iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Paul Bivand @paulbivand.bsky.social · 24/01/2025

Reposted by Asli Atay

The terms of reference www.gov.uk/government/p... are interesting.

gov.uk

Keep Britain Working: Terms of Reference

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Annie Irvine @annieirvine.bsky.social · 22/01/2025

The Health Foundation has published new analysis on mental health trends among working age people and invited me to share some thoughts. Taking a more holistic approach to understanding capacity for work seems to be at the heart of it: www.health.org.uk/features-and...

health.org.uk

Unravelling the rise in mental health-related inactivity

Dr Annie Irvine on why we need for a much more holistic approach to understanding capacity in order to tackle mental health-related inactivity.

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Asli Atay @asliatay.bsky.social · 19/01/2025

New Substack is out! In my latest post, I explore why Blair’s call to avoid "medicalising the ups and downs of life" risks missing the bigger picture: the systemic mental health crisis in our workplaces and its connection to bad jobs. Let me know what you think! open.substack.com/pub/asliatay...

Tony Blair’s ‘Tougher’ Message Misses the Real Crisis: Bad Jobs and Mental Health

Workplace Mental Health Starts with Autonomy and Flexibility in Job Design

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Asli Atay @asliatay.bsky.social · 19/01/2025

Tony Blair’s ‘Tougher’ Message Misses the Real Crisis: Bad Jobs and Mental Health

Workplace Mental Health Starts with Autonomy and Flexibility in Job Design

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Asli Atay @asliatay.bsky.social · 16/01/2025

I’m at the launch of the Digital Dialogues report at Tech UK. The findings reveal that technology is augmenting and complementing work but also highlight challenges for workers, including new skill demands, risks of work intensification, and digital surveillance.

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Work Foundation @workfoundation.bsky.social · 09/01/2025

However, we also find that employers are struggling to respond. More than three in five employers (65%) acknowledge the value of occupational health services, but only 37% provide these services. In addition, less than half of employers (48%) offer flexible working arrangements.

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Work Foundation @workfoundation.bsky.social · 09/01/2025

.@asliatay.bsky.social continues that the first year after illness is pivotal – 4.2% of workers leave their jobs within the first year of a health setback. Findings also include that employees are four times more likely to leave their job if they lack flexibility following a health setback.

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Work Foundation @workfoundation.bsky.social · 09/01/2025

.@asliatay.bsky.social shares that, since the pandemic, 2.78 million people have left the workforce due to long-term health conditions. This has far-reaching consequences – not just for individuals but also for employers and the welfare system.

Figure showing the change in economic inactivity due to long-term sickness in the UK, for people aged 16 to 64 years old, thousands.

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Asli Atay @asliatay.bsky.social · 09/01/2025

We're about to start our webinar on Healthier Jobs to Tackle Economic Inactivity. Join us to explore how we can better support people with ill health to stay in work!

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Alice Martin @alicepmartin.bsky.social · 06/01/2025

EVENT: Join us on Thurs to explore our research on healthier jobs to tackle economic inactivity, with @asliatay.bsky.social, Nick Pahl @somceo.bsky.social & Prof Stavroula Leka, expert in workforce health We have 100+ sign ups already, looking forward to it www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/stemming-t...

eventbrite.co.uk

Stemming the tide: Healthier jobs to tackle economic inactivity

Join the Work Foundation to explore new research.

Asli Atay @asliatay.bsky.social · 22/12/2024

"A recent Working Lives of Teachers and Leaders survey shows a big jump in respondents citing the lack of flexible working opportunities as a reason for considering leaving the state education sector in the next 12 months – up from 34% in 2023 to 47% in 2024." www.theguardian.com/education/20...

theguardian.com

UK teachers should be allowed to work from home, education secretary says

Bridget Phillipson insists move to marking and class preparation out of school would help stem retention crisis

Alice Martin @alicepmartin.bsky.social · 18/12/2024

Reposted by Asli Atay

Great to see our finding in @thetimes.com today - that half the people who leave employment due to illness do so in the first year following their decline in health. This is a critical period, requiring good sick pay, leave and adjustments www.thetimes.com/article/why-...

thetimes.com

Why can’t more than 800,000 job vacancies be filled?

There are four times as many people potentially able to work as there are jobs

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Asli Atay @asliatay.bsky.social · 17/12/2024

🔈 New Substack: Hearing on the news that GDP is declining can feel abstract to many of us. I’ve been thinking about how we can make growth feel more real, so I wrote a blog exploring this, drawing on recent events, reports, and policy discussions. open.substack.com/pub/asliatay...

