News

Demographic changes are increasing the number of older people at work, and legislative changes such as the abolition of the default retirement age, coupled with less advantageous pension arrangements, mean that older workers are less likely to be moving into retirement as early as was previously the case. IES has conducted research into the enabling factors and constraints on employers looking to support those who wish to continue in employment up to and beyond state pensionable age.

Recent work by IES on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills highlights the challenges facing employers when looking to recruit graduates, the approaches they adopt to attract and select graduates and how these have changed over time. The research also contributes pertinent qualitative evidence to the current debates around social mobility and higher education (HE).

In the European Union, around two-thirds of workers are covered by some form of collective agreement, pointing towards the importance of wage bargaining for macroeconomic outcomes in the 'European Social Model'. IES undertook research for the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions to better understand the effects of the different characteristics of (national) wage bargaining regimes on pay outcomes. Our study delivers new empirical evidence on the impact of bargaining institutions on macroeconomic outcomes, incorporating key features of national wage negotiation systems such as centralisation and coordination.

The Apprenticeship Trailblazers are the government's key response to the Richard Review, putting employers at the heart of developments in order to increase trust in and uptake of Apprenticeships. IES was involved in tracking the process and experiences of the earliest employer networks that took forward the design of the new Apprenticeship standards.

Several articles in this issue are linked to an underlying theme of work, health and wellbeing. Indeed, the related questions of how work affects people’s wellbeing (for good or ill) and of how people’s wellbeing affects their performance at work, are of growing interest to both policymakers and employers and have been an increasing part of the Institute’s work portfolio for several years.

In the summer of 2015, a plan for ‘Creating a more prosperous nation’ was presented to Parliament, outlining major policy initiatives for both the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and HM Treasury to help reduce the productivity gap between the UK and other G7 countries. In order to answer questions raised by the new policy direction, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills funded the new Centre for Vocational Education Research (CVER), a multi-year research programme. The Centre aims to become a world-class research hub with the potential to generate a step-change in our understanding of the nature, significance and potential contribution of VET to individuals and the wider economy.

This Autumn, IES will be launching our Honorary Fellows programme.

The importance of the role of line managers in employee wellbeing and health has been highlighted by guidelines recently published by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), which were underpinned by an evidence review from IES.

The road haulage sector is an important transnational sector in the European Union. The industry has undergone significant structural change over the past decade, due to liberalisation of the market and the increased competition that this has caused. IES recently undertook research for the European Parliament that assessed the impact of market integration on employment conditions in the sector. A complicated picture emerged of a sector characterised by long and complex subcontracting chains and instances of long driving times, inadequate rest, and some employer practices aimed at circumventing EU and national employment regulation.

Over recent years there has been better recognition of the economic and social costs of poor mental health among the population. Improving mental health has also become an increasing political priority, illustrated for example by the recent appointment of a Minister for Mental Health to the full Shadow Cabinet. At the same time, public attitudes have been changing for the better, leading to a more open culture in relation to mental health. IES has a long track record of researching mental health at work and recently undertook research for the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) to investigate how higher education institutions provided support for students with mental health problems and/or other impairments with intensive support need.