By David Milliken
LONDON- British workplaces rank among the worst in Europe for long hours, tight deadlines and limited autonomy, without being any more productive, according to a report prepared as the new Labor government plans tougher rules for employers.
Three fifths of the workforce reported tight deadlines and two fifths had to work at high speed, among the largest proportions in Europe, while only a third could choose the pace at which they worked, the report said.
The report was produced for the Commission for Healthier Working Lives – a body set up by Britain’s Health Foundation think tank with trade union representation – to improve working conditions required in new employment legislation.
“Problem areas to prioritize now are long hours, work intensity and a lack of control or work autonomy,” wrote one of the report’s authors, Jonny Gifford, principal research fellow at the Institute for Employment Studies.
Another co-author, former IES chief Tony Wilson, left the body in October to become a senior advisor to Britain’s labor ministry.
Some businesses are nervous about the new government’s direction of travel.
On Monday the Confederation of British Industry warned that tighter employment rules risked exacerbating problems caused by a steep rise in social security taxes and the minimum wage which it predicts will reduce employment, pay and longer-term investment in the economy.
The report said that conditions varied between sectors and were generally worse in construction, transport, warehouses, retail and hospitality. Among professional roles, nurses and teachers reported particular strain.
Much of the data came from a 2021 European Union survey of working conditions. Britons reported above-average relations with colleagues and managers but fared more poorly otherwise. – Reuters
