Changing Times News Number 60 29 June 2005

Changing Times News is the TUCs fortnightly online bulletin on work-life balance issues. Visit the website at http://www.tuc.org.uk/changingtimes

Edited by Rory O'Neill of Hazards magazine. Comments to Jo Morris. To unsubscribe or subscribe to this bulletin, click here. Past issues are available.

CONTENTS

Union news : Maternity rights 'fundamental to equality', says union * Shopworkers press for better balance * Overworked lecturers feel the strain

Other news : Work-life balance 'crucial' to staff retention * Inflexible Telewest forced out new mum * Paternity leave 'needs to double' * Blunkett wants more men doing childcare * News in brief

Resources : Find out about your life with the EurLIFE database * Work, poverty and families

International news: Australia: Unions force rethink on long hours * USA: Dont just lie down, act up! * USA: Flat world brings the interminable work day * Global round-up

UNION NEWS Maternity rights 'fundamental to equality', says union

Maternity rights are a fundamental part of the struggle for women's equality, UNISON's local government conference has declared. Delegates to the June conference in Glasgow urged the unions service group executive to ensure different negotiating bodies within local government in the different parts of the UK liaised to develop bargaining targets for improving maternity provision. 'For some of our members, maternity rights make the difference between being able to have a child or not,' said Linda Web-Thornton of the national women's committee. Web-Thornton told the conference of the business benefit for organisations with good maternity packages. She said the NHS 'improving working lives' policy, for example, had seen staff turnover rates fall.

UNISON news release.

Department of Health Improving Working Lives webpages.

Shopworkers press for better balance

Juggling work, life and caring responsibilities is a constant struggle for the UK's small army of carers, says shopworkers' union Usdaw, and is calling on the government to provide more assistance. The union took its 'supporting parents and carers' campaign to the House of Commons on 14 June. Usdaw general secretary John Hannett was joined by a team of Usdaw members who juggle work with their caring responsibilities and by more than 60 Labour MPs who turned out to give their backing. The union wants a better deal for carers and is lobbying the government to allow carers the right to: Request flexible working. paid time off for family illness. and better access to carers allowance. John Hannett said: 'We believe it makes good business sense to give carers more choice at work to help them balance the competing demands on their time. Employers will be rewarded by lower staff turnover, higher staff morale, lower absenteeism, and the reputation for being a responsible and caring company.' He added: 'In terms of carers allowance, currently £45.70 a week, this is too low. We also want the government to raise the amount someone can earn and still qualify for carers allowance. Currently if you earn more than £82 a week you cant claim.' The union says one in eight people in the UK are carers, most of them looking after elderly relatives. It adds that the majority of carers are women.

Usdaw news release.

Overworked lecturers feel the strain

Unpaid overtime worked by lecturers is affecting their personal lives and health, a union survey has found. The online survey of 1,138 college and university lecturers, commissioned by the further education union NATFHE and the Teacher Support Network, found 69 per cent of respondents worked an average of 11 unpaid hours a week. The union said nearly threequarters (69.1 per cent) of survey respondents said their manager did not bother to monitor their hours to ensure they complied with the working time regulations 48 hour working week ceiling. Respondents reported the strain of their workload took a heavy toll - a whopping 94 per cent said it had affected their personal lives while 87 per cent said it had affected their health. Paul Mackney, general secretary of NATFHE, said: 'The goodwill and dedication of these professionals is propping up our universities and colleges but is taking its toll on them in a way that no job should.' He added: 'This situation is not tenable in the long-term. University and college management must take note of these results and others like them to ensure their staff are not landed with workloads that are grossly out of proportion to their contracted hours.'

NATFHE news release.

OTHER NEWS Work-life balance 'crucial' to staff retention

Four out of five employees in the UK say that work-life balance considerations play a crucial role in their decision to stay with or leave their current employer, according to new research. Watson Wyatt's WorkUK Survey ­ conducted from a representative sample of 3,000 private sector workers in the UK ­ found that over 40 per cent of employees are actively considering finding a new job with a different employer, and nearly 80 per cent of employees believe work-life balance to be a very important consideration, if not the key consideration, in deciding to leave for a new job. Jake Outram, a consultant at Watson Wyatt, said that while it is unlikely that all of the 40 per cent of employees considering changing jobs will actually do so, 'our research demonstrates that many employers may be neglecting a key factor affecting their employees' attitudes to staying in their positions. It is therefore important that employers understand how their employees, and in particular their high-performers, perceive their work-life balance.' The Watson Wyatt research also found the concern with work-life balance is not limited to employees within specific job levels. The response to this issue is almost identical for managers and non-managers. 'Our research demonstrates the importance that employees place on achieving a sensible work-life balance, and it is evident that employers must focus on measuring the levels of work-life balance within their organisations to enable them to develop strategies that help employees to achieve a greater control over their working lives,' said Outram.

