Human Times

UK Edition

26th January 2026

THE HOT STORY

Companies 'must invest in redesign and training to gain from AI'

EY global vice chair Julie Teigland has told Reuters that firms are learning that artificial intelligence is not plug-and-play, and ROI requires organisational redesign and training, not just the deployment of tools. She cited work by EY indicating that intensive training can be linked to productivity improvements, observing that around 81 hours of training per employee could translate into roughly 14% weekly productivity gains, in concert with role redesign. AI's labour impact will be "multi-generational," changing entry-level positions and routine white-collar tasks, Teigland said, with employees needing to shift from "doing the task to supervising the task," and becoming "above the loop."

Reuters

ECONOMY

CBI warns of 'disappointing outlook' for private sector activity

Analysis by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) shows that private sector activity declined in the three months to January, with all sub-sectors reporting a fall. The CBI's January survey also indicates a "disappointing outlook" for the next three months, predicting downturns across services, retail, and manufacturing. CBI deputy chief economist Alpesh Paleja said the economy "has not experienced a strong start to 2026," and warned of "persistently weak growth expectations." He added that while "there are tentative signs of stabilisation and resilience in some specific areas . . . . businesses remain cautious, households are downtrading and confidence is still fragile."

Daily Mail

HIRING

Grant Thornton advises graduates to avoid AI for applications

Malcolm Gomersall, chief executive of Grant Thornton UK, has advised graduates to avoid using AI for CVs. He noted that AI-generated applications complicate candidate assessment, particularly for junior roles. Gomersall said: "We're getting many more applicants per role because it's possible to use tech to generate hundreds of applications really quickly." He says he would encourage graduates "to do the old-fashioned thing and actually apply to a smaller number of roles that you really care about." The firm has tightened recruitment controls, closing job ads earlier and capping the volume of applicants. This has helped reduced applicants from 60 to 39 per role.

Sunday Times

WORKFORCE

Hundreds of thousands of graduates are claiming benefits

Analysis of official data by the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) indicates that 707,000 graduates were out of work at the end of last year and claiming one or more benefits. This is up 46% compared with pre-lockdown levels in 2019. There has been a doubling in the number of people with a university degree who claim they cannot work because of a health condition. The analysis also identified a trend of graduates going straight from university onto sickness benefits.

The Sunday Telegraph

Morrisons blames tax hikes for holding back staff pay

Morrisons has told staff it cannot offer significant pay rises this year, citing higher employer taxes, a 6.7% increase in the national living wage, and competitive pressures, despite investing over £100m in staff pay last year. The supermarket is in a pay dispute with Usdaw, which represents 45,000 employees, after refusing to increase wages above the national living wage, prompting the union to call a ballot for potential industrial action. The chain is also reviewing staffing flexibility, including changing hours or locations for convenience store workers, to manage rising labour costs.

The Times

LEGAL

UK financial firms lead gender pay gap change

The UK has made significant progress in narrowing the gender pay gap in financial services. The gap has decreased by 11 percentage points to 29%. In contrast, other countries including France and Switzerland have seen increases in their pay gaps. Despite this progress, men in UK finance boardrooms still earn £75,000 more annually than their female counterparts.

The Times

STRATEGY

Amazon to cut thousands more corporate jobs in second wave of layoffs

Amazon is reportedly preparing to cut thousands of additional corporate jobs this week, targeting roles in Web Services, retail, Prime Video, and HR, as part of a plan to reduce its white-collar workforce by 30,000 - roughly 10% of its corporate staff. Following 14,000 job cuts in October, this second round could begin as soon as Tuesday. Chief executive Andy Jassy has attributed the layoffs to cultural inefficiencies rather than financial or AI-related pressures, despite Amazon's increased use of artificial intelligence to streamline operations. The move marks the largest corporate layoff in the company’s history.

