Labour productivity, measured by output per hour, grew by 0.5% compared to the previous quarter (and 1.1% year-on-year), but the figures are 17% below an extrapolation based on pre-downturn trend. This means that labour productivity per employee has not recovered to pre-recession levels despite the upturn in the economy as a whole.
In 2015, the UK was named as the least productive nation in the G7 – a trend that looks set to continue. However, the UK is also set to displace Germany as the best performing economy in Western Europe, according to Cebr Global’s World Economic League Table (WELT) for 2016. A lack of productivity is not having a negative impact on the wider economy.
Commenting on the figures, Tim Oldman, CEO of Leesman, the global standard for measuring workplace effectiveness, said that business leaders must analyse what is causing poor productivity levels.
“As the costs of delivery continue to increase, and as finance directors continue to sacrifice property and infrastructure to save money, more and more workplaces pass a tipping point where their business spaces are failing to support the productivity of those they accommodate,” he said.
Leesman research into over 155,000 employees worldwide has found that only 55% of workers believe their office environment allows them to work effectively. In the UK, that figure drops to just 52%.
“There’s a woeful lack of science being applied to the workplace environment,” said Oldman. “Organisations must include the workplace in their productivity focus.”
Farida Gibbs, CEO and founder of Gibbs S3, urged caution. “Productivity has recently been used to criticise UK businesses, and indirectly their employees, but this is not an accurate consideration to take,” she said. “It is better to judge overall business performance based on a wide range of factors, from KPIs, customer happiness and overall cash flow to the business.”
Some companies in Sweden have begun trialling a six-hour day to try and boost productivity, believing in a ‘quality over quantity’ approach. Initial reports have found that employees are now 20% happier, as well as almost three times less likely to take time off work over the course of any given fortnight.
