HMRC scheme covers cost of homeworking, so why is it not put into practice?

By Dr Sarah Forbes and Dr Holly Birkett Co-directors of the Equal Parenting Project In 2011, the HMRC introduced a scheme which allowed employers to pay homeworking employees up to £4 per week to cover the cost of overheads and claim this back from HMRC. At the start of lockdown in April 2020, the scheme … Continue reading “HMRC scheme covers cost of homeworking, so why is it not put into practice?”

Equal Pay Day: The buck stops here

By Dr Juliet E. Kele, Research Fellow In HRM Department of Management and Lloyds Centre for Responsible Business, University of Birmingham The 20th November 2020 is the day when women in full-time work stop being paid, on average, relative to men. The Fawcett Society, a leading UK charity campaigning for gender equality and women’s rights, … Continue reading “Equal Pay Day: The buck stops here”

Brexit will work against ‘levelling up’ agenda

By Raquel Ortega-Argilés, Department of Strategy and International Business at the University of Birmingham, and  Philip McCann, Chair in Urban and Regional Economics at Sheffield Management University A UK in a Changing Europe research team led by the University of Birmingham[1], and also involving the University of Sheffield, University of Groningen, Erasmus University and Dutch … Continue reading “Brexit will work against ‘levelling up’ agenda”

The importance of digital skills in building back better

By Dr Abigail Taylor Research Fellow, City-Region Economic Development Institute The term ‘digital skills’ can be used to describe different categories of skills. Basic digital skills are those that all citizens need to be ‘digitally literate’. For example, conducting basic internet searches. Then you have digital skills for the general workforce. These include essential digital … Continue reading “The importance of digital skills in building back better”

Helping victims of domestic abuse through the workplace

By Professor Siddhartha Bandyopadhyay Professor of Economics, Director of Centre for Crime, Justice and Policing Domestic abuse is a serious worldwide problem. Globally, it is estimated that 1 in 3 women have experienced some form of domestic abuse in their life. The Crime Survey in England and Wales (2019) showed an estimated 2.4 million adults … Continue reading “Helping victims of domestic abuse through the workplace”

Remote work and worker well-being during the pandemic

By Dr Daniel Wheatley Department of Management, University of Birmingham This article has been produced as part of research for a joint ESRC Festival of Social Science and Work Inclusivity Research Centre event which will be held at 3pm on Thursday 12th November 2020. You can register for the event at the Eventbrite page, which … Continue reading “Remote work and worker well-being during the pandemic”

The Oatly-Blackstone deal: how will consumers respond?

By Dr Caroline Moraes, Reader in Marketing and Consumer Research Department of Marketing, University of Birmingham Consumers are more likely to boycott Oatly if they believe the negative arguments being presented against the brand. Swedish vegan milk brand Oatly has caused controversy among political and climate activists over its decision to sell a stake of the … Continue reading “The Oatly-Blackstone deal: how will consumers respond?”

Black Lives Matter: A movement or a moment?

By Nicholas Bailey, Birmingham Business School and Lloyds Banking Group Centre for Responsible Business, and Professor Nando Sigona, School of Social Policy University of Birmingham BLM became something very different from its previous incarnation on the day George Floyd died. It transitioned from social organisation to symbolising a societal ideal. By any definition, 2020 has … Continue reading “Black Lives Matter: A movement or a moment?”

Will working from home become the new normal after the pandemic?

By Professor Stan Siebert Department of Management, University of Birmingham The University of Birmingham has a beautiful campus. A few months ago, another gleaming building opened, the £18 million extension to the Business School. This provides 120 new offices for the School. But the pandemic hit soon after staff had moved in, and all have … Continue reading “Will working from home become the new normal after the pandemic?”

Should the NHS lead the UK’s contact tracing app?

By Dr Rebecca McDonald, Lecturer in Economics Department of Economics, University of Birmingham […] an app controlled by the NHS may provide the most promising solution for encouraging uptake and use, helping to end lockdown safely. Contact tracing will be crucial to managing the UK’s release from lockdown in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. … Continue reading “Should the NHS lead the UK’s contact tracing app?”