Corporate Britain not ready for London 2012

Corporate Britain not ready for London 2012

Sick days set to soar during games

As the one year countdown to London 2012 begins today, research among 1000 office workers, conducted by leading recruitment consultants Badenoch & Clark, showed that the vast majority of employers (79.9%) are still to establish a London 2012 leave policy, resulting in those lucky enough to get tickets unsure if they’ll be able to attend.

The level of uncertainty has led to one in six (15.7%) people admitting that they would consider taking a ‘sickie’ to watch London 2012. The number was even higher amongst 16 – 34 years olds, over a quarter (28.4%) of whom would consider a sick day to attend London 2012.

A sixth (14.9%) of respondents confirmed that they intended to take leave during London 2012 and a further sixth (17.6%) indicated that they are still considering it, perhaps waiting to see if they’re successful in the third round of ticket sales. This could leave organisations seriously under resourced during London 2012, warns Badenoch & Clark.

Nicola Linkleter, Managing Director, at Badenoch & Clark said: “There will be 8.8million London 2012 tickets available and the ticket ballot has already demonstrated the huge appetite in Britain to attend. Corporate Britain needs to ensure that they can continue to run their organisations during London 2012 and employees need to know what is expected.

“With Transport for London anticipating difficulties in getting people to work, employers need to have in place firm annual leave policies and contingency plans for possible staff shortfalls. I’d strongly recommend communicating these policies sooner rather than later. 

“London 2012 is a great opportunity to get staff engaged. Employers should look to make the most out of the event, utilising it to boost morale and team spirit.”