A study by Thoughtworks has revealed that only a small proportion of employees think their employers are doing enough to support inclusion, equality and diversity. Notably, the industries identified as requiring the most improvement were retail, sports and arts.

The Study showed that employees believed the main issues, such as LGBTQ+ support, race and ethnicity inclusion and support and gender discrimination, should be addressed within the employer’s diversity and inclusion policies.

https://www.hrreview.co.uk/hr-news/just-over-a-quarter-of-staff-believe-firms-are-doing-enough-to-support-diversity/137172

It was suggested by a UK Government Minister to reduce the wages of employees who continued to work from home.

According to research conducted by Factorial HR, the average UK salary would be around £6,000.00 higher today if it had increased in line with inflating commuting costs, based on the rate of inflating rail ticket prices.

The gap between a salary that is in line with commuting costs and actual current wages led the study to conclude that the minister’s suggestion to reduce current wages to reflect a lack of commuting costs was illogical and unfair, particularly when taking into account the extra costs of home working such as heating and office equipment.

However, a survey conducted by CIPHR revealed that 68% of employers were considering pay cuts for home-working staff who were being paid location allowances, such as the London Living Wage, despite 53% of employers noting that savings had been made due to home-working.

https://www.personneltoday.com/hr/lower-pay-for-home-workers-unfair-and-illogical/

https://www.peoplemanagement.co.uk/news/articles/two-thirds-businesses-considering-pay-cuts-home-workers

Proposals for the Employment Rights Act 1996 to be amended to include a right for workers to disconnect have been published after the notably negative effect this has had on mental heath during the pandemic. Such amendments, if enacted, would allow employees to ‘switch off’ and not monitor or respond to any work-related communications or carry out work outside their working hours. This would allow an employee to bring a tribunal claim if their employer subjected them to a detriment for failing or refusing to work outside their working hours (subject to exemptions for some sectors).

The research by Autonomy Thinktank has linked working from home to increased unpaid overtime, the negative mental health impact of which has disproportionately affected working women.

https://www.personneltoday.com/hr/employers-should-have-to-opt-out-of-any-right-to-disconnect/