Watson Wyatt news release.

Inflexible Telewest forced out new mum

A call centre worker, whose employer refused to grant her suitable flexible working arrangements to allow her to care for her baby, has won her case at an employment tribunal. Deborah Clarke, who had worked for Telewest for nearly seven years, requested flexible working arrangements six months before she was due to return to work after her maternity leave. But the communications giant continually refused to offer Ms Clarke suitable working arrangements, demanding that she worked evening and weekend shifts, which made it impossible for her to look after her son. Telewest's refusal to listen forced Ms Clarke to resign in December 2003, resulting in considerable stress and financial hardship for her and her family. She won a constructive dismissal and indirect sex discrimination case at an 8 June employment tribunal. Jenny Watson, acting chair of the Equal Opportunities Commission, which support the case, said: 'The court's decision reinforces a simple and by now well known fact. Employers need to make it easier for employees to combine work with their childcare commitments. By refusing Ms Clarke's request for flexible working, Telewest have lost a valuable employee with seven years of experience, and now face significant legal costs.'

EOC news release.

Paternity leave 'needs to double'

Fathers should be given a month off work after the birth of a child and £200 a week paternity pay, the Equal Opportunity Commission has said. An EOC poll of 1,200 fathers found a third was not happy with the amount of parental leave they had and 80 per cent would be happy to care for the baby at home. While unpaid parental leave is available to men, the EOC wants at least a month at a guaranteed £200 a week - almost double the £106 men are paid for the two weeks of paternity leave to which they are currently entitled. Jenny Watson, acting chair of the EOC, said: 'This research reveals how much attitudes to fatherhood have shifted in recent years. Dads no longer see themselves solely as the breadwinner. They want to spend more time at home, actively sharing the responsibility of caring for their baby. While the government's transferable maternity leave is a step in the right direction, it only gives fathers access to leave where the mother has been working and has maternity rights to share. Shared parental leave, as we are recommending, allows new dads to play a greater role in caring for their children during their early years, which they have demonstrated they want.'

EOC news release. BBC News Online. Fathers Direct.

EOCs Dads and their babies report [pdf].

Blunkett wants more men doing childcare

David Blunkett is calling on men to consider a career in childcare. The secretary of state for work and pensions emphasised how important access to affordable, quality childcare was in enabling lone parents to get back to work. Speaking at the 6 June launch of national childcare week, he said men had a real role to play in childcare - it could help them take the vital step back into work, while enabling them to still care for their children and provide a positive male role model for children from an early age. 'Good quality childcare can have a positive impact on children's development, improving both educational and social outcomes and is also essential to help break down the barriers that stop lone parents getting a job,' he said. Mr Blunkett also welcomed a new free guide from the Daycare Trust, 'Childcare, employers and exemptions', which is intended to help more businesses take steps to help their staff maintain a positive work-life balance, enabling more parents to play a role in the workforce. The government says around 160,000 people need to be recruited to work in childcare by 2008 and the best way of achieving this is to attract people from as wide a range of backgrounds as possible.

DWP news release. Daycare Trust news release.

Childcare, employers and exemptions is available free from Daycare Trust. To order a copy call 020 7840 3350 or email Daycare Trust.

NEWS IN BRIEF

Ill judged : Thousands of sick workers will no longer be able to claim holiday pay, following a Court of Appeal ruling, employment experts have warned. Judges ruled that employees off work sick for a lengthy period do not have an automatic right to four weeks of annual leave, the basic entitlement under Working Time Regulations, reversing the ruling of a 2002 employment tribunal. The Independent.

Youre shifted : The NHS shift system could be putting doctors and patients at risk, as Trusts respond to the European working time directive by forcing some junior doctors to work 91 hours over seven consecutive nights. Writing in the British Medical Journal, experts from the Royal Free Hospital, London, warned doctors are dangerous tired. Editorial: Junior doctors' shifts and sleep deprivation, British Medical Journal, volume 330, number 7505, page 1404, 18 June 2005. BBC News Online.

Schools plan : All children under 14 in England will be offered 'dawn to dusk' care under a radical extension of the current school day, says the government. The announcement by the education secretary, Ruth Kelly, could be overshadowed by questions about how the so-called extended schools - open from 8am to 6pm - will be funded, and warnings of the bureaucracy involved. DfES news release. Daycare Trust news release. NASUWT news release. The Guardian.

