FEATURES

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WHY EVERY GREAT HIRE STARTS WITH A FOCUS ON THE CANDIDATE EXPERIENCE

Eleanor Vajzovic, Head of Strategic Solutions, Paradox, provides some tips on how organisations can create successful candidate experiences.

18 THE FUTURE OF WORK IS HERE: HOW TO ATTRACT AND RETAIN TALENT WITH EMPLOYEE BENEFITS

Offering flexible and varied benefits will improve inclusivity and meet the disparate needs of employees, says Primus Lee, Executive Director and Head of Employee Benefits, Howden.

68 COPING WITH CHANGE MANAGEMENT PLANS WITHOUT BURNING OUT

Dr Tanvi Gautam, HR influencer, keynote speaker, bestselling author, and transformational leadership expert, offers frameworks that can be used to manage the stress of change management programmes.

70 AVOIDING THE NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF ALGORITHMIC MANAGEMENT THROUGH EFFECTIVE JOB DESIGN

Philippa “Pip” Penfold, Managing Director, Integrating Intelligence, encourages HR to be more involved in conversations across their organisations about the decision to adopt AI.

74 HAVE YOU BEGUN BUILDING A BUSINESSWIDE APPROACH TO PEOPLE L&D

Steven Businovski, who works in Organisational Development & Learning at BHP, emphasises the importance of organisations creating a capability strategy and establishing a L&D culture.

76 THE WORLD IS CHANGING! ARE YOU AND YOUR EMPLOYEES READY?

Tim Sackett, President, HRU Technical Resources, examines the potential impact Generative AI can have on the future of work.

78 THE ROLE HR CAN PLAY TO ENABLE ESG OUTCOMES

CHROs are increasingly looking to devise and execute their organisation’s ESG strategy through people interventions, says Jonathan Cheung, Chief Executive Officer, The ESG Institute.

80 FOSTERING INNOVATION AND SUPPORTING EMPLOYEES THROUGH AN INCLUSIVE WORK CULTURE

Eric Ng, Executive Director and General Manager, Amgen SouthEast Asia, India, and Hong Kong (SEAIHK), highlights the role leaders can play in creating a sustainable DI&B culture.

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84 Leading In A Hybrid Workplace

Elisa Mallis, VP and Managing Director, APAC, Center for Creative Leadership, details how leaders can ensure hybrid team success in their organisation.

86 UNLOCKING GROWTH: HOW HIGH-RES CHROS DRIVE LONG-TERM SUCCESS

Enabling the conditions for CHROs to thrive is critical to boosting productivity and potential across organisations, says Gaston Carrion, Talent & Organisation Lead, Growth Markets, Accenture.

88 Accelerating Business Growth With Creative Leadership

According to Dickson Tang, keynote speaker and author of the book, Leadership for Future of Work, creative leaders are more likely to empower their team members with new ways of doing things.

90 Why People Data Analytics Is Poised To Drive Big Changes In 2023

People data analytics can empower leaders and individuals with insights that will drive them to make decisions to move themselves and their organisation forward, writes Jelvie Grech, People Systems Lead, REA Group.

92 Why Remote Work Is Still Of Central Importance

Scott Harrison, Chief People & Culture Officer, coto, share insights into overcoming the initial hurdles of remote working and how to build a cohesive and successful remote team.

Thailand

Employees In Thailand Afforded More Freedom To Choose Where To Work

THE LABOUR PROTECTION ACT IN THAILAND has been amended to improve employees’ work-life balance and provide more leverage for employees to negotiate with their employees on where they wish to work from.

The newly added article 23/1 will allow employees to agree with their employers on the location of where they want to work. The amended legislature will also address issues such as the duration an employee is allowed to work remotely, overtime and rest periods, leaving-taking procedures, and conditions for providing work-related equipment to support employees.

HONG KONG

BURNOUT, WORK-LIFE IMBALANCE IMPACT EMPLOYEE HAPPINESS IN HONG KONG

DRIVEN BY FACTORS such as burnout and a lack of work-life balance, the happiness index score for employees in Hong Kong stood at 5.15 out of 10, with almost four out of 10 employees giving a failing score.

According to an online survey of 1,500 employees conducted by HK.WeCare, a positive thinking advocacy group, more than 40% of respondents reported experiencing high levels of burnout at work, while 30% said they experienced work-life imbalance, which prevented them from relaxing in their personal time.

Australia

Australia Proposes Improved Parental Leave Framework For Working Families

THE AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT is set to improve the parental leave framework in the Fair Work Act, providing greater flexibility for families and making it easier for parents to take unpaid parental leave.

