5 Trending HR and Recruitment Topics in July 2024

This month, the following five trends have landed on our radar. Experts are discussing the length of working weeks, new ‘right to disconnect’ laws, AI’s growing carbon footprint, productivity loss in the workplace and the importance of employee experience. 

Read on to learn about each trend and the tips experts have shared on responding to new legislation, improving employee collaboration, better understanding the impact of AI and more.  

Trend 1: Greece introduces a 6-day workweek 

As many businesses trial shorter work weeks, Greece has gone in the opposite direction. The country has recently made news by mandating a 6-day workweek for some industries. 

Under the new law in Greece, select industrial and manufacturing facilities, as well as businesses offering 24-7 services, may extend their workweeks to 48 hours. 

Employees will receive 40% extra pay for their sixth day of work or 115% more if they work on Sundays. 

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis attributed the recent labour legislation to the country's shrinking population and shortage of skilled workers in certain industries.

The government also said the measure will address the issue of unpaid overtime across Greece and the pervasive problem of undeclared work, The Guardian reported.

There are some concerns that these laws will impact work-life balance, a noted priority for younger generations (see: Trend 2). 

However, the impact of these laws has yet to be fully understood, but it will become clearer as they begin to take effect. 

Discussion of the 48-hour workweek 

The new laws have sparked discussions around the world about the length of working weeks and solutions for lagging productivity. 

Speaking with Yahoo Finance, HR expert Jonathon Woolfrey noted that like Greece, Australia struggles with workforce productivity and issues like unpaid overtime. 

While a mandated extra workday may help address issues like unpaid overtime, it may not address productivity challenges. 

Professor Constantin Colonescu, writing for The Conversation, compared Greece to Canada and noted that it is more useful to define productivity as output produced per hour instead of output per worker.  

According to Constantin, focusing on the output produced per hour is more accurate and focuses on how workers’ skills, technological change, management practices and other factors determine productivity. 

If productivity is understood as employee output per hour, then increasing the number of hours worked per week will not necessarily improve productivity. Rather, a focus should be placed on making workers more productive per hour, a step that can be taken by reviewing and improving current work practices and workflows. 

Overall, the length of the working week will likely remain a topic of discussion as countries around the world grapple with issues such as aging populations, productivity challenges, remuneration concerns, and the desire for work-life balance.

Trend 2: The ‘right to disconnect’ 

The right to disconnect is a proposed workplace right that would allow people to disconnect from work and not engage in work-related communications such as emails or messages during non-work hours.

The ‘right to disconnect’ has been introduced in countries around the world, including France, Canada, the Philippines, and now Australia. The UK’s government is also considering legislation. 

Australia’s ‘right to disconnect’ laws will begin on August 26th, 2024. From this date, employees will enjoy the right to disconnect outside of their working hours. 

Unlike similar ‘right to disconnect’ laws in France and Canada, employers can still contact their people whenever they like. The Australian law gives employees to the power to decline to read or respond to communications outside of their working hours - unless that refusal is unreasonable. 

The laws do not prohibit employers from contacting employees outside of working hours. People can still reach out, message, contact, email, and send communications at any time—it's about whether the employee is required to respond to that contact or not.

Australia’s Fair Work Commission advises disputes about an employee’s right to disconnect should first be discussed and resolved at the workplace level.

If that isn’t possible, employees or employers can go to the Fair Work Commission to deal with a dispute. The Commission can make orders or deal with the dispute in other ways.

Difficulties may arise from Australian laws as shift workers are often contacted out of hours with requests to work. Employers left waiting for replies may find it difficult to plan work days, a conundrum facing organisations in certain industries. 

However, ‘right to disconnect’ laws are ultimately developed to help employees maintain a better work-life balance. 

For example, a review of data from 183 countries found significantly raised levels of heart disease and stroke for those working long hours. And there is a growing recognition of the negative effects of extended working on mental health. Sick workforces can also damage productivity.

Improving employee wellbeing is an ongoing priority for governments and organisations around the world. Hence, organisations can benefit from understanding the reasons behind the ‘right to disconnect’ laws, even if legislation does not exist in their operating regions. 

