Has the UK become lazy?
Discussion
An interesting piece from David Smith, Economics editor of the Sunday Times.
http://www.economicsuk.com/blog/002525.html#more
Productivity - GDP / Person / hour, has fallen again, post pandemic. He discusses Working From Home and its impact. He does not mention manufacturing unsaleable cars because they are awaiting ECUs, etc.,
In my mind Social Media may well play a big part. People confusing the time they spend attending to their phone’s demands, rather than achieving results for their employer.
Yesterday, I was standing in the queue at Cafe Nero and the person in front rattled of 3-lengthy replies on her phone.. If that had been worktime then it would have been a very significant disruption in creative thought processes. Perhaps the best use for AI would be for it to send OKs and thumbs-up to incoming Social Media and prepare a summary for the owner to read in their free-time.
At a time the economy should be picking up, it seems incredulous that productivity is actually falling.
http://www.economicsuk.com/blog/002525.html#more
Productivity - GDP / Person / hour, has fallen again, post pandemic. He discusses Working From Home and its impact. He does not mention manufacturing unsaleable cars because they are awaiting ECUs, etc.,
In my mind Social Media may well play a big part. People confusing the time they spend attending to their phone’s demands, rather than achieving results for their employer.
Yesterday, I was standing in the queue at Cafe Nero and the person in front rattled of 3-lengthy replies on her phone.. If that had been worktime then it would have been a very significant disruption in creative thought processes. Perhaps the best use for AI would be for it to send OKs and thumbs-up to incoming Social Media and prepare a summary for the owner to read in their free-time.
At a time the economy should be picking up, it seems incredulous that productivity is actually falling.
Unsurprising, what with the negativity in the media, plus the ongoing left wing strategy to bring the Tory Govt down by strikes and disruption of the economy (XR, etc.).
'We're F*cked' is regularly used hereabouts, probably true, and even with a change of Govt rosette, I doubt there will be a sudden willingness to apply 'Nose to Grindstone' for the betterment of all?
Hope I'm proven wrong??
'We're F*cked' is regularly used hereabouts, probably true, and even with a change of Govt rosette, I doubt there will be a sudden willingness to apply 'Nose to Grindstone' for the betterment of all?
Hope I'm proven wrong??
CheesecakeRunner said:
rdjohn said:
Yesterday, I was standing in the queue at Cafe Nero and the person in front rattled of 3-lengthy replies on her phone.. If that had been worktime then it would have been a very significant disruption in creative thought processes.
How do you know she wasn’t working?.
pequod said:
Scrimpton said:
b
hstewie said:
hstewie said: Yes it's all because of social media and lefties.
Brilliant
Lol, beat me to it. Damn lefties. If there's one group of people to blame, it's certainly not the government for the last 13 years. Brilliant
The Coconut Shy is open....
pequod said:
Scrimpton said:
bhstewie said:
hstewie said: Yes it's all because of social media and lefties.
Brilliant
Lol, beat me to it. Damn lefties. If there's one group of people to blame, it's certainly not the government for the last 13 years. Brilliant
The Coconut Shy is open....
https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/businessreview/2020/03/07/...
But yeah, it's because of smartphones, working from home and lazy lefties.
Centre for Macroeconomics said:
Nearly half of the economists surveyed point to low demand due to the financial crisis, austerity policies and Brexit as a major cause for this productivity slowdown. Despite this diagnosis, only a small minority of the panel believes that the solution lies in demand-side policy. Instead, a majority of panellists support promoting productivity growth through investments in education and worker training. Other policies such as infrastructure investments, and tax and regulatory policies are also proposed.
The panel also favoured the UK's near-bottom rankings in terms of worker skills for a given field of employment, comparatively low capital and R&D investment and a corollary of the country's flexible labour market as explanations for our moribund growth. Austerity policies being a long-term brake on demand is also cited. But yeah, it's because of smartphones, working from home and lazy lefties.
Issues with UK productivity are not down to a girl working in Caffè Nero using her phone.
They're more likely to be down to archaic practices in workplaces and failure to embrace technology. Much of the time (particularly in manufacturing), there's better equipment out there which can do the job faster and more reliably, but firms can be reluctant to invest. A lot of products aren't designed with manufacturing in mind, so they end up being produced by the cheapest and least reliable methods, which tend to be manual assembly with adhesives and encapsulants when they could be ultrasonically welded or laser welded.
Work ethic may be a factor, but it's definitely not the over riding or sole one. A lot of it is conservative/penny pinching management who prefer to use the same methods they've employed for the last 40 years when there are superior methods out there. Look at any old video of British Leyland vs Volkswagen for example- might have been a long time ago, but there are parallels to today.
They're more likely to be down to archaic practices in workplaces and failure to embrace technology. Much of the time (particularly in manufacturing), there's better equipment out there which can do the job faster and more reliably, but firms can be reluctant to invest. A lot of products aren't designed with manufacturing in mind, so they end up being produced by the cheapest and least reliable methods, which tend to be manual assembly with adhesives and encapsulants when they could be ultrasonically welded or laser welded.
Work ethic may be a factor, but it's definitely not the over riding or sole one. A lot of it is conservative/penny pinching management who prefer to use the same methods they've employed for the last 40 years when there are superior methods out there. Look at any old video of British Leyland vs Volkswagen for example- might have been a long time ago, but there are parallels to today.
rdjohn said:
An interesting piece from David Smith, Economics editor of the Sunday Times.
http://www.economicsuk.com/blog/002525.html#more
Productivity - GDP / Person / hour, has fallen again, post pandemic. He discusses Working From Home and its impact. He does not mention manufacturing unsaleable cars because they are awaiting ECUs, etc.,
In my mind Social Media may well play a big part. People confusing the time they spend attending to their phone’s demands, rather than achieving results for their employer.
