EDITION 783
16 SEPTEMBER 2019

As another week slips by, here are 10 things which caught my attention and may have escaped yours. This newsletter is sent to 50,000+ subscribers each Monday. Please share on social media and forward to your colleagues and friends so they can subscribe, learn and engage. I'd be very grateful if you did.

1. How to beat the back-to-work blues. After a carefree summer on the beach, getting back to work can be a shock. No one enjoys going back to the grindstone after a fun-filled break, but is there any way to prevent all the energy and optimism you felt while lying on a sun lounger from evaporating overnight? Here are a few tips on how to ease the transition. [MORE]
    
2. Unemployment rate for over 50s now equal to that of younger workers. Just 2.6% of adults aged 50 and 64 are unemployed, which is the same rate for those aged 35 to 49, according to the Office for National Statistics. Workers over 50 now make up 32% of UK employees compared to 21% in 1992 with more women aged 60 to 64 working than ever before. Ageism has been blamed for high unemployment rates in the past. The Guardian
    
3. Cameron says Johnson and Gove ‘left truth at home’. David Cameron says Boris Johnson and Michael Gove behaved “appallingly” during the EU referendum campaign. The former prime minister said his Tory colleagues had “left the truth at home” on the referendum campaign trail. He also said the referendum result in 2016 had left him “hugely depressed” and he knew “some people will never forgive me”. The Times
    
4. Online shopping is responsible for forcing women out of work in the UK. Around 75,000 sales assistants or check-out operator roles previously taken by women, particularly entry-level positions for school leavers and part-time roles for mums, have disappeared in the last seven years, according to research by the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce. Twice as much UK shopping is now online compared to 2011 and UK retailers closed 2,870 shops in the first half of the year, about 16 stores each day. The Guardian
    
5. Going to the polls. If a general election were held before the UK’s scheduled departure from the EU on 31 October, the Tories would be on 30% and Labour on 27%, a poll taken last week found. However, if Boris Johnson failed to deliver on his “do or die” promise to take the UK out of the EU by that date, his party would drop to 26%, while Labour would take the lead on 28%. The Brexit Party would gain three points to 17%, and the Lib Dems would be on 20%. The Times
    
6. Do university degree grades really matter? An increasing number of employers don't care what degree grade job seekers achieved at uni. In fact, when it comes to the percentage of people who are unemployed six months after graduation, there's no significant difference between undergraduates who receive a 2.1 and those who score a 2.2. While some employers certainly value academic achievement, many are more impressed by well-rounded individuals who have done interesting things outside the classroom. Financial Times
    
7. What about educating our leaders? Of the current world leaders, 59 attended a British university; 62 an American one. In 2017, Britain had educated 58 world leaders to the US’s 57. The Times
    
8. Obesity among primary school leavers to hit 40% by 2024. Almost four in ten children leaving primary school in 2024 will be clinically obese or overweight, according to a new report from Public Health England. Experts predict that 38.1% of 11-year-olds will be an unhealthy weight in five years’ time, compared with 34.3% at present. Current data shows that children from poorer areas are more than twice as likely to be overweight as those from more affluent neighbourhoods. The Independent
    
9. The hidden tactic overloaded workers are using to catch up. 63% of firms in the UK report that their employees are taking days off from work just so they can catch up on their workload, according to a survey by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. Such workplace “leavism” is on the rise, and it’s liable to lead to burnout and diminished productivity in the long run What can managers do? Make sure staffers know it’s okay to say they have too much on their plate, for starters, and go from there. BBC
    
10. The bottom line. The cost of the government advertising campaign, “Get ready for Brexit” has cost more than £100m. It launched this week with the aim of informing the public and businesses about how to prepare for a no-deal Brexit. Britain is currently on track to leave the European Union on 31 October without an agreement. Daily Mail