Business News Round Up (10/04/2025)
Firms see hybrid working benefits but want staff in office
Businesses which have adopted a hybrid working approach believe it has boosted productivity and wellbeing, yet many are still keen for staff to spend more time in the office. A particular concern is the impact that working remotely has on providing support and development of younger staff. The Business Outlook Tracker of 607 UK mid-sized businesses by Grant Thornton UK found that almost three quarters (71%) are currently using a hybrid working approach. In Scotland, this figure drops to 37%. Across the UK, 83% found it had benefited productivity (95% in Scotland), while all Scottish respondents said it has positively impacted their people’s wellbeing, that their people prefer a hybrid working approach and that hybrid working is beneficial for their business. Despite these benefits, the majority (95%) of Scottish respondents are still keen that their people spend more time in the office than they are currently.
Salaries frozen and pay rises delayed ahead of employers’ NIC rise, survey finds
Salaries have been frozen and pay rises have been delayed ahead of the rise in employers’ National Insurance Contributions (NIC), which came into force on Sunday [6 April 2025], a new survey has found. More than two-fifths of North West businesses (41%) have taken on pay action since the October Budget to prepare for the increase in both employers’ NIC and the National Minimum Wage (NMW). Nearly a third of regional businesses (32%) have also imposed a full recruitment ban, with the same number choosing to use contract workers instead of recruiting. More than a third of North West businesses (26%) have chosen an alternative route by introducing or enhancing salary sacrifice schemes. According to the BDO survey, 38% of regional businesses are exploring new awards schemes to improve employee engagement, with more than a third (35%) looking at flexible working and 32% planning to introduce wellbeing programmes.
Food and drink manufacturing sector contributes £37bn to the UK’s economy
The UK’s food and drink manufacturing sector has grown by almost 20% over the course of a decade, according to a new report, with the industry now contributing £37bn to the economy. The Powering Communities report from the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) has revealed that the sector has grown by 17.9% and accounts for almost a quarter (24.2%) of total UK manufacturing turnover. It makes up almost a third (30.8%) of total manufacturing GVA in Scotland and a fifth in the East Midlands (20.6%) and Northern Ireland (20.2%). The report also shows the food and drink manufacturing sector’s role as a major employer, providing 486,500 jobs in the UK’s 12,195 food and drink businesses. Employment in the sector is growing, with 41,000 new jobs across the UK since 2018. The number of food and drink manufacturing businesses in the UK also rose 14% between 2019 and 2024.
North West’s hybrid working firms want staff to spend more time in the office
North West businesses say hybrid working is still good for their employees’ productivity and wellbeing – but they do want staff to spend more time in the office, a new study shows. Grant Thornton UK’s latest Business Outlook Tracker, which polled mid-sized firms across the North West, found 87% of companies are currently adopting a hybrid working approach. Of those surveyed, 85% believed it had boosted their staff productivity, while 84% believed it had “positively impacted” the wellbeing of their teams, Meanwhile 85% believed their people prefer a hybrid working approach and 88% believed hybrid working was generally beneficial for their business. But despite that, 85% of those whose firms have hybrid working wanted their staff to spend more time in the office than they currently do.
https://www.business-live.co.uk/professional-services/north-wests-hybrid-working-firms-31384568