Responding to the ‘right to disconnect’ in Australia 

Law firms in Australia like King & Wood Mallesons, Herbert Smith Greenhills and Meridian Lawyers have provided tips for organisations on responding to upcoming legislation. Tips include: 

• Understand current practices around out-of-hours contact. Note how your organisation currently approaches contact and consider what areas need to change to comply with the new legislation. 
• Update or develop workplace policies. Include information about out-of-hours contact and expectations around response times ensuring they are in-line with new laws.
• Review remuneration terms in contracts. In certain circumstances, inserting expectations regarding after-hours contact and related compensation into an employment contract may be appropriate. 
• Inform your team of the terms. Let your organisation know what changes are happening and how you are responding. Ideas include delivering updates in emails, townhall meetings and one-on-one meetings. 
• Set expectations with clients and suppliers. The new rules make no exception for after-hours contact with third parties. Organisations can address this by discussing terms with third parties and updating scope of works to include information about communication requirements. 

Organisations can also make small changes such as adding lines to email signatures that indicate out-of-hours responses are not expected or required. 

Trend 3: AI’s growing carbon footprint 

Businesses are increasingly adopting AI-powered technology to become more productive. However, new data reveals that AI uses a large amount of energy and can thus have unforeseen environmental impacts. 

AI applications require more power from data centres which leads to increased use of energy and water and, as a result, higher carbon emissions. 

A recent report from Goldman Sachs found that by 2030, there will be a 160% increase in demand for power due to the rising use of AI applications. 

Indeed, the impacts of increased energy required by AI are already starting to show. 

In its 2024 Environmental Report, Google revealed gas emissions in 2023 were 48% higher than in 2019, attributing increased levels to AI use.

Microsoft reported a similar situation disclosing that between 2020 and 2023,  annual emissions increased by around 40%, from the equivalent of 12.2 million tonnes of CO₂ to 17.1 million tonnes. 

As organisations adopt AI, they need to consider how this increased use will impact environmental commitments and environmental, social and governance policies (ESG). This is important for HR since strong environmental policies are becoming key parts of attracting and retaining talent (see: Trend 5).  

Beginning to mitigate the environmental impact of AI ‍

While AI can help with environmental issues by doing things like improving supply chain efficiency and moderating traffic, it can also, as discussed, use exorbitant amounts of energy, adding to the climate crisis.

HR leaders can help pave the way for mitigating the environmental impacts of AI by becoming educated on the issue and incorporating sustainability concerns into decision-making processes. 

HR leaders can help in several ways including: 

• Facilitating connections between technology and sustainability teams, ensuring the environmental risks of AI are known and discussed as a team. 
• Considering the use of AI in the HR department and understanding its environmental impact. 
• Understanding the need for green talent and green skills to ensure organisations are future-focused and hiring employees who have the skills to judge and mitigate the impact of AI (see: Trend 1). 
• Working with leadership to ensure sustainability policies are reflected in all areas of an organisation, not just in certain departments. 

Overall, the world is still learning about the capabilities of AI and its impact on our lives including our environments. Leaders can help organisations stay ahead of the curve by keeping abreast of the latest developments in this area and reshaping policies and practices as needed. 

Trend 4: Productivity loss in the spotlight 

Recent studies show poor collaboration and shorter attention spans are creating a loss of productivity at work.

A U.S report by Insightful and Pollfish revealed 79% of workers said they can’t go a full hour without getting distracted from work. 59% couldn’t go just 30 minutes without encountering a diversion. 

Several factors hinder employees from checking off to-do list items. Smartphones are an obvious contributor with 62% of respondents from the same study citing phone notifications as a main source of distraction. 

However, the study found the biggest offender in distracting employees was other employees. Over 70% of respondents said people interrupting their work was the biggest contributor to tasks not getting done, a potential symptom of workplace ‘yapping’ led by sociable Gen Z workers.

A State of Teams report was also recently released by Atlassian. The report surveyed 5,000 knowledge workers and 100 executives at Fortune 500 companies and found that respondents generally agreed that they are busier than ever but are accomplishing less. 

In the Atlassian report, 65% of respondents said time was wasted by responding quickly to messages instead of progressing top priorities. 64% said they were pulled in too many directions and 50% said spending time in unnecessary meetings hindered productivity. 

Improving productivity 

In response to lagging productivity, discussions have occurred on LinkedIn on how to improve output and escape time-sucking traps, such as excessive meetings, or as one commentator called it, ‘meeting hell.’ 

