Download as PDF, PPTX
![The Geography of Discontent: How Big is the Problem?
• UK Interregional problem Is the worst in the OECD relative to scale and national
development
• London and hinterland is decoupling from the rest of UK
• UK is diverging, dislocating and decoupling into 3 different economies [London +
SE, E, SW] [Scotland] [WM, EM, NW, YH, NE, W, NI]
9](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/fullslideserc-pin01-191007142935/75/Making-sense-of-productivity-research-across-sectors-and-scales-9-2048.jpg)
![Key findings – 1/3
Extraction of crude petroleum & gas
• In Oil and Gas, for example, one insider
commented:
• ‘They don’t really talk much about
productivity … they don’t really use the
word productivity, and they certainly don’t
have a kind of a technical kind of led, or a
technical assessment.’ [Public Institution]
• Instead:
• ‘Our general metrics are around cost and
value of the barrels that we’ve either got in
the ground or we’ve produced, that’s what
we use as our metrics’. [Oil Company]
Beverages
• Typical was:
• ‘We do not measure or call anything ‘productivity’,
it’s not a term we use’.
• Instead:
• ‘We do not call it productivity; we call it cost
efficiency’
• And:
• ‘Productivity seems to improve when government
doesn’t do anything. Government wants to legislate
and create new policies etc., but this seems to slow
down productivity. Businesses just want stability.
This is when they will invest and can set clear
strategies’.](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/fullslideserc-pin01-191007142935/75/Making-sense-of-productivity-research-across-sectors-and-scales-35-2048.jpg)
![Key findings – 2/3
Manufacture of pharmaceutical products
• One business respondent commented:
• ‘We talk about sales and customer impact and
feedback. The term productivity is mentioned
very infrequently at exec level.’
• An industry analyst added
• ‘I work in consultancy and I have to explain the
term GVA all the time!’.
• Key here was the international nature of
supply chains and firms’ location of activity in
different jurisdictions to maximise the tax
efficiency
Manufacture of other transport equipment
• Focussing on rail one respondent commented:
• ‘[Thinking about] productivity is almost
completely unknown. There was a review of the
rail industry by Nicola Shaw three or four years
ago and that led to a commission to NSAR to
look at productivity, and the word efficiency
was lightly used, but productivity is not
particularly widely used.’
• Why is this?
• ‘Rail’s being measured on other things to be
honest. So, rail’s been measured on safety and
reliability and performance and the financial
aspect of being formerly secondary particularly
on the infrastructure side.’](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/fullslideserc-pin01-191007142935/75/Making-sense-of-productivity-research-across-sectors-and-scales-36-2048.jpg)
![Key findings – 3/3
Banking
• One bank commented:
• ‘There’s not really a very sophisticated
understanding of productivity within the whole
sector.’
• Productivity varies and targets are different:
• ‘I would say that [the measuring of success in
each department of the bank] is fairly different
and separate, but our overall target is a
profitability target and so everything that, the
different elements that the bank do is driving
towards that kind of framework rather than
using productivity.’ (Incumbent Bank)
Insurance
• And, in insurance:
• ‘Productivity. It’s not a term used in the sector.
…. it certainly isn’t a metric that is used by
individual insurers very often and it’s not metric
that is used by industry lead bodies either’
[Industry Body]
• Instead:
• ‘How do we measure success? Well like most
businesses we have a number of KPI’s which we
look at, but one of the most important ones is
the amount of members’ funds we hold which is
effectively our profit and loss account. We also
look at things such as growth, loss ratios and
member retention is very important to us’.
[Insurance and Savings Company]](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/fullslideserc-pin01-191007142935/75/Making-sense-of-productivity-research-across-sectors-and-scales-37-2048.jpg)
![Individual perspectives on productivity
• “I'd say, basically we meet all the standards. Our meals are coming out on time, the customers are happy and we still
retain our business contracts” (Local authority, school catering service)
• “Our line managers really know what productivity means; they really do understand how to manage wage costs”
(Hotel)
• “We want people who are pretty flexible, who can increase hours if necessary” (Hotel)
• “Our job is hospitality, so it's all about looking after the customers and if our staff aren't happy, then they're not going
to be great party hosts, are they?” (Soft play centre)
• “Long-term staff are more productive than new staff coming in, so that's certainly one area where we're looking to
improve…. [Long-term staff] understand the culture of the business and what we're about, and why we do things. If
we're constantly bringing new people in, and training them, it just saps a lot of time and energy, and recruitment is
really expensive” (Soft play centre)](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/fullslideserc-pin01-191007142935/75/Making-sense-of-productivity-research-across-sectors-and-scales-52-2048.jpg)
Uploaded byenterpriseresearchcentre
Making sense of productivity research across sectors and scales
The document presents insights from a Warwick Business School event discussing UK productivity challenges and regional inequalities. It highlights issues such as the disconnect in understanding 'productivity' between policymakers and industry leaders, and emphasizes the need for tailored, place-based policy interventions to address systemic issues in productivity across various sectors. Additionally, it outlines findings from interviews with industry insiders, revealing that many sectors do not prioritize productivity metrics, often considering efficiency instead.
More Related Content
Similar to Making sense of productivity research across sectors and scales
More from enterpriseresearchcentre
Making sense of productivity research across sectors and scales
- 1. Warwick Business School Makingsense of productivity research across sectors and scales 1 October 2019, 13.00 – 15.00 WBS @ The Shard – London
- 2. Warwick Business School TimeActivity Speakers 13.00 - 13.10 Welcome and introductions Vicki Belt 13.10 - 13.25 The regional perspective on productivity Philip McCann 13.25 - 13.40 Productivity and inward investment Nigel Driffield 13.40 - 13.55 Mis-understanding ‘Productivity’: The disconnect between policy and C-suite Stephen Roper 13.55 - 14.10 An industry in focus: productivity in the metal industry Temitope Akinremi 14.10 - 14.25 The individual perspective on productivity Katy Jones 14.25 - 14.55 Discussion Chair: Tim Vorley 14.55 - 15.00 Closing comments Vicki Belt and Tim Vorley
- 3. Perceptions of RegionalInequality and the Geography of Discontent Philip McCann University of Sheffield
- 4. Perceptions of RegionalInequality and the Geography of Discontent • Productivity isn't everything, but, in the long run, it is almost everything. A country's ability to improve its standard of living over time depends almost entirely on its ability to raise its output per worker.” Paul Krugman The Age of Diminished Expectations, 1994, MIT Press, Cambridge, p.11 4
- 5. Perceptions of RegionalInequality and the Geography of Discontent • UK different narratives regarding whether the UK regional ‘problem’ exists → whether it is natural/automatic → whether it is important → whether anything could be done to address it → whether anything should be done to address it, …even it if exists • Argument that there is no real regional divide: two forms • Debates involving The Economist, FullFact (fact-checking website), Jeremy Vine (BBC), Andrew Neil (BBC The Spectator), • Chris Giles (Financial Times) – focus on disposable household incomes after housing costs → no real interregional inequality • Resolution Foundation 2019 → much smaller than GDP per capita, GVA per worker, 5