Whingepower : Work-life balance measures in the UK and across Europe could leave the EU in China, India and the USAs economic dust, says David Arkless, senior vice-president of corporate affairs for Manpower. He said that while work-life balance was fine in principle, 'you need a working economy for there to be work& work-life balance is really hard when you are under such pressure.' Personnel Today.

More balance : Theres going to be more work-life balance, the House of Commons was told on 23 June. Parliamentary under-secretary of state for trade and industry Meg Munn, told MPs: 'Work-life balance benefits business and employees,' adding that in addition to the flexible working rights already introduced for working parents 'we plan to extend this to carers of adults.' Hansard.

Doesnt fly : A claim by BA chief Sir Rod Eddington that a sex-discrimination case won by one of the company's pilots will deter airlines from taking on female flight crew has been dismissed by pilots union, BALPA. The union successfully argued that BA had produced no evidence to prove Jessica Starmer was incapable of working half-time and comments: 'Other airlines have no problem employing women pilots and giving them flexible hours so that they can cope with family duties.' The Independent. GMB news release including link to the report. Daily Mail. The Guardian. Silicon.com. BBC News Online. Union guide to electronic monitoring.

Simple exercise : Employers who heap on the pressure and demand longer hours and fewer breaks are damaging their companys productivity. A study of about 200 workers at three UK workplaces - a university, a computer company and a life insurance firm - found that workers who were allowed time for exercise breaks were more productive. MSNBC News.

Labour pains : Pregnant women in Scotland are more likely to suffer from workplace discrimination than those elsewhere in the UK says Equal Opportunities Commission Scotland, which found 54 per cent of pregnant working women in Scotland had experienced discrimination. It is urging the Scottish Executive to implement a three-step plan to protect pregnant workers. BBC News Online.

Unhappy lot : Workers in the UK are among the unhappiest in Europe, and those who work with others are the least likely to express job satisfaction, according to a survey from recruitment agency Kelly Services. Just 47 per cent of UK employees said they were either happy or very happy with their current position, compared with 68 per cent of Scandinavian workers and 61 per cent of French employees, with only workers in Spain, the Netherlands and Belgium less happy. The Guardian.

Power drain : UNISON members in the gas and electricity sectors want to take a firmer stand against stress and overwork when negotiating flexible working. At the June UNISON conference for the sector delegates agreed 'research suggests the issue of work-life balance is becoming increasingly important as workers take on more outside commitments'. UNISON conference report.

Agency agenda : Even agency workers in Poland and Slovenia have more employment rights than UK temps according to a TUC report, which shows that UK agency workers are the least protected in Europe. The EU Temp Trade shows that the UK is one of only three European countries where temps get paid less than colleagues doing similar jobs and one of only four other countries which do not operate a licensing scheme to protect temps from cowboy agencies. TUC news release.

Deadly dull : Having a dull job may increase your risk of a heart attack, researchers have found. Dull, steady, unexciting work is associated with a faster and less variable heart rate, which, in turn, is linked to heart disease, said a team from University College London. CNN.com. BBC News Online. Harry Hemingway and others. Does autonomic function link social position to coronary risk? The Whitehall II study, Circulation, 2005: published online before print June 6, 2005 [abstract].

RESOURCES Find out about your life with the EurLIFE database

The European Foundation has launched an 'interactive database of quality of life indicators.' The Dublin-based agency has included results from the Foundations European Quality of Life Survey and other statistical resources in the new online searchable database, EurLIFE. 'EurLIFE is an easy-access interactive information tool accessible to everyone interested in gathering data on European quality of life,' commented Willy Buschak, acting director of the European Foundation. 'For the first time, policymakers, researchers and journalists will be able to access and manipulate this data in an easy and timely manner, contributing significantly to filling the information gap which has existed in this area to date.' The resource is packed with information relevant to work-life balance, held in sections including employment, income deprivation, education, family, social participation, housing, leisure and life satisfaction. Take a look - did you know, for example, that UK workers are among the most likely to have loved ones who are fed up with the pressures of their job? They are also more likely than most to complain of boring work.

European Foundation news release. EurLIFE interactive database. Check out the newly revamped European Foundation website.

Work, poverty and families

Research published in June by the Department for Work and Pensions explores the experiences and longer-term impact of work on families with children, following an initial transition from benefits into work. The research was carried out by the National Centre for Social Research, and followed-up two previous DWP studies which interviewed families at the point where they had made the initial transition into work. This study re-interviewed the families, two years on from their original interview. It found the factors that motivated retention in work were not all the same as factors that had initially motivated entry into work. For example, desire to avoid benefit dependency became less of a consideration, while desire for a job that met their aspirations for personal development and allowed a balance between work and family became increasingly important. Tax credits were viewed very positively and had helped to make work sustainable. However, in some cases, problems with reporting changes, miscalculations and awareness had affected their impact. Better social adjustment was reported for children thanks to the material benefits and loss of stigma of moving from benefits to work. Parents also reported an increased determination for their children to avoid benefit dependency.

