News and Knowledge

Age discrimination most prevalent at work, study finds

Age discrimination is most prevalent in the workplace than anywhere else in society, new research has revealed.   According to the data, from a campaign launched by Centre for Ageing Better to tackle ageism, 37% of people in their 50’s and 60’s experienced age discrimination at work in the past 12 months.     People…

BrewDog abandons real living wage for employees

BrewDog has announced it will no longer pay the real living wage to new employees in a bid to get profits back on track.   The craft beer giant released a letter to staff, which has been posted by the Unite Hospitality union on X,  stating that new bar staff will now be hired on…

Bosses tolerated sexual harassment at UK-based fire service, report reveals

A top fire chief has stepped down after a damning report revealed that sexism, criminal conduct and homophobia was tolerated at a UK-based fire service.   An external review into the culture at South Wales fire service was commissioned after a media outlet reported that colleagues had experienced abusive behaviour at the service.    …

Almost 2 million workers suffered from ‘work-related’ illness this year, figures reveal

Almost two million workers in Great Britain reported suffering from work-related ill health over the past year.   The statistics, revealed by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) also showed that almost half of the cases were down to stress, depression or anxiety. The figures show that from 2022 to 2023 1.8million workers reported that…

Minimum wage to rise in ‘highest ever’ increase from next year

The government has announced that the national minimum wage will rise next year in its highest-ever increase.   As part of the changes, more people than ever will receive the National Living wage – which is currently only available to those over the age of 23. At present, the National Living wage in the UK…

McDonald’s faces one or two sexual harassment claims every week, admits boss

A McDonald’s boss has admitted that the fast-food giant receives ‘between one and two’ sexual harassment claims a week following, a BBC investigation.   McDonald’s UK chief executive, Alistair Macrow told MPs the restaurant chain had sacked 18 people since July, after receiving more than 400 complaints from staff. A BBC investigation discovered that workers…

British Steel plans to close blast furnaces, putting 2,000 jobs at risk

British Steel has confirmed plans to shut its blast furnaces in Scunthorpe, putting up to 2,000 jobs at risk.   According to plans, the furnaces will be replaced with two electric arc furnaces (EAF) in Scunthorpe and Teesside which can run on zero-carbon electricity. The company, which is owned by China’s Jingye Group said the…

Morrisons offers redundancy to hourly-paid staff

Morrisons has reportedly approached more stores to offer hourly-paid staff redundancy.   According to a local news outlet, staff at its Bradford-based Mayo Avenue store were asked to register their interest for voluntary redundancy if they wished to. Morrisons are said to have approached five stores across the country to offer a voluntary redundancy scheme…

Wilko expected to disappear from UK High Streets as Putman rescue deal collapses

Wilko expected to disappear from UK High Streets as Putman rescue deal collapses   Thousands of workers are left fearing for their jobs at Wilko as the rescue deal lead by Doug Putman, the owner of HMV, collapsed on Monday. It was revealed that Mr Putman has ended talks with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) over a slimmed-down…

Mental wellbeing in the workplace

A recent LawCare report found that 61% of those that participated had often experienced anxiety within the last year.   Likewise, the International Bar Association’s Mental Wellbeing in the Legal Profession: A Global Study found that 56% of professionals in the legal sector had experienced anxiety. It must also be pointed out that this 24/7…