Beyond the numbers: How the Government can reconnect growth with people's lives

From abstract metrics to tangible change

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Asli Atay @asliatay.bsky.social · 13/12/2024

"The Tokyo Metropolitan Government will allow its staff to work a four-day week as authorities in the world’s largest city begin a radical experiment to reverse Japan’s low birth rate." www.ft.com/content/7cc7...

ft.com

Tokyo plans 4-day working week to boost births

World’s largest city begins radical experiment as it tries to tackle demographic crisis

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Christopher Rocks @christopher-rocks.bsky.social · 06/12/2024

Great to see this report from the Work Foundation. Interesting findings on how important access to flexible working is for enabling people with health conditions stay in work.

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Paul Bivand @paulbivand.bsky.social · 05/12/2024

Because the policy focus has been on benefits, there has been little/no recognition that people may have been on contractual sick pay for quite a long time. This is mainly a big company thing, but given 90% plus employers are tiny, the % of employment from medium/large employers is high.

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Iain Porter @iainkporter.bsky.social · 06/12/2024

Great research/thread @asliatay.bsky.social of Work Foundation. Chimes with @jrf-uk.bsky.social/Scope report that the most significant barriers holding disabled people back from work include inaccessible, inflexible jobs lacking health-related adaptations and support: www.jrf.org.uk/work/unlocki...

jrf.org.uk

Unlocking benefits: Tackling barriers for disabled people wanting to work

Reforms are needed to unlock work for people receiving work-related disability benefits, as informed by research with disabled people in partnership with Scope.

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Claire Campbell @clairecampbellj.bsky.social · 05/12/2024

Really interesting and important study by the Work Foundation demonstrating how important flex is to keeping people in work www.personneltoday.com/hr/sick-work...

personneltoday.com

Sick workers without job flexibility four times more likely to leave

Research shows people without flexibility in their jobs are four times more likely to leave work following a decline in health.

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Dr Calum Carson @drcalumcarson.bsky.social · 05/12/2024

This speaks to today's report from the Work Foundation exploring the linkages between job quality and ill health (link below), as well as our findings for the @irhws.bsky.social project about the need for inclusive flexible working models to retain people with disabilities/ill health in employment.

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George Williams @gdwilliams9.bsky.social · 05/12/2024

UK: European outlier as it does not place legal requirements on employers to provide occupational health (OH) services to their workers. 45% of workers have access to OH. Germany, Denmark, Netherlands...: mandate employers provide OH. Near universal coverage. (4/7)

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George Williams @gdwilliams9.bsky.social · 05/12/2024

The UK has near record levels of economic inactivity due to ill-health and is the only G7 nation with a smaller workforce than before the pandemic Our new report examines approaches taken by other nations to support healthy work and the overall health of their working age populations A thread...

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Sam Atwell @swjatwell.bsky.social · 05/12/2024

This is a great piece of work from our friends at the Work Foundation. Aside from lots on the risk factors for leaving the labour market, it very helpfully sets out a framework for policy intervention - from healthier workplaces to better ways of managing absence and work returns ⬇️

It’s fantastic to see our findings gaining traction, including coverage in Forbes and beyond. You can find it here: www.lancaster.ac.uk/media/lancas... @rebeccaflorisson.bsky.social @alicepmartin.bsky.social @gdwilliams9.bsky.social

A Reuters article titled "More flexibility can keep sick UK employees in work, report says" by David Milliken, published on December 5, 2024.

Below the headline is an image of people walking across London Bridge with Tower Bridge in the background, located in the City of London financial district. The caption reads: "People walk over London Bridge looking at a view of Tower Bridge in the City of London financial district in London, Britain, October 25, 2023. REUTERS/Susannah Ireland/File Photo."

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If we want a healthier, more inclusive workforce, we need a ‘national reset’ on workforce health. That’s why we propose moving attention from downstream measures to more upstream measures. Some of our key recommendations are (11/12)

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Occupational health services are critical, yet only 37% of employers provide them. The gap between large employers (47%) and SMEs (30%) is also stark. SMEs, which form the backbone of the UK economy, need targeted support to close this gap. (10/12)

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Nearly 2/3 of employers acknowledge poor employee health negatively impacts their bottom line. But only 1/3 implement measures like: ✅Mental health risk assessments ✅Workload adjustments ✅Proactive health supports (9/12)

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For those who stay, supportive environments, job autonomy, and tailored adjustments make a huge difference. The challenge? Most employers know this but fail to act. Making the business case for action—and supporting them to follow through—is critical. (8/12)

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Workplace flexibility and autonomy are game-changers for retention. Workers without flexibility are 4x more likely to leave their job after a health decline. (7/12)

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Poor mental health further compounds this issue. Workers with poor mental health are nearly twice as likely to exit the workforce following illness compared to those with good mental health. (6/12)

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It’s perhaps unsurprising that workers with multiple health conditions are especially at risk. Those managing 3+ conditions are 5.6 times more likely to leave work early compared to those without a health condition. (5/12)

A bar chart titled "Likelihood of leaving employment (relative risk)."

