The latest learning news and research personally compiled by TJ’s Editor, Jo Cook
Third party harassment must be stamped out, says Unite
Unite, the UK’s leading union, has called for concrete legislation to tackle third party harassment at work. Ensuring employers take a zero-tolerance approach to incidents and produce policies that truly protect workers.
Half of women aged 18 – 34 have experienced harassment from a third party at work, such as verbal abuse, intimidation, or physical violence. And figures released today from the NHS show that 8% of 700,000 healthcare workers said they suffered sexual harassment from patients, or other members of the public, last year.
The epidemic has been made worse by the removal of protections from the 2010 Equalities Act; with a watered-down Workers Protection Bill doing nothing to safeguard workers.
New Masters-level apprenticeship programme to develop more women into tech leadership roles
Cognizant, one of the world’s leading professional services companies, has partnered with QA, a leading provider of digital skills training, to develop a MSc level apprenticeship programme aimed at increasing the number of women in leadership positions within tech companies.
This is part of a mission shared by both QA and Cognizant to actively tackle the UK’s gender skills gap. According to a recent Tech Nation report, 77% of tech director roles are filled by men. Apprenticeships such as those offered by this programme can play a significant role in boosting the number of women in such positions.
To be eligible to study for this program, typically candidates will have received a 2:2 (second class) honours degree in an appropriate computing, technology or engineering discipline, although non-standard entry will be considered where the applicant has the judged potential to benefit from the programme. There is no cost to the learner as a degree apprentice. Degree Apprenticeships are fully funded by the Apprenticeship Levy through the learner’s employer for eligible businesses.
Toxic workplaces: 1 in 3 employees experience microaggressions and discriminatory behaviour
New research from Mental Health First Aid England, released to mark My Whole Self Day (12 March 2024) reveals almost 1 in 3 employees (31%) have experienced at least one form of microaggression or discriminatory behaviour from their manager in the past six months.
• Misspelling or mispronouncing employee’s names, exclusionary comments around people’s age, working pattern, personal life, and physical or mental health are most cited among list of negative behaviours facing the country’s workforce
• Half (47%) of White British people say they’ve experienced discriminatory behaviour from managers, rising to 57% of Asian or Asian British workers, and 72% of Black or Black British employees
• Two-thirds (66%) of employees aged 18-34 say they’ve experienced exclusionary acts from managers, compared to 38% of those aged 45-64
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