly half (49%) of UK tradespeople experience mental health problems due to work-related issues, a new study1 has found. The research, commissioned for Mental Health Awareness Week (May 10th-16th) by IronmongeryDirect, the UK’s largest supplier of specialist ironmongery, found that nearly three in five (58%) experience some form of mental health problem, such as stress, anxiety or depression, at least once a week. Money...
Mental health concerns spike among half of UK employees
More than half (51%) of employees experienced an increase in worries about their mental health due to the pandemic, according to new findings from Close Brothers. While 41% had experienced a rise by May 2020, the additional months of lockdown restrictions have seen this catapulted upwards to more than half. This represents a percentage increase of 24% over the time period. The new report, ‘Expecting the unexpected: a spotlight on...
How employers can keep on top of Covid-19 vaccinations
The NHS is inviting over 45s to book their vaccines, with younger age groups expected to be invited in the coming weeks, because all the over 50s and those in high-risk groups in the UK have now been offered their first dose of the vaccine[i]. As more employees will be having the vaccine it is important for employers to keep track of which employees have had their jab to ensure the safety of their workforce, as well as their customers...
How to combat rising stress levels amongst remote workers
The nation’s mental health is now a major cause for concern for employers says Adrian Lewis, Director of Activ Absence. This Stress Awareness month Adrian is pressing for employers to do more to recognise and address signs of stress and burnout before they escalate into something more serious. This follows a new study from the Stress Management Society and Huawei which found that 65% of people in the UK have felt more stressed since...
Long Covid-19 could lead to a rise in costly absenteeism if employers are unprepared
Growing concerns around the number of people suffering from Long Covid should be prompting employers to consider how they might support employees suffering symptoms and manage rising absences, warns Adrian Lewis, Director, Activ Absence. According to the Office for National Statistics[i]around one in five people who tested positive for Covid-19 had symptoms that lasted for five weeks or longer, and one in 10 had symptoms that lasted...
Businesses should prepare for a surge in holiday bookings & ensure they have digital systems in place
Over the next few months employers can expect to be inundated with annual leave requests warns Adrian Lewis, Director, Activ Absence, who says this makes it more important than ever to have robust systems in place to manage these requests and prevent HR getting overloaded. Following the Government’s announcement[i] on 22 February of how they will ease lockdown restrictions in England, holiday companies have reported a large rise in...
Mental health-related workplace absenteeism costs soared to £14bn in 2020
The impact of the nation’s deteriorating mental health from Covid-19 lockdowns and other restrictions cost UK businesses £14bn last year, according to an exclusive study by Westfield Health. The cost of absenteeism from work due to mental health reasons increased last year by £1.3bn from 2019’s totals as work from home, travel restrictions, furlough and pay cuts changed the workplace for millions of people across the UK. However, this...
Absence management technology helps GPs & pharmacies manage sick leave as vaccine roll-out ramps up
With GP practices and pharmacies under increasing pressure from the Covid-19 vaccine roll-out and the pandemic, Adrian Lewis, Commercial Director at Activ Absence says that absence management technology can help be an essential tool at this busy time to help them get on top of sick leave, reduce the cost of absences, and manage staff shortages. A BMA Covid-19 tracker survey[i] last October revealed that staff shortages were a concern...
Managing the challenges of ‘hybrid-working’ post pandemic
COVID-19 has accelerated workplace trends of working from home as well as a ‘hybrid-working’ – a combination of home and office working, which is set to continue in 2021. However Adrian Lewis from Activ Absence warns employers need robust policies and tools in place to ensure this is managed successfully. This comes as a new survey from Resilience First[i] highlighted that more than half of remote workers are now suffering from...
How not to underestimate the cost of employee absence to your business
A new survey into sickness absence rates and costs highlights an upward trend in the number of sick days an employee typical takes, with many employers underestimating the cost of absenteeism, something Adrian Lewis from Activ Absence is urging employers to address. The research from XpertHR[i] shows that the UK’s median absence rate has risen slightly from 2.5% of working time in 2018, to 2.7% – translating to 6.4 days’...