Under the proposed changes, an employee’s entitlement to flexible unpaid parental leave will increase from 30 days to 100 days. Pregnant employees will also be able to take some of their flexible unpaid parental leave starting six weeks prior to the expected date of birth of the child, allowing them to better balance work and prepare for birth.

Singapore

Less Educated Young Employees In Singapore Lack Training Opportunities

YOUNG EMPLOYEES IN SINGAPORE who are low earners and less educated face different challenges from their peers who are more highly qualified, both in terms of job mobility and mental health, according to a study by the National University of Singapore’s (NUS) Social Service Research Centre (SSR).

While 64% of employees with a diploma and 69% of employees with a degree had their training sponsored by employers, only 46% of employees with post-secondary education and 41% with secondary education and below had employers who paid for their training.

Japan

Male Employees In Japan Encouraged To Prioritise Family Over Work

TO ADDRESS JAPAN’S FALLING BIRTH RATE, Japan is aiming to increase the ratio of male employees taking childcare leave to 50% by 2025, before hitting a high of 85% in 2030.

Among the strategies outlined by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida include providing financial support to small businesses that pay a special allowance to employees who temporarily assume the work of colleagues on childcare leave.

The government will also raise the child-rearing allowance paid to parents for a certain period after the child’s birth.

NEW ZEALAND

Employee Retention A Priority For Organisations In New Zealand

OVER THE LAST TWO YEARS, retaining employees who are hard to be replaced is a key consideration for three-quarters of organisations in New Zealand when determining wages and salaries for employees.

Besides talent retention, competing for employees and adapting to changes in business conditions have also been key factors for organisations in their wage and salary setting decisions, according to Stats NZ, New Zealand’s data agency.

Beyond monetary rewards, more organisations are also offering more flexibility for their employees, with more than one in five organisations reporting an increase in employees’ choice over location of work.

US 4-DAY WORK WEEK BILL TABLED IN THE US

US CONGRESSMAN MARK

TAKANO, who represents California’s 39th district, has reintroduced his 32hour Workweek Act to Congress. If passed, it would officially reduce the standard definition of the workweek from 40 hours to 32 hours by amending the Fair Labour Standards Act of 1938.

The proposal would apply to nonexempt workers who are typically paid hourly in industries like leisure and hospitality, transportation, construction, manufacturing, wholesale, and retail trade. Some salaried workers would also meet the bill’s provision, reported USA Today

MICHIGAN REPEALS ‘RIGHT TO WORK’ LAW

GRETCHEN WHITMER, governor of the US state of Michigan, has signed off on legislation to repeal the state’s right-to-work law.

Right-to-work laws prohibit union security agreements, which is a contract between a labour union and employers that require all employees benefiting from the union contract to pay their share of costs.

“We are coming together to restore workers’ rights, protect Michiganders on the job, and grow Michigan’s middle class,” Whitmer declared.

EUROPE BACK UP YOUR CLIMATE-FRIENDLY CLAIMS, COMPANIES IN EUROPE TOLD

COMPANIES SEEKING TO PROMOTE GOODS sold in Europe with labels like “natural”, “climate neutral” or having “recycled content” could soon be required to carry out a sciencebased assessment that accesses all significant environmental impacts, to prove that the product lives up the claim, or have it verified under an environmental labelling scheme.

According to the European Commission, the proposal aims to stamp out misleading green labels for products ranging from clothing to cosmetics, with companies making climate-friendly claims without proof subjected to financial penalties.

Ireland Employees In Ireland Lack Mental Health Support

80% OF EMPLOYERS IN IRELAND are not investing in workplace mental health, according to a new study by University College Cork. This is even though more than half of employers reported that the proportion of absenteeism due to mental ill-health has increased in the last 12 months. The study also found that firms in Ireland are less likely to support workplace health promotion than in England. Presenteeism, or working when ill, is also higher in Irish businesses compared to employers in England, reported RTE

Uk

Uk Not Expected To Bring Forward Date To Raise State Pension Age

THE STATE PENSION AGE IN THE UK, which will be raised from 66 to 68 in 2044, is not expected to be brought forward. A previous government review in 2017 had suggested the rise could be brought forward into the late 2030s.

By law, the government is required to examine planned changes to the system every six years, and the latest review considers factors such as the costs involved and life expectancy, which is no longer due to rise as quickly as previously projected, reported BBC News

France

France Has Happiest Employees In Europe

EMPLOYEES IN FRANCE ARE AMONG THE MOST FULFILLED in the world, according to a new study by Axa.

33% of employees in France said they feel fulfilled at work, compared to 29% in the United States, 24% in Belgium and Spain, and 23% in Germany and the UK. Globally, only Thailand had a higher number of employees (37%) who reported feelings of fulfilment.

26% of employees in France said that their working conditions were “optimal” and only 10% reported being “in distress” while at work.