Bloomberg

Reuters

The Seattle Times

TECHNOLOGY

IMF director issues unregulated AI warning

Kristalina Georgieva, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, has warned that unregulated AI could lead to job losses and societal issues. She suggested that the technology "is transforming our world faster than we are getting ahead of it." Georgieva warned of a "tsunami" that will see jobs transformed or eliminated, suggesting that "the stakes go beyond economics. Work brings dignity and purpose to people's lives. That's what makes the AI transformation so consequential." Meanwhile, Erik Brynjolfsson, director of Stanford's digital economy lab, says analysis shows that US workers aged 22-25 are already experiencing AI-related job losses, especially in sectors where AI "automates rather than augments labour."

The Guardian

REGULATION

UK government warned of company failures after audit bill is ditched

Industry leaders in the UK including the director-general of the Institute of Directors and the chairman of the UK Shareholders’ Association have warned the government that scrapping the Audit Reform Bill risks further major company failures. In a letter to Business Secretary Peter Kyle, they argue the decision is a "significant step backwards" after years of delays. The government dropped the Bill to avoid extra costs for large firms and reduce regulation, despite earlier commitments to deliver reform amid concern over high-profile corporate scandals. Signatories to the letter co-ordinated by the Chartered Institute of Internal Auditors say no meaningful legislative reform has followed the 2018 collapse of Carillion, despite multiple reviews and consultations. The letter also points to later failures such as Thomas Cook, Wilko and Patisserie Valerie as evidence of ongoing weaknesses in audit and governance. They warn these collapses have cost jobs, damaged pensions and hurt supply chains.

The Times

INTERNATIONAL

Guidance that expanded workplace protections for LGBTQ workers is scrapped

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s newly-established Republican majority has rescinded legal guidance that had strengthened protections against unlawful harassment for LGBTQ workers and women who have abortions. EEOC Chair Andrea Lucas emphasized that the commission’s decision “will not leave a void where employers are free to harass wherever they see fit, leaving a trail of victims in their wake.” Recently-installed Commissioner Brittany Panuccio added that private sector resources on anti-harassment law would fill any gaps. But critics said the move could discourage employers from preventing harassment and leave workers without recourse when they face it. "This action is likely to increase the amount of harassment that occurs in workplaces across the country," a dozen former EEOC and U.S. Department of Labor officials said in a joint statement.

AP News

Reuters

Many Dutch employers still don't have formal hybrid working agreements

The Netherlands leads Europe with around 5m hybrid workers, yet many employers lack formal agreements for remote work. A study by employment lawyer Niels van der Neut and economist Weteke Conen reveals that nearly half of hybrid employees still operate under informal arrangements. Van der Neut, referencing concerns about issues including ergonomics and work-life balance, said: "If no measures are taken to address this, there's a greater risk of burnout." Dutch employers nevertheless remain committed to hybrid work, believing it enhances productivity and motivation.

NL Times

Hyundai's union opposes humanoid robot plans, citing job concerns

Hyundai Motor's labour union has issued a warning about the company's plan to deploy humanoid robots by 2028, saying such actions may lead to "employment shocks" and threaten job security for workers. In an internal letter, the union insisted that no robots should be introduced without a labour-management agreement, reflecting their concerns that automation could be used to cut costs at the expense of the workforce. While Hyundai's shares have risen following news of the robot initiative, the union maintains that the push for automation could harm the jobs of employees in South Korea, particularly as the company expands its production facilities in the US.

Reuters

OTHER

US officially leaves World Health Organization

The US has officially withdrawn from the World Health Organization (WHO). All US funding to the WHO has been terminated and US participation in WHO-sponsored leadership bodies and working groups has ended. The US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said it took the decision due to the WHO's alleged "mishandling" of the pandemic, an inability to reform, and political influence from member states. The US leaves behind unpaid debt of roughly $260m. There’s no requirement in statute to settle the debt before exiting the agency, a senior HHS official said. “It’s a very messy divorce,” observed Lawrence Gostin, director of the WHO collaborating centre on national and global health law at Georgetown University.

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