92% of UK companies that tested 4-day work week decide to adopt it permanently

Mar14
by on March 14, 2023 at 12:27 pm
Posted In: Future of Work


If you lived in the 19th century and worked in manufacturing, you’d be looking at a working week of between 60 to 90 hours, according to research from the University of Groningen. These days, thankfully, things look a bit brighter. While working weeks differ across the EU—France famously has a 35-hour week—in general European staff can’t work more than 48 hours per week on average, including overtime. This means that we are now working between 50% and 125% less than we would have been in the 1800s—and the better news is that workers’ conditions have continued to improve. Weekly working…

This story continues at The Next Web

└ Tags: , , , , , ,
 Comment 

Sale of SVB UK ‘minimises disruption to British tech,’ says Bank of England

Mar13
by on March 13, 2023 at 8:04 pm
Posted In: Insider


The British tech sector can rest a little easier tonight after the UK arm of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) was sold to HSBC for just £1. The intervention followed last week’s collapse of the subsidiary’s California-based parent company. The Bank of England (BoE) intervened over fears that mass withdrawals in the US would spread to the UK business. Many of SVB UK’s 3,300 customers, which include numerous VC investors and startups, warned they would go bust if their deposits were lost. The BoE had initially planned to put the bank into insolvency, which would have only guaranteed protection for deposits worth…

This story continues at The Next Web

└ Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
 Comment 

EU extends crisis state aid rules to prevent green tech firms from leaving

Mar10
by on March 10, 2023 at 4:24 pm
Posted In: Uncategorized


The EU Commission is extending the relaxation of state aid rules to prevent green tech firms from relocating abroad and enable the bloc’s transition to a net-zero economy. The rules around national subsidies had already been amended in 2022 as a response to Russia’s war on Ukraine, seeking to enable member states to more easily finance struggling companies and energy production in Europe. Now, rising concerns about an escalating global subsidy race have pushed the EU to further prolong this temporary crisis framework — and even expand its scope to include support to domestic clean tech companies fighting climate change.…

This story continues at The Next Web

└ Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
 Comment 

Europe’s ports are using tech to navigate ‘the perfect storm’

Mar10
by on March 10, 2023 at 10:40 am
Posted In: Uncategorized


Cargo ports are vital transport hubs in the world economy. Around 90% of all globally traded goods by tonnage is transported by sea and in 2021, a whopping 3.5 billion tonnes of freight passed through EU ports alone. Antwerp was the second-largest port in Europe — spreading across 120km² — before a merger with Bruges in 2022 created a combined port area of 160km² and the biggest chemical cluster on the continent.  València’s expanding port is the largest on the European Mediterranean in terms of container traffic — and dates back to 1491. Its port authority, Valènciaport, is responsible for…

This story continues at The Next Web

└ Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
 Comment 

Intel wants another €5BN in subsidies to build chip plant in Germany

Mar09
by on March 9, 2023 at 4:01 pm
Posted In: Uncategorized


Under the Chips Act, the EU is seeking to end its dependence on China and produce 20% of the world’s semiconductors by 2030. Amidst the political push, attracting global giants to invest in the union’s domestic production has been a key strategy — with Intel’s plan to construct a massive chip plant in Magdeburg, Germany, considered a big boost for the bloc. But now, Intel is asking the German government for an additional €4 billion to 5 billion in subsidies to move forward with the project, Bloomberg reports, citing people familiar with the matter. In March 2022, Intel announced an initial…

This story continues at The Next Web

Or just read more coverage about: Intel

└ Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
 Comment