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Human Times helps you stay ahead of the latest news and trends that impact the HR industry. Every weekday, our unique blend of AI and team of expert HR and employment editors and researchers monitor 100,000s of articles, and social posts to create summaries of the most relevant and useful content to help you lead, innovate and grow. The award winning Human Times newsletter has four geographical editions with news tailored to your region.
From HR leadership to diversity and inclusion, hybrid working, organisational data, performance management, and retention strategies, Human Times is the only trusted free online news source dedicated to covering the most up to date headlines, articles, reports and interviews to make sure you’re abreast of changes in the HR industry.
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Recent Editions
Human Times
North America
The Commerce Department reported on Friday that U.S. employers added 29,000 jobs in September, well below economists’ expectations of 84,000, while the unemployment rate edged up from 4.1% to 4.2%. Previous estimates were also revised lower, with employers now reported to have cut 10,000 jobs in July and added 133,000 in August, reducing the combined total for those two months by 60,000 jobs. Healthcare added 17,000 jobs, construction gained 11,000, and manufacturing employment increased slightly, while government, information, and financial-sector employment declined. Average hourly wages rose 3% from a year earlier, below the 3.4% annual inflation rate reported for August. The article characterizes the labor market as increasingly “low-hire, low-fire,” with fewer workers needed to maintain a stable unemployment rate because of an aging population and lower immigration. The report also showed no signs of labor-market tightening that would add to inflationary pressures, giving Federal Reserve officials room to keep interest rates unchanged while awaiting further inflation data.
Full Issue
Human Times
UK
The Conservatives have pledged to halve employers’ National Insurance from 15% to 7.5% for workers aged 21 to 24, arguing that rising employment costs are making businesses less willing to hire younger staff. The party estimates the change would save employers an average of around £1,500 a year for each eligible worker, with larger savings for higher-paid staff within the threshold. Kemi Badenoch said youth unemployment had increased significantly and argued that “people aren’t hiring young people anymore”, presenting the £2.3bn measure as part of a wider effort to improve job prospects for younger workers. The Conservatives also want to reduce employment red tape, cut taxes and strengthen incentives to work, while shadow chancellor Andrew Griffith has criticised higher payroll costs and minimum wage increases for making entry-level hiring more expensive. The party says its broader economic strategy would focus on lowering business costs, encouraging recruitment and creating conditions for stronger employment growth.
Full Issue
Human Times
Europe
The European Parliament has called for EU-wide rules to address work-related stress, burnout, depression and anxiety, which affected 29% of EU workers in 2025 and 32% of those aged 25 to 39. MEPs want psychosocial risks such as harassment, excessive workloads and unpredictable hours recognised as potential causes of occupational disease. Belgian Socialist MEP Estelle Ceulemans said that “illnesses linked to psychosocial risks, such as burnout, must be recognised as occupational diseases”. The resolution proposes binding employer obligations, stronger labour inspections, a right to disconnect outside working hours and voluntary telework. It would also shift the burden of proof in some occupational disease cases, requiring employers to rebut evidence linking workplace risks to health damage. Far-right groups opposed the measures, arguing they could impose excessive obligations on businesses. The European Commission has now been asked to propose legislation on psychosocial risks, stress and workplace mental health.
Full Issue
Human Times
Middle East
Mnzil, The Development Group and Capital Partners have launched a SAR1bn fund to develop purpose-built workforce compounds accommodating up to 50,000 workers across Saudi Arabia. Mnzil will operate the portfolio, TDG will oversee site selection, design and development, and Capital Partners will manage the fund. Development is expected to begin in Q4 2026 across major employment centres including Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Khobar, Makkah and Madinah. Compounds will include furnished rooms, recreational facilities, communal areas and on-site services, with locations chosen to reduce commuting. Mnzil chief executive Majeed Albabtain said, “Improving workers' lives is a collective effort.” The partners see the model as supporting Vision 2030 while establishing workforce housing as a scalable institutional real estate asset class backed by employer demand and long-term leases.
Full Issue
Read the latest HR highlights
How HR is Tackling Long Covid?
Fingers remain tightly crossed around the world that the rampant hospitalization and fatality stage of the Covid-19 pandemic has generally peaked. Vaccination programmes are accelerating, and restrictions are gradually being lifted...
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ESG Is Not Just Another Name For CSR
Back in the distant 1980s if you wanted to demonstrate your environmental and ethical credentials it was sufficient to shop at or purchase shares in retailer The Body Shop. The charismatic Anita Roddick, founder of the “hippy” tinged retail chain, heralded a new age of environmental concern, caring capitalism and corporate awareness that evolved into what became known as Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). CSR was much talked about and lauded, but in reality often ended up being a lot of a hot air (excuse the pun) and often never progressed much beyond a footnote in the annual report.
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Have Older Workers Paid The Highest COVID-19 Price?
Across the world the pandemic is slowly but surely moving into its next phase. Recovery beckons. As furlough schemes across the U.S. and U.K. are being wound down, restrictions eased or lifted, and workforces moving back up the gears, early signs indicate that older employees are more likely to be casualties of the pandemic aftermath than their younger colