Manchester Occupational Health and Safety Group (MOSHG) event Date and location Wednesday 27 July 2016, from 13.45 St Antony’s Centre for Church & Industry, Eleventh Street, Trafford Park, Manchester M17 1JF Event overview Afternoon meeting of Manchester Occupational Health and Safety Group that includes the above talk on Drugs, Substances & Alcohol, do they work for me! by Alex Boyd, Adams Alexander Associates. A Workplace officer from the Health and Safety Executive is likely to be in attendance. Anybody is welcome to attend. Booking and information No booking required. Further information is available from cathy.nixon@mohsg.org.uk or visit the Manchester Occupational Health and Safety Group website. Source link

According to a survey carried out on behalf of national garden furniture retailer, Rattan Direct, 31% of Brits admit to disagreeing with their neighbours with noise, broken fences and untidy gardens being the most common reasons for arguments. The findings uncovered the cause of most neighbourhood rows. Noise complaints topped the list, followed by a broken fence or wall, an untidy garden or hedge, an overgrown tree creeping over the fence and annoying kids and pets. Looking at the differences between regions, the biggest arguments between neighbours can be found in London. On the other hand, Bristolians are far more civil and more likely to avoid neighbour disputes. Interestingly, Birmingham is home to the noisiest neighbours. Welsh homeowners don’t welcome their neighbours’ pets into their gardens, whereas residents in Sheffield won’t return next door’s ball if it lands in their backyard, as they are mostly annoyed with their neighbours’ children.   What else annoys us when it comes to our green spaces? Further data reveals that noisy neighbours were also voted as one of the top annoying things about our gardens. Moreover, two-thirds of homeowners and tenants admit there is at least one thing in their gardens they wish they could change. 59% of those unhappy residents said that keeping their gardens nice and tidy is the most annoying aspect of having an outdoor space. In more detail, people are mostly irritated by having to mow the lawn during the summer months, having to do lots of gardening, such as weeding, or having a fence or hedge that requires a lot of maintenance. Robert Fernandez, the Marketing Director at Rattan Direct, says: “It’s interesting to see the UK map of ‘neighbours rows’ and how things differ from region to region. Some are calm and harmonious, whereas others are very protective of their outdoor spaces.” While it’s understandable that no one wants to deal with an overgrown tree, a broken fence or messy pets, there’s always a way of overcoming an argument. At the end of the day, you want to have a nice relationship with your next door neighbours. You never know when you might need to borrow some sugar.” Source link

Staffing levels recover from temporary setback in February 2015 Private housing and commercial sectors remain strong Uncertainty remains in public sector, despite overall increase in the workload forecast The RIBA Future Trends Workload Index bounced back strongly this month, rising to +36 in March 2015 compared with +26 in February 2015. Practices based in London (balance figure +42) and the South of England (+39) were the most confident about medium-term workloads, though workload forecast balance figures remain positive across the United Kingdom. The March 2015 workload forecast increased across all four sectors. The private housing sector forecast remains the most positive, standing at +34 in March 2015 (from +27 in February 2015). The commercial sector workload forecast increased to +19 in March 2015 (from +15 in February 2015). Annualised, the combined workload across these two sectors continues to rise at a rate of approximately 8% per annum. The community sector forecast also experienced a healthy uplift, from +5 in February 2015 to +9 in March 2015. Meanwhile, the public sector workload remains the poorest performer in the monthly sector forecasts, despite an increase to +5 in March 2015 (up from +1 in February 2015). The Future Trends Staffing Index rose strongly from its temporary setback last month, standing at +16 in March 2015 (up from +9 in February 2015). Large practices (balance figure +63) are currently the most confident about their ability to sustain higher staffing levels in the medium term, closely followed by medium-sized practices (balance figure +56). Small practices are more circumspect, with a balance figure of +11. Overall, just 12% of individuals reported that they had personally been under-employed in the last month. RIBA Director of Practice Adrian Dobson said: ‘This is a striking indication of greater stability on the employment market for salaried architects, with only 2 per cent of respondents expecting to have fewer permanent staff in three months’ time. We are also seeing a greater number of practices expecting an increase in temporary staff over the medium term. This highlights that there is more certainty about the new project pipeline.’ ‘With a combined annualised increase of 8 per cent per annum, the private housing sector and commercial sector appear to be the primary drivers for the overall increase in the workload forecast.’ ‘However, respondents continue to suggest that overly complex procurement practices have reduced involvement in public sector work. This is in the context of uncertainty around future levels of public sector spending on buildings.’ ENDS Notes to editors: 1. For further press information contact Callum Reilly in the RIBA Press Office: 020 7307 3757 callum.reilly@riba.org 2. The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) champions better buildings, communities and the environment through architecture and our members. www.architecture.com Follow us on Twitter for regular RIBA updates www.twitter.com/RIBA 3. Completed by a mix of small, medium and large firms based on a geographically representative sample, the RIBA Future Trends Survey was launched in January 2009 to monitor business and employment trends affecting the architects’ profession. 4. The Future Trends Survey is carried out by the RIBA in partnership with the Fees Bureau. Results of the survey, including a full graphical analysis, are published each month at: http://www.architecture.com/RIBA/Professionalsupport/FutureTrendsSurvey.aspx 5. To participate in the RIBA Future Trends Survey, please contact the RIBA Practice Department on 020 7307 3749 or email practice@riba.org. The survey takes approximately five minutes to complete each month, and all returns are independently processed in strict confidence 6. The definition for the workload balance figure is the difference between those expecting more work and those expecting less. A negative figure means more respondents expect less work than those expecting more work. This figure is used to represent the RIBA Future Trends Workload Index, which for March 2015 was +36 7. The definition for the staffing balance figure is the difference between those expecting to employ more permanent staff in the next three months and those expecting to employ fewer. A negative figure means more respondents expect to employ fewer permanent staff. This figure is used to represent the RIBA Future Trends Staffing Index, which for March 2015 was +16   Posted on Tuesday 28th April 2015 Source link

©Bloomberg Mike Ashley, after giving evidence to MPs over Sports Direct’s business practices Mike Ashley, founder and majority shareholder of Sports Direct, is trying to morph from prole grinder to paternalist as a crunch shareholder vote impends. Like a Victorian mill owner falling penitently to his knees in chapel, he is pledging to “treat all staff with dignity and respect”. A report from law firm RPC on the treatment of workers is littered with mea culpas from the sportswear retailer. Mr Ashley is promising a new enlightened era at the Shirebrook warehouse, the subject of fury among MPs following revelations by undercover reporters from the Guardian. There will be a nurse, a welfare officer, a gym and English lessons for the predominantly foreign workforce. Shirebrook will lack the swimming baths, parks and boating lake that the philanthropic George Cadbury provided for former slum dwellers at his Bournville chocolate factory in Birmingham. But the changes should represent an improvement. They include: the suspension of the “six strikes and you’re out” policy operated by agency labour suppliers; an end to the alleged shaming of workers by tannoy; and an opportunity for employees to switch from zero-hours to minimum-hours contracts. Often, investors appear to care very little about the employees of the businesses they own. But in the case of Sports Direct, minority shareholders see staff welfare — or the lack of it — as expressive of the group’s shambolic governance. Many are due to vote against the reappointment of chairman Keith Hellawell. Any power he might have to represent them is undercut by the position of Mr Ashley, a 55 per cent shareholder, as “deputy executive chairman”. Mr Ashley cannot hope to forestall that censure, or support for a motion requesting an independent review of governance, both of which he can easily vote down. He is however giving a slim inch of ground by asking RPC to examine governance and report back in a ridiculously leisurely 12 months. This is an inadequate response. Shares in Sports Direct, which have collapsed, should remain deeply discounted until it appoints a genuinely independent chairman and non-executives. Mr Ashley should take a back seat managerially or buy out minorities at a stiff premium. Tuesday’s report shows he only edges towards accepted norms with the hot breath of an angry mob on the back of his neck. The contrast is with Victorian paternalist bosses who always aimed to surpass them. To paraphrase a barb against US politician Dan Quayle: “We knew the Cadburys, Mr Ashley, and you’re no George Cadbury.” Brexpocalypse, meh The public is not bovvered about Brexit. One did one’s best to panic them by pointing out Canada has been negotiating an EU trade deal for years and has so far only reached an outline agreement on maple syrup exports. But the public responded by producing a smartphone and displaying a picture of a Persian cat having its tummy tickled. Even shares in housebuilders are bouncing back, after losing two-fifths to one-third of their value. Redrow, which announced record full-year profits on Tuesday, has, for example, recovered to within 4 per cent of its pre-poll level. Where did it all go right? Chairman Steve Morgan says there has been “virtually no impact” from the vote. Undersupply of homes has worsened with the closure of smaller developers. Homebuyers are chipper, thanks to government subsidies. All very embarrassing, if, like Lombard, you saw the vote as a disaster. It might still be. Stocks are high. But their predictive ability has been compromised by action from the Bank of England needed to justify pre-poll Jeremiads. Consumer confidence creates economic conditions, as well as reflecting them, though. As for Redrow, Peel Hunt reckons it looks cheap. That is a reasonable assessment, given the success of Mr Morgan’s bold expansion into the south-east. No dithering nervousness from him, either. The right rotter Brummies sometimes moan the city lacks high-calibre leadership. That would change if Andy Street, managing director of John Lewis, gets the new job of mayor for the urban West Midlands. Mr Street is credited with steering the store chain to an enviable position in middle market retailing and was “most admired” company boss in 2014. He attended King Edward’s, the Birmingham school immortalised in Jonathan Coe’s poignant novel The Rotters’ Club. At one reunion he resolved a bar-room stand-off near Broad Street without violence, a feat beyond most UN peacekeepers. Mr Street is expected to declare his candidacy on September 19. If he wins, he would have to tell the mayor of Brum’s twin city Lyon what he meant by describing France as “sclerotic, hopeless and downbeat”. He would also need to explain to Brummies why he waited until 2015 to open a store in the city. Harvey Nicks beat John Lewis to it by more than a decade. jonathan.guthrie@ft.com Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2016. You may share using our article tools. Please don’t cut articles from FT.com and redistribute by email or post to the web. Source link