‘Meeting hell’ refers to having a work calendar packed with meetings leaving little time for deep work and valuable productivity. 

When it comes to avoiding time traps and improving productivity, advice from commentators included: 

• Removing recurring meetings from calendars and adding new ones with intention.
• Setting regular meeting-free times during the workday. 
• Enabling asynchronous communication and removing expectations that employees reply quickly to instant messages. 
• Getting clearer on priorities from an organisational, departmental and individual standpoint, a move that can help teams and people prioritise their focus. 

At Xref, we have a few practices in place to aid productivity. This includes: 

• Asking people if they are free for a conversation or a call before properly commencing one. We collectively understand not everyone will be free for a conversation when we are. 
• Reassessing the need for meetings if it appears the outcome will not have high value. 
• Creating free time on our calendars when we are working on big deadlines. 
• Having WFH options when facing a large project or deadline to free up time. 

By implementing strategies like the above, organisations can help create a more focused and efficient work environment, ultimately enhancing productivity and allowing employees to achieve their goals more effectively.

Trend 5: Improving employee experience 

This month, HR experts have been discussing how to improve employee experience. 

Employee experience refers to the overall journey an employee goes through during their time with a company, including their interactions, satisfaction, and engagement with the organisation. 

Employee experience has become more important in a market where HR leaders must focus on skills gaps that are growing (see: Trend 1), the needs of different generations (see: Trend 2), the rise of AI, financial uncertainty and more. 

By improving employee experience, HR leaders can help create stronger business outcomes and, happier cultures.  

According to LinkedIn, a positive employee experience is good for workers, customers, and, in turn, a company’s bottom line.

Research shows a clear link between employee experience and customer experience, confirming that happy workers lead to happy customers. Indeed, HR leaders have long known satisfied, motivated, and fulfilled employees are more likely to show up for their company’s customers and clients. 

Negative employee experiences, on the other hand, can undermine morale, waste talent and drain both human and financial resources through higher costs associated with burnout, dysfunction, absenteeism and turnover. 

Negative experience can also create a competitive disadvantage because, as noted above, employers with happier workforces generate better results. 

Tips for improving employee experience 

Employee experience is often a top agenda for HR leaders but, every process can benefit from an audit or upgrade. 

When it comes to improving employee experience, HRM suggests adopting design thinking.

Design thinking is a creative approach to problem-solving that originated in product development as a way to understand and meet the needs of consumers.

Employers are increasingly recognising the value of human-centred design thinking to inform the development of HR initiatives. 

Global leaders such as AirBnB, Apple, Bank of America, Google, IBM, Nike, and Uber have all adopted design thinking to address a range of workforce challenges, including workplace culture change, skills building and organisational transformation. 

Here is a basic process outlined by Griffith University that HR leaders can follow to utilise design thinking to audit and improve processes:  

1. Start with empathy. Work to understand your workforce and their unique needs. By putting employee voices first, organisations can ensure their buy-in. 
2. Define workforce challenges. After collecting data from employees and reviewing organisational needs, HR leaders can define current challenges and gaps in employee experience. 
3. Ideate solutions. Brainstorm solutions to generate practical solutions to defined problems and include input from employees and leaders. 
4. Create prototype programs. Create and pilot prototype programs on small employee groups to test their effectiveness and spot areas for improvement. 
5. Keep testing. Continue to collect data and feedback to adjust and test to ensure strategies evolve based on real-world, real-time experiences.

By leveraging design thinking, HR leaders can continuously refine and enhance the employee experience, leading to more engaged, productive, and satisfied employees, which ultimately drives organisational success.

Final thoughts  

This month’s HR and recruitment trends highlight the diverse nature of the workplace. Greece's move to a 6-day workweek in some sectors contrasts with the growing emphasis on work-life balance, exemplified by Australia’s new ‘right to disconnect’ laws. In both cases, HR leaders in different regions must become aware and act on new legislation. 

The increasing awareness of AI's environmental impact reminds us that technological advancements must be balanced with sustainability and understanding of the impact changes have on our people, communities and environments. 

Meanwhile, addressing productivity loss requires innovative strategies to minimise distractions and enhance focus and wellbeing. 

Lastly, improving the employee experience through design thinking demonstrates the importance of creating a supportive and engaging work environment.

As these trends unfold, staying informed and adaptable will be key for HR leaders and organisations to navigate the evolving landscape effectively.