The chart shows the relative risk of leaving employment based on the number of health conditions:

One condition: 1.5% likelihood.
Two conditions: 2.4% likelihood.
Three or more conditions: 5.6% likelihood.
Source: Analysis of weighted UK Household Longitudinal Study data, 2017/18–2021/22.

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Nearly 1 in 10 workers who experience a health decline leave work within four years. The first year after the onset of ill health is a critical window for intervention—a finding that highlights the urgent need for action. (4/12)

A bar chart titled "Flow of workers aged 16–60 leaving employment depending on whether they experienced a negative health transition in one of six health measures, 2017/18 to 2018/19."

The chart compares two groups:

Workers with no negative health transition: 2.5% left employment.
Workers with a negative health transition: 4.2% left employment.
Source: Analysis of weighted UK Household Longitudinal Study data, 2017/18–2021/22.

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Our research is grounded in: 📊Longitudinal data from Understanding Society data 🔍A survey of 1,000+ employers 🗣️In-depth conversations with experts and employers 🌍Analysis of international examples Here’s what we found. 👇 (3/12)

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For years, government action has rightly focused on helping people with ill health return to work. But if the government is serious about achieving an 80% workforce participation rate, we must also focus on retention. Supporting workers at risk of leaving is vital.(2/12)

A chart illustrating various measures of workplace health interventions.

An arrow moves from left to right, representing a progression:

Upstream measures: These include identifying risk factors, work design, and organisational management to prevent ill health.
Midstream measures: These address health concerns after the onset of ill health, such as employee behaviours, health and wellness programs, and occupational health and safety practices.

Downstream measures: These include interventions for managing existing health conditions.

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Asli Atay @asliatay.bsky.social · 01/12/2024

Our report on tackling economic inactivity is finally out and it’s one we’ve been working on for a while.🥳 The key takeaway? Flexibility, autonomy, and support during the first year after ill health onset are game changers for keeping people in work. A ~long~ thread to unpack our key findings🧵

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The Get Britain Working White Paper mentions 'mission' 30+ times & 'growth' 40+ times—showcasing its role as a vehicle for the government’s mission-driven approach. Not the light Sunday read I planned, but here we are! Read my take on mission-driven policymaking: open.substack.com/pub/asliatay...

Labour’s Plan to Get Britain Working: A Test for Mission-Driven Governance?

What Is Mission-Driven Governance, and How Does It Shape Labour’s White Paper?

Asli Atay @asliatay.bsky.social · 01/12/2024

"Sex workers will be entitled to official employment contracts, health insurance, pensions, maternity leave and sick days. Essentially, it will be treated like any other job." www.bbc.co.uk/news/article....

bbc.co.uk

Belgium's sex workers get maternity leave and pensions under world-first law

They will be entitled to official employment contracts, health insurance and sick days.

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Asli Atay @asliatay.bsky.social · 29/11/2024

Exciting news! Alice Martin, our Head of Research, has joined Bluesky! 🎉 Welcome, @alicepmartin.bsky.social l! It's so much nicer here without bots and irrelevant ads 😅

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Asli Atay @asliatay.bsky.social · 28/11/2024

I’m at the Inclusive Growth Conference organised by @centrepropolicy.bsky.social this morning. The event started with a great keynote from Baronness Ayesha Hazarika on the importance of considering not just what growth is, but also how it feels for ordinary people. #IGCon24

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The Get Britain Working White Paper: Does it have what it takes to tackle economic inactivity? - Lancaster University

It’s encouraging to see greater focus on this area. We’re calling for stronger action on prevention, retention, and genuine collaboration with employers to make a lasting impact. (5/5) Read our full reflections here 👇 www.lancaster.ac.uk/work-foundat...

lancaster.ac.uk

The Get Britain Working White Paper, unveiled on Tuesday by the Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall, outlines a series of proposals to boost workforce participation and increase the UK employment ...

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... the success of these proposals depends on sustained funding, systemic benefits reform and genuine employer collaboration. Without these, there’s a real risk of driving people into insecure, low-quality jobs. (4/5)

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At the Work Foundation, we welcome initiatives such as transforming Jobcentres into a modern National Careers Service, piloting NHS employment accelerators to integrate healthcare and work support. But.. (3/5)

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With 671,000 people leaving the workforce due to long-term sickness since the pandemic and 1 million young people (18-24) not in education, employment, or training, the challenges are stark. The White Paper sets out key reforms, but questions remain. (2/5)

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