According to a report by the Commission for Healthier Working Lives, British workplaces are among the worst in Europe for long hours, tight deadlines, and limited autonomy, with only a third of workers able to choose their pace.
The report highlights that conditions vary by sector, with construction and hospitality facing the most strain.
Despite good relations with colleagues, UK workers report high levels of exhaustion and stress, which have increased over the past 25 years.
The report concludes that the UK’s lower labour productivity compared to countries like France and Germany makes these conditions unjustifiable.
Further evidence on UK workplace conditions comes from research from Russell Reynolds Associates’ Centre for Leadership Insight which reveals that only 21% of senior full-time roles leading to chief executive positions in the UK are held by women.
Despite an increase in female representation on FTSE 100 boards, this growth is primarily in part-time, non-executive roles, with only 11% of FTSE 100 CEOs being women.
Laura Sanderson, co-head of Europe, Middle East & India at Russell Reynolds Associates, emphasised the importance of fostering a skilled cohort of women leaders, saying: “Establishing a cohort of skilled women leaders needs to be treated as a business imperative as it supports all aspects of a firm’s performance.”
The study highlights that while female representation in boardrooms has risen from 12% in 2010 to 42% now, only 12 FTSE 100 companies have achieved gender parity in their senior leadership teams.
Also, a survey conducted for the flexible workspace provider International Workspace Group has found that workers are looking to leave large companies that have removed flexible working options.
Two-thirds of recruiters have seen an increase in applicants looking to change jobs after their firms issued return-to-office mandates while three-quarters said they had seen candidates turn down new roles that did not offer hybrid working.
The survey also found that 72% of recruiters said companies that do not offer hybrid working are becoming less competitive in the job market.
Steve Hare, chief executive of software firm Sage, believes that more businesses will replace workers with AI as tax hikes will increase efforts to cut costs.
He said that while a “trend towards a more digital economy was already there,” measures set out in the Budget are likely to accelerates it. Mr Hare said Sage does not want to replace staff with AI, insisting that it will utilise the technology to “elevate the work of humans.”
But arguably businesses will still also need humans, however much they embrace AI so it pays to ensure their employees are listened to, consulted and their advice “from the sharp end” is taken into account.