Yesterday, I was standing in the queue at Cafe Nero and the person in front rattled of 3-lengthy replies on her phone.. If that had been worktime then it would have been a very significant disruption in creative thought processes. Perhaps the best use for AI would be for it to send OKs and thumbs-up to incoming Social Media and prepare a summary for the owner to read in their free-time.
At a time the economy should be picking up, it seems incredulous that productivity is actually falling.
Old boomer with little to zero concept of the modern world.http://www.economicsuk.com/blog/002525.html#more
Productivity - GDP / Person / hour, has fallen again, post pandemic. He discusses Working From Home and its impact. He does not mention manufacturing unsaleable cars because they are awaiting ECUs, etc.,
In my mind Social Media may well play a big part. People confusing the time they spend attending to their phone’s demands, rather than achieving results for their employer.
Yesterday, I was standing in the queue at Cafe Nero and the person in front rattled of 3-lengthy replies on her phone.. If that had been worktime then it would have been a very significant disruption in creative thought processes. Perhaps the best use for AI would be for it to send OKs and thumbs-up to incoming Social Media and prepare a summary for the owner to read in their free-time.
At a time the economy should be picking up, it seems incredulous that productivity is actually falling.
Best ignored...
Scrimpton said:
Hugo Stiglitz said:
No and not the lot who brought in PFI contracts, sold off the national gold and crashed the economy huh.
I helped vote them out and hoped for something better. Live and learn I guess. To answer the question, the UK has become lazier in some aspects. As I have said elsewhere, people in their WFH bubbles are massively to blame.
All of them with mobiles but not answering calls.
'Put it in an e-mail' is a classic line, or what you get where they've done away with telephones altogether.
Telephone voicemail often set to and left on divert with the same generic lie of a message. Pre-Covid, I used to give the benefit of the doubt, knowing that nobody really sets their landline to voicemail whenever they nip away from their desk (unless they were out getting a bagel and a coffee if they weren't in the toilet or kitchenette for extended/repeated periods):
"You've reached the voicemail of [self-important nobody] at [company name]. I am in the office but away from my desk. Please leave your name and number and I will get back to you upon my return. Alternatively please press 0 to speak to reception. [fake] Thank you."
As I have also said, if ever there's an option 'for accounts' on the telephone menu, then use it. You can usually get through to someone when all the other options lead you to a dead end followed by game over: "thank you for calling. Goodbye."
All of them with mobiles but not answering calls.
'Put it in an e-mail' is a classic line, or what you get where they've done away with telephones altogether.
Telephone voicemail often set to and left on divert with the same generic lie of a message. Pre-Covid, I used to give the benefit of the doubt, knowing that nobody really sets their landline to voicemail whenever they nip away from their desk (unless they were out getting a bagel and a coffee if they weren't in the toilet or kitchenette for extended/repeated periods):
"You've reached the voicemail of [self-important nobody] at [company name]. I am in the office but away from my desk. Please leave your name and number and I will get back to you upon my return. Alternatively please press 0 to speak to reception. [fake] Thank you."
As I have also said, if ever there's an option 'for accounts' on the telephone menu, then use it. You can usually get through to someone when all the other options lead you to a dead end followed by game over: "thank you for calling. Goodbye."
captain.scarlet said:
To answer the question, the UK has become lazier in some aspects. As I have said elsewhere, people in their WFH bubbles are massively to blame.
All of them with mobiles but not answering calls.
'Put it in an e-mail' is a classic line, or what you get where they've done away with telephones altogether.
Telephone voicemail often set to and left on divert with the same generic lie of a message. Pre-Covid, I used to give the benefit of the doubt, knowing that nobody really sets their landline to voicemail whenever they nip away from their desk (unless they were out getting a bagel and a coffee if they weren't in the toilet or kitchenette for extended/repeated periods):
"You've reached the voicemail of [self-important nobody] at [company name]. I am in the office but away from my desk. Please leave your name and number and I will get back to you upon my return. Alternatively please press 0 to speak to reception. [fake] Thank you."
As I have also said, if ever there's an option 'for accounts' on the telephone menu, then use it. You can usually get through to someone when all the other options lead you to a dead end followed by game over: "thank you for calling. Goodbye."
A Charter for the skiver?All of them with mobiles but not answering calls.
'Put it in an e-mail' is a classic line, or what you get where they've done away with telephones altogether.
Telephone voicemail often set to and left on divert with the same generic lie of a message. Pre-Covid, I used to give the benefit of the doubt, knowing that nobody really sets their landline to voicemail whenever they nip away from their desk (unless they were out getting a bagel and a coffee if they weren't in the toilet or kitchenette for extended/repeated periods):
"You've reached the voicemail of [self-important nobody] at [company name]. I am in the office but away from my desk. Please leave your name and number and I will get back to you upon my return. Alternatively please press 0 to speak to reception. [fake] Thank you."
As I have also said, if ever there's an option 'for accounts' on the telephone menu, then use it. You can usually get through to someone when all the other options lead you to a dead end followed by game over: "thank you for calling. Goodbye."
WFH was an emergency measure, 'cos nobody knew how infectious Covid was, yet some are still cowering behind their Govt supplied Laptops 'less they are required to attend the office?
Anxiety, my arse!
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