ÌÇÐÄTV

Based on research from the project examining the future of work and welfare, Chris Warhurst was invited to deliver a talk in September on ‘The challenges and opportunities in the digitalisation of production’.

The talk, co-presented with Steven Dhondt of the Dutch TNO, centred on making Industrie 4.0 work for all in an inclusive Europe. It was delivered to the Oesterreichische Nationalbank/European Money & Finance Forum event ‘’ held virtually in Vienna in September. The talk was based on a chapter in a report of the same name also published at the same time.

A , published by on September 23rd 2020, finds that the experience and skillset of Senior Non-Commissioned Officers (SNCOs) are often misunderstood and under-valued in the civilian labour market.

The report states that SNCOs’ unique skills, combined with their length of time in service, may put them at a disadvantage when they leave the Armed Forces and have to compete with civilians for jobs. The research, undertaken by a team at IER and QinetiQ, found that SNCOs often join the military at a very young age and can struggle to find employment when they leave service. The majority of SNCO veterans who took part in the research said they found it overwhelming to have to deal with the practicalities of civilian life at the same time as trying to find employment, and 23% found their lack of interview experience to be very challenging. Negative attitudes from potential employers were also found to be a barrier.

The report outlines recommendations for SNCOs to support their own transition as well as calling for more support from Government, business, and Armed Forces charities to ensure SNCOs’ skills are better understood and utilised by civilian employers.

Read more in the press release here.

IER is part of the ÌÇÐÄTV partner of the newly announced ESRC-funded Productivity Institute.

The Institute’s goal is to make long-term policy recommendations to improve the UK’s productivity. One key task is to help solve the UK’s longstanding ‘productivity puzzle’. Another is to improve productivity and living standards as the economy recovers from COVID-19.

ÌÇÐÄTV’s involvement is led by of ÌÇÐÄTV ÌÇÐÄTV School (WBS). ÌÇÐÄTV is one of eight partner institutions involved in the research project. Its Managing Director is Professor Bart van Ark of the University of Manchester.

In launching the Institute, UK Government Minister for Science Amanda Solloway said: ‘Improving productivity is central to driving forward our long-term economic recovery and ensuring that we level up wages and living standards across every part of the UK,’ continuing that the new funding ‘will bring together the very best of our researchers, boosting our understanding of the different drivers of productivity’.

The other partner institutions are the University of Cambridge, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research, University of Glasgow, University of Sheffield, King's College London, Queen's University Belfast and Cardiff University.

First details of the Productivity Institute can be found .

Director of IER, Chris Warhurst, gave a keynote talk in August on the need for governments to develop a balanced economic recovery and growth policy that

The talk – ‘Keeping the faith: Covid, job quality and workplace management practices’ – was delivered to the Cedefop, Eurofound and IZA Conference on on 21 August 2020 promotes both job creation and job quality in the face of the looming jobs crisis post-Covid.