- 6. The Geography ofDiscontent: How Big is the Problem? • By OECD and European standards, the UK displays high interregional productivity imbalances and inequalities and these are also reflected in terms of high inequalities in: - incomes; wealth; employment status and job tenure - health indices; quality of life and wellbeing indices - artistic, cultural and heritage assets; town centre viability - education, research assets and infrastructure provision - political and media profiles • Interregional inequalities give rise to a Geography of Discontent → profound political and institutional consequences 6
- 7. The Geography ofDiscontent: How Big is the Problem? • Andy Haldane, Chief Economist Bank of England: – ‘hub no spokes’; is all economics local?; red car/blue car; institutions, governance and knowledge diffusion • Just under half of the UK population today live in regions whose productivity is comparable to the poorer parts of the former East Germany, parts of Slovakia and Slovenia, and poorer than West Virginia and Mississippi • MDLS Multi-Dimensional Living Standards - SE in top OECD quartile (top 25%), L, SW and E in second quartile; rest of the UK in third quartile (between 50% and 75%) • More than half of the UK live in regions whose MDLS Multi-Dimensional Living Standards are comparable to the poorer parts of the former East Germany, Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina, Georgia 7
- 8. UK Interregional InequalityRankings (Number of OECD and EU Countries with Comparable Data) Ratio Top/Bottom OECD TL2 Regions GDP per Capita Difference Top-Bottom OECD TL2 Area GDP per Capita Divided by national GDP per Capita Ratio Top/Bottom OECD TL2 Regions GDP per Capita Difference Top-Bottom OECD TL2 Area GDP per Capita Divided by national GDP per Capita Ratio Top 10%/Bottom 10% OECD TL2 Regions GDP per Capita 5/27 5/27 1/26 1/26 4/26 Ratio Top 20%/Bottom 20% OECD TL2 Regions GDP per Capita Ratio Top 10%/Bottom 10% OECD TL3 Regions GDP per Capita Ratio Top 20%/Bottom 20% OECD TL2 Regions GDP per Capita Ratio Top 10%/Bottom 10% OECD TL2 Regions GVA per Worker Ratio Top 20%/Bottom 20% OECD TL2 Regions GVA per Worker 6/26 2/27 4/26 2/25 5/25 Ratio Top 10%/Bottom 10% OECD TL3 Regions GVA per Worker Ratio Top 20%/Bottom 20% OECD TL3 Regions GVA per Worker Ratio Top 10%/Bottom 10% OECD TL2 Regions RDI per Person Ratio Top 20%/Bottom 20% OECD TL2 Regions RDI per Person Ratio Top 10%/Bottom 10% OECD TL3 Regions RDI per Person 3/27 6/27 4/27 4/27 1/11 Ratio Top 20%/Bottom 20% OECD TL3 Regions RDI per Person Gini Index Regional GDP per Capita OECD TL2 Regions Gini Index Regional GDP per Capita OECD TL3 Regions Gini Index Regional RDI per Capita OECD TL2 Regions Gini Index Regional RDI per Capita OECD TL3 Regions 1/11 9/26 1/27 5/26 1/11 Difference Top-Bottom OECD Metro Urban Area GDP per Capita Divided by national GDP per Capita Ratio Top/Bottom OECD Metro Urban Area GDP per Capita Ratio Top/Bottom GDP per Capita EU NUTS2 Region (including Metro Urban Regions) Ratio Top/Bottom GDP per Capita EU NUTS3 Region (including Metro Urban Regions) Ratio Top 10%/Bottom 10% GDP per Capita EU NUTS2 Regions (including Metro Urban Regions) 8/19 5/19 6/20 6/22 4/22 Ratio Top 10%/Bottom 10% GDP per Capita EU NUTS3 Regions (including Metro Urban Regions) Coefficient of Variation GDP per Capita EU NUTS2 Regions (including Metro Urban Regions) Coefficient of Variation GDP per Capita EU NUTS3 Regions (including Metro Urban Regions) 11/22 5/23 11/22 8
- 9. The Geography ofDiscontent: How Big is the Problem? • UK Interregional problem Is the worst in the OECD relative to scale and national development • London and hinterland is decoupling from the rest of UK • UK is diverging, dislocating and decoupling into 3 different economies [London + SE, E, SW] [Scotland] [WM, EM, NW, YH, NE, W, NI] 9
- 10. The Geography ofDiscontent is a Problem... of Perceptions • Two different economic systems - The Economist 30.11.2013 analogy of co- existence of rugby league and rugby union • Ostensibly the same …BUT… different rules, different rewards, different playing field, different institutions, different teams, different audience, different culture, different geography 10
- 11. The Geography ofDiscontent is a Problem...of Narratives X ‘Jam spreading’ analogy X London as a motor or engine….. ….for the whole of the UK with spread effects cascading outwards …. X London as a dark star X X Cities versus towns problem ↔ 11
- 12. GDP per CapitaOECD-TL2 12
- 13. GDP per CapitaOECD-TL2 13
- 14. GDP per WorkerOECD-TL3 14
- 15. GDP per WorkerOECD-TL3 15
- 16. GDP per WorkerOECD-TL3 16
- 17.
