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2 days ago1 min read

🗓️ Could a four-day week be one of the most overlooked levers for disability inclusion at work?

🗓️ Could a four-day week be one of the most overlooked levers for disability inclusion at work? A new briefing from Disability Rights UK, Patchwork Hub and the 4 Day Week Foundation makes the case that it could be — and the evidence is worth a closer look. Drawing on focus group findings from Disabled workers, alongside the wider evidence base on flexible and remote working, the briefing argues that a genuine 32-hour week (not compressed hours, with no loss of pay) can: ✅ Re

 
 
May 222 min read

📧 That email that made you wince? New data suggests you're far from alone.

Teacher Tapp has just published findings on incivility in school emails -- and the numbers are striking. Only 44% of primary teachers and 30% of secondary teachers reported not receiving an email from a colleague this academic year that left them feeling uncomfortable or frustrated. Among senior leaders, that figure drops to just 19%. Of those who did receive one, the most commonly reported features were: 🔴 Aggressive or hostile tone -- reported by 47% of teaching staff and

 
 
May 111 min read

📻 Our founder and Research Director, Dr Emma Russell recently appeared on the BBC's All in the Mind podcast to talk about email incivility -- and it's well worth a listen.

Some of the key insights Emma shared: → Email incivility is distinct from bullying or abusive supervision -- it's lower in intensity and intent is often ambiguous. But its organisational consequences are far from minor: reduced productivity, lower well-being, increased absenteeism, and higher staff turnover are all well-documented outcomes. → How we instigate incivility maps onto the stress response -- fight (hostile tone, strategic CC-ing of senior colleagues to 'put someon

 
 
May 111 min read

We've been working with NHS Employers to develop a practical new resource for NHS managers - and it's now live.

Working closely with the NHS, agilab developed a framework to help NHS managers take an inclusive, fair, evidence-based approach to decent and agile flexible working. The resource helps managers to look-up common workforce challenges and learn how decent and agile flexible working can assist with improving service provision, strengthening recruitment and retention, and reducing burnout and sickness absence. Lots of examples are provided from agilab research with NHS workers,

 
 
May 51 min read

🏛️ Big news for flexible working researchers and advocates.

The UK's Women and Equalities Committee (WEC) has just launched a new parliamentary inquiry into flexible working and disability and it's asking some important questions. Despite the post-pandemic cultural shift towards flexible working, the employment rate for working-age disabled people in Q2 2025 was just 52.8%, compared to 82.5% for non-disabled people. That gap is stubbornly persistent and this inquiry seeks to know why. 🔍 The inquiry will examine: ➡️ The effectiveness

 
 
Apr 281 min read

🔥 Burnout in 2026: The crisis isn't easing — it's embedding itself.

Mental Health UK's Burnout Report 2026 (4,500+ UK adults) makes for sobering reading: 91% of adults experienced high or extreme stress in the past year — unchanged for the third year running. 1 in 3 workers don't feel comfortable discussing stress with their manager — and that number is rising 🏥 1 in 5 workers took sick leave due to stress-related poor mental health 📋 Only 17% of those returning from stress-related absence had a formal return-to-work plan And for 18–24 year

 
 
Sep 19, 20251 min read

agiLab's 13th conference!

A big thank you to everyone who attended the recent 13th online agiLab conference and provided such useful and valuable input. The...

 
 
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