DWP news release. The role of work in low income families with children - a longitudinal qualitative study (research report series No. 245) full report online [pdf]. DWP research reports website.

Also new from DWP: Children in Britain: Findings from the 2003 Families and children study (FACS), DWP (research report series No. 249) full report online [pdf]. Family life in Britain: Findings from the 2003 Families and children study (FACS), DWP (research report series No. 250) full report online [pdf]

INTERNATIONAL NEWS Australia: Unions force rethink on long hours

A union campaign in Australia has forced the government to withdraw a plan for a longer working week. The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) said getting the prime minister John Howard, leader of the openly anti-union Liberal government, to abandon plans to increase the standard working week to 40 hours was a win for Australian workers and their families. ACTU secretary Greg Combet said the hours plan was one of many that could drastically worsen the lot of Australian workers. 'This is an important win for Australian workers, but it is also a sign of a government that is making up its workplace policy on the run,' he said. 'The governments planned changes to Australia's workplace laws will harm working families. They want to abolish protection from unfair dismissal for 3.6 million Australians who work in business with less than 100 staff and make it easier for employers to put workers onto individual contracts that cut their take-home pay. These laws are not just an attack on unions they are and attack on the living standards of every Australian worker. They will make work less secure and hurt families.'

ACTU news release. LHMU news release.

USA: Dont just lie down, act up!

Is no-one turning up to your union meetings, the works committee dying on its feet, and management blithely ignoring your every word? It might just be time for an injection of creative organising. Union organisers and activists gathered in June at the US National Labor College to learn how everything from music to sketches, game shows to theatre can spice up union business. 'Organising campaigns are often about dignity, solidarity, and social justice,' commented Peter Jones, director of the Labor Heritage Foundation, which backs the creative organising events. 'Creative techniques help people showcase these aspects. They also help educate people, build morale and bring people together.' The event was well received by local union activists. 'Its a good programme for any group that wants to pump a little life into their campaigns,' said Jeri Cooper, of UAW Local 651. 'You have to organise hearts as well as heads,' added John McCutcheon, president of AFM Local 1000.

AFL-CIO news release. Labor Heritage Foundation news release. The Great Labor Arts Exchange and Creative Organising conference. Labor Heritage Foundation.

USA: Flat world brings the interminable work day

The business world never sleeps - and that means workers in the globalised economy are increasingly having to do without their sleep too. 'Offshoring' - the migration of jobs to lower-cost countries such as India, China and Russia - is becoming a fact of life for many firms. Even the most unapologetic globalisation proponents nevertheless acknowledge that offshoring has resulted in longer, stranger hours for white-collar workers in the United States. Some business experts worry that the trend could result in massive burnout if offshoring isnt properly managed. Steep turnover among sleep-deprived managers could eventually lead senior executives to re-evaluate the benefits of offshoring, said Peter Morici, an international business professor at Robert H. Smith School of Business at University of Maryland. 'You simply cant keep working a full day, put the kids to bed, take a call from Malaysia, then go back fresh the next morning - its one thing to do it for a couple weeks, but its another to put up with this pain in the neck permanently,' Morici said. 'When executives talk about the efficiencies of offshoring, theyre often not factoring in the long-term human toll on management.'

Fosters Online.

GLOBAL ROUND-UP

Dead serious : A record 130 people in Japan were assessed eligible for workers' compensation for suicide or mental illness induced by stress and excessive work in 2004, according to latest labour ministry figures. The ministry reports a record 524 people applied for workers compensation after suffering from work-related depression and other mental disorders during the fiscal year April 2004-March 2005. Political Affairs. Kyodo. Hazards guide to death from overwork, including work-related suicide.

Vacation deprivation : A study by online travel service Expedia.com has projected that Americans will fail to take advantage of 421 million vacation days this year - an average of three days per employed adult. This could be a very unhealthy development - a long-term study by the State University of New York at Oswego found that annual vacations sharply reduced the risk of death among middle-aged men and a 20-year study by the US Centers for Disease Control linked a lack of vacations with a higher risk of heart attack and death in middle-aged women. Kalamazoo Gazette.

Less taxing : Some Australian workers are seeking counselling while others are getting hooked on yoga and massage in an attempt to take the workplace pressure down. In many cases, the Australian Taxation Office is giving these stress-relief methods the tax-deductible thumbs up. The Australian.

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29 Jun 2005 03:00