- 18.
- 19.
- 20.
- 21. Regional Inequality inthe UK: How Big is the Problem? …of Governance Reform • Devolving an already highly unbalanced urban system ↓ …. risks the danger of …. ← governance fragmentation …. …leading to opposing incentives …. and interests → • … and national governance problems ↓ • …unless there is a workable equalisation/stabilisation formula • … reflecting the UK shift towards being a quasi-federal state • … which can be even more unbalanced and fragmented 21
- 22. Regional Inequality inthe UK: How Big is the Problem? …of Governance Reform • There needs to be a wholesale restructuring of the relationship between local, regional and national policy • We need to move towards much more of bottom-up and place-based policy logic and away from top-down processes in many arenas of national policy-making • Devolution should result in more tailoring, engagement and coordination between places rather than more fragmentation • Need to aim for…. so as to achieve…. and to avoid at all costs ↓ ↓ ↓ 22
- 23. Warwick Business School NigelDriffield
- 24.
- 25. Warwick Business School Whydo I think we have “low productivity” ? (in no particular order) Low innovation Low levels of training Labour market policies Fragmented supply chains Access to finance for high growth firms / exporters Land use / planning “price effects” connectivity
- 26. Warwick Business School Leavingaside all the many (many) measurement issues:
- 27. Warwick Business School Essentialpremise Main benefits of attracting inward investment (in no particular order and one can add more) Job creation Knowledge transfer in Balance of trade Reallocation of resources to more productive producers Greater competition
- 28. Warwick Business School (inwardinvestment) Policy Responses ? Sector A – attract more such firms, tax incentives for innovation investment for example. Sector B – seek to encourage such firms to move to sector A, encourage innovation, and encourage them to locate more high tech activity. Another focus on this group could be on managerial capacity, training for managers in the commercialization of intellectual property, or in the management of innovation for example. Sector C. the focus here may be on skills and training, but also on labour market policies to encourage workers to invest in their human capital, by emphasizing the returns. Alternatively the focus may be on knowledge transfer from segments A and B to segment C.
- 29. Warwick Business School (inwardinvestment) Policy Responses ? Sector A – attract more such firms, tax incentives for innovation investment for example. Sector B – seek to encourage such firms to move to sector A, encourage innovation, and encourage them to locate more high tech activity. Another focus on this group could be on managerial capacity, training for managers in the commercialization of intellectual property, or in the management of innovation for example. Sector C. the focus here may be on skills and training, but also on labour market policies to encourage workers to invest in their human capital, by emphasizing the returns. Alternatively the focus may be on knowledge transfer from segments A and B to segment C. automotive pharma textiles
- 30. Mis-understanding ‘productivity’: thedis- connect between policy makers and C-suite A project undertaken by ERC and colleagues at Warwick Business School for the Centre for Progressive Policy October 2019, London Stephen Roper [email protected] @Steverop
- 31. The UK productivitygap: GDP per hour worked Notes: GDP per hour worked, US$ constant 2010 PPPs. Source: OECD.Stat
- 32. The drivers ofproductivity – the failure of structural explanations • Traditionally a very high proportion of the variance in firm level productivity could be explained by just four variables, size, location, sector and whether the firm is foreign owned. • OECD data, across all OECD regions and sectors however reveal that this historical relationship is breaking down • So what does explain the ‘unexplained’ element of productivity growth? 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 1980 1990 2000 2010 2017 (projection) unexplained ownership location sector size Authors’ analysis of Orbis data
- 33. Adopting a sectoralperspective • Recent sectoral analyses have provided a more detailed perspective on the nature of the UK productivity puzzle by considering separately the impact of within-sector and between-sector effects. • Riley et al. (2018) examine pre and post-recession productivity growth across a range of different levels of industrial aggregation and conclude that – ‘the vast majority of labour productivity growth weakness arises due to changes in productivity growth within detailed industry groups’ (Riley et al. 2018, p. 27). • Their analysis also highlights the diversity of sectoral productivity growth in the UK. What are the origins of these diverse trends? Are these the consequence of intra-firm issues linked to leadership and management or technology? Or, sector specific factors such as regulatory regimes or market competition?
