News and Knowledge

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…

4-day working week – is it a good idea?

Burnout is becoming a widespread problem across almost every industry – but some organisations are making moves to tackle this.   The theory is that giving workers an extra day off,  could promote wellbeing in the workplace and boost productivity. According to statistics, burnout has become an ‘occupational phenomenon’ with one in five workers in…

GP burnout figures on the rise

According to figures released by NHS Practitioner Health, the number of doctors reaching out for help regarding mental health issues has increased by more than three quarters within a two year period.   Since March 2021, these figures equate to a 77% increase. Over 5,600 doctors accessed the NHS practitioner Health programme in England in…

Workplace sickness 10 year high

According to recent research, workers in the UK are off sick more now than at any point in the last ten years in a current workplace sickness 10 year high.   The average pre-pandemic sickness rates stood at 5.8 days, whereas the figure for the past year stands at 7.8 days sick days on average,…

Sexual assaults against female surgeons

The BBC recently reported about assaults against female surgeons, stating that they are being “sexually harassed, assaulted and in some cases raped by colleagues”.   Almost two-thirds of female surgeons who provided a response to the research stated that they had been targets of sexual harassment, with a third of those targeted by sexual assault.…

How long does it take for work stress levels to return after a holiday?

The summer holiday season will shortly be coming to an end, which means that many of us will soon be suffering from those back-to-work blues.   If the thought of returning to work is not causing you enough worry already, recent research conducted by Reed has now revealed the exact amount of time it takes…

Working Minds: Much needed campaign launched to help HGV drivers with work-related stress

Long hours away from home, demanding delivery times and limited access to toilets and showers. These are all common causes of stress for HGV, drivers and a new Working Minds campaign aims to combat this by promoting good mental health whilst at work.   The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has made it clear that…

McDonald’s Sexual abuse claims – Employees speak out

According to a new BBC report, more than 100 current McDonald’s employees have so far come forward with sexual abuse allegations concerning other colleagues.   We have previously written about allegations at one of the biggest retail food employers in the world – but this time the focus has been extended beyond individual cases, as…

Record high NHS staff sickness in England

According to new figures released for 2022, we have entered a period of record high NHS staff sickness.   The overall proportion of days lost due to absence was 5.6% of all working days, accounting for the equivalent loss of 75,000 members of staff within the year. This has exceeded the peak of the 2020-2021…