Newsroom

Traditionally Christmas is the time of year when people want to wind down and focus on family and friends, however new research from Kronos has revealed that most UK employees won’t enjoy the festive period this year as a direct result of work demands.

The productivity puzzle has left economists, politicians and business leaders baffled, but part of the solution could be very simple – keeping the workforce happy.

Winter is a challenging season for employers, especially those needing to increase employee performance and productivity in the busy run up to Christmas. The clocks have gone back and the darker and colder winter days tend to come hand in hand with a drop in staff morale. This, combined with the rise in absenteeism due to winter related illnesses, means maintaining the smooth running of the workplace can become even more challenging.

The “Christmas Shift” research reveals the attitudes of UK employees towards working over the festive period and identifies significant differences of opinion based on gender and age.

51% of UK employees have cited ‘job demands’ as the main reason why they can’t enjoy the festive season, with 20% working Christmas Day.

With manufacturers intently focused on the technology element of Industry 4.0, the workforce management company Kronos warns that maximum benefit can only be achieved if equal attention is paid to the people operating it. Nick Peters reports.

Guest blog by Neil Pickering, Marketing and Industry Insight Manager at Kronos

Though the UK may have experienced a belated and unexpected heatwave, the summer holidays have come to an unwelcome end. Children are back at school, you can’t get a seat on the train and people have returned to work, slightly sunburnt and downcast with a case of holiday blues.

Taking steps to boost employee engagement not only helps in retaining valued employees, but it also increases an organisation’s level of performance.