- 34. Our project… • Ourresearch questions were: – What drives value added per employee in each of the study sectors? – How important are internal factors compared to issues related to markets or competition? • Focused on six sectors which have had diverse productivity trends: • Extraction of crude petroleum & gas (SIC 06) • Beverages (SIC 11) • Manufacture of pharmaceutical products (SIC 21) - • Manufacture of other transport (SIC 30) • Banking (SIC 64) • Insurance (SIC 65) • Detailed conversations were held with over 80 informants - business leaders, analysts, commentators and policy-makers - between February and April 2019 • Each of the insider interviews started with a focus on value added per employee and focussed on a distinction was made between external influences (e.g. markets, competition, regulation) and internal factors (e.g. management, investment etc.).
- 35. Key findings –1/3 Extraction of crude petroleum & gas • In Oil and Gas, for example, one insider commented: • ‘They don’t really talk much about productivity … they don’t really use the word productivity, and they certainly don’t have a kind of a technical kind of led, or a technical assessment.’ [Public Institution] • Instead: • ‘Our general metrics are around cost and value of the barrels that we’ve either got in the ground or we’ve produced, that’s what we use as our metrics’. [Oil Company] Beverages • Typical was: • ‘We do not measure or call anything ‘productivity’, it’s not a term we use’. • Instead: • ‘We do not call it productivity; we call it cost efficiency’ • And: • ‘Productivity seems to improve when government doesn’t do anything. Government wants to legislate and create new policies etc., but this seems to slow down productivity. Businesses just want stability. This is when they will invest and can set clear strategies’.
- 36. Key findings –2/3 Manufacture of pharmaceutical products • One business respondent commented: • ‘We talk about sales and customer impact and feedback. The term productivity is mentioned very infrequently at exec level.’ • An industry analyst added • ‘I work in consultancy and I have to explain the term GVA all the time!’. • Key here was the international nature of supply chains and firms’ location of activity in different jurisdictions to maximise the tax efficiency Manufacture of other transport equipment • Focussing on rail one respondent commented: • ‘[Thinking about] productivity is almost completely unknown. There was a review of the rail industry by Nicola Shaw three or four years ago and that led to a commission to NSAR to look at productivity, and the word efficiency was lightly used, but productivity is not particularly widely used.’ • Why is this? • ‘Rail’s being measured on other things to be honest. So, rail’s been measured on safety and reliability and performance and the financial aspect of being formerly secondary particularly on the infrastructure side.’
- 37. Key findings –3/3 Banking • One bank commented: • ‘There’s not really a very sophisticated understanding of productivity within the whole sector.’ • Productivity varies and targets are different: • ‘I would say that [the measuring of success in each department of the bank] is fairly different and separate, but our overall target is a profitability target and so everything that, the different elements that the bank do is driving towards that kind of framework rather than using productivity.’ (Incumbent Bank) Insurance • And, in insurance: • ‘Productivity. It’s not a term used in the sector. …. it certainly isn’t a metric that is used by individual insurers very often and it’s not metric that is used by industry lead bodies either’ [Industry Body] • Instead: • ‘How do we measure success? Well like most businesses we have a number of KPI’s which we look at, but one of the most important ones is the amount of members’ funds we hold which is effectively our profit and loss account. We also look at things such as growth, loss ratios and member retention is very important to us’. [Insurance and Savings Company]
- 38. Findings, implications • Thelack of recognition and use of the term ‘productivity’ and of the notion of value added per employee suggests a marked dis-connect between policy dialogue and business practice • In some sectors – insurance, pharmaceuticals – the term ‘productivity’ itself had very little resonance and was dismissed as meaningless by a number of insiders. • In other contexts – banking, beverages – complex supply chains and/or organisational structures created the potential for highly efficient and much weaker business units to co-exist limiting the value of generalised measures of ‘productivity’ or value added. • However, this should not be interpreted as a lack of commitment to improving efficiency in the majority of companies interviewed and this was reflected in diverse sets of performance metrics and KPIs • Policy dialogue about ‘productivity’ is heard by firms as relating more narrowly to efficiency. So the ‘productivity gap’ becomes an ‘efficiency gap’. There is perhaps a need to reframe policy dialogue to focus more clearly on ‘creating value’.
- 39. Acknowledgements We are gratefulto the company executives, regulators and industry associations which generously responded to our interview requests. We hope the final analysis reflects the views expressed. Lord David Sainsbury provided an inspirational impetus for the study which was strongly supported by Thomas Aubrey and Ben Franklin from the Centre for Progressive Policy. Dr Ian Drummond, Dr Lorraine Morley, Dr Carol Stanfield and Dize Dinckol conducted interviews with great professionalism and energy against a tight timeline and contributed significantly to drafting the sectoral sections of the report. Quantitative analysis was undertaken by Dr Jae-Yeon Kim and Prof Nigel Driffield. Katherine Hathaway managed the project effectively. Professor Stephen Roper, Professor Nigel Driffield, Prof Jan Godsell, Prof Mark Johnson, Dr Graham Leask, Prof Christian Stadler and Prof Pinar Ozcan Van Rens provided sectoral expertise and contributed to drafting. Keep an eye out for the forthcoming ERC Report at www.enterpriseresearch.ac.uk
- 40. Diffusing Excellence AcrossUK Foundries & Metal-Forming Firms Stephen Roper Temitope Akinremi PIN-ERC Workshop 1st October 2019
- 41. About the Project •ESRC funded • ERC, CBM & CMF Metal-Forming Sector Foundry Sector Productivity Improvement SME Dominated “Objective” Identify key practices which can contribute to productivity upgrading in each sector and Diffusion of Productivity improvement practices to lower productivity firms Barriers/ Incentives
- 42. Research questions Innovation Collaborationin the Case-study Sectors? starting point: Kim et al. 2010; Hewitt-Dundas & Roper (2017) “Informational Market Failures due to limited and asymmetric information on a potential partner ” Perception • How is innovation partnership/collaboration perceived • Does insufficient information on partners’ capabilities influence decisions to embark on innovation collaborations • How does access to information on potential partner’s trustworthiness influence collaboration innovation Capability Knowledge Trust
- 43. • Productivity isdefined in simple terms • Output per Labour Cost; Efficient production; Industry used definition Findings Productivity Increased Turnover Sales/Employee Value Added Elimination of Non-Value Adding Activities & Waste Efficient Production Output/Labour Cost Profitable Production & Delivery • “Productivity is the least amount of cost we need to add to our components to take it to our customers specification… its providing the most added value and having the most minimal amount of waste” • “Productivity means manufacturing a part in the most efficient way, with the minimal amount of human intervention and where the human intervention is value adding” • “It’s unit of output divided by labour cost” • “It’s what you’re actually doing to reduce the labour input. It doesn’t really matter what you’re doing as long as you’re reducing the labour input then you’re driving productivity.
- 44. Findings 74 66 74 75 60 56 22 60 6060 79 60 53 18 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 Efficiency Increased Turnover Elimination of Wastes & Non- Value Adding Activities Profitable Production & Delivery Output /Labour Cost Value Added Per Employee or Per Hour Other Measures PercentageofFirms Productivity Measures Productivity Measures in UK Metal-Forming Firms & Foundries Foundries Metal-Forming Firms
- 45. Findings Efficiency 17% Increased Turnover 16% Elimination ofWastes & Non-Value Adding Activities 17% Profitable Production & Delivery 18% Output/Labour Cost 14% Value Added Per Employee or Per Hour 13% Other Measures 5% Productivity Measures in UK SME Foundries
- 46. Findings Efficiency 15% Increased Turnover 16% Elimination ofWastes & Non-Value Adding Activities 15% Profitable Production & Delivery 20% Labour Cost Per Unit Output 15% Value Added Per Employee or Per Hour 14% Other Measures 5% Productivity Measures in UK SME Metal-Forming Firms
- 47. Conclusion • Productivity measurementis clouded by disagreement on what metrics managers should include when estimating productivity. • Measuring productivity is an essential step in ascertaining profitability and efficiency in many industries • Where it may not be possible to have a one-size fit all measurement, it will be beneficial to develop an industry-focused productivity measurement. • A good starting point is …….having a clear understanding of how managers in the sector measure productivity
- 48. Thank you If youwould like any more information please contact Professor, Stephen Roper ([email protected]) Dr Temitope Akinremi ([email protected]) More details about the work of the ERC and our latest events can be found at: www.enterpriseresearch.ac.uk
- 49. The individual perspectiveon productivity Dr Katy Jones Senior Research Associate [email protected] @Dr_katyjones
- 50. Universal Credit andIn-Work Conditionality – a productive turn? • Alongside the ‘productivity puzzle’, there is increasing policy concern about low pay and the quality of work (Green and Livanos, 2015; Taylor, 2017; McCann, 2018; Innes, 2018). • Against this backdrop – Welfare Reform and Universal Credit • UC replaces: Housing Benefit, Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), income-based Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA), Child Tax Credit, Working Tax Credit, Income Support • Proposals to extend conditionality to those in work on a low income
- 51. In-work conditionality underUC • Workers on a low income who are in receipt of UC, may be expected to: a) increase their hours b) look for ways to progress in their current workplace c) search for additional work with a different employer (i.e. take on multiple jobs) d) take up alternative work elsewhere (i.e. move jobs). • Expectations may be backed up by a combination of support and sanctions (See DWP (2018) Employer Guide to Universal Credit)
- 52. Individual perspectives onproductivity • “I'd say, basically we meet all the standards. Our meals are coming out on time, the customers are happy and we still retain our business contracts” (Local authority, school catering service) • “Our line managers really know what productivity means; they really do understand how to manage wage costs” (Hotel) • “We want people who are pretty flexible, who can increase hours if necessary” (Hotel) • “Our job is hospitality, so it's all about looking after the customers and if our staff aren't happy, then they're not going to be great party hosts, are they?” (Soft play centre) • “Long-term staff are more productive than new staff coming in, so that's certainly one area where we're looking to improve…. [Long-term staff] understand the culture of the business and what we're about, and why we do things. If we're constantly bringing new people in, and training them, it just saps a lot of time and energy, and recruitment is really expensive” (Soft play centre)
- 53. Individual perspectives onproductivity • “To grow your business, you invest in the people that manage and work in that business. It's not about increasing people's hours.” (Housing association) • “I think by developing individuals, whether that be skills-based or behavioural-based, to be better than what they already are, is almost going to enhance productivity… whether it be communication skills, or the ability to work within a team, for instance.” (Restaurant) • “I wouldn't say primarily improving skills. If somebody is not being productive enough, it's about giving them that support, counselling, the training, maybe even buddying them up with someone. We're pretty good at that. We're a people business at the end of the day… hospitality is not obviously rocket science. It is basically a low-skilled industry” (Hotel) • “A lot of our managers have become managers because they were really quite talented social workers or they were really talented school cooks. Actually, building management skills is an area of focus for us at the moment.” (Local authority)
- 54. Universal Credit andIn-Work Conditionality – a productive turn? • Manchester Learning Event (17th October) > http://bit.ly/2nRLsbs • London Learning Event (18th October) > http://bit.ly/2mrbx03 For more details: [email protected] @dr_katyjones
- 56. Warwick Business School Chair:Tim Vorley Making sense of productivity research across sectors and scales Discussion
- 57. Warwick Business School Thankyou for participating