Most employees can work smarter, given the chance

More than half (58%) of employees in Britain can identify changes at work which would make them more productive, a research team drawn from UCL Institute of Education (IOE), Cardiff University and Nuffield College, Oxford has found. These findings are published today in the Skills and Employment Survey (2017). The survey seeks the views of employees working across a range of sectors. A total of 3,300 workers from across the UK, aged 20 to 65, were interviewed for the research, which is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), the Department for Education and Cardiff University. The study, which issues results every five years, reveals efficiency-enhancing ideas are more frequently offered and acted upon in organisations where employee involvement is high. Such employers allow employees more autonomy to decide how to do their jobs, are more supportive of those they manage, give employees more opportunity to express their views, and carry out appraisals which affect employees' earnings and/or training opportunities. For example, 28% of those whose line manager is highly supportive are in jobs which also provide employees the opportunity to put forward efficiency-enhancing ideas compared to just 13% of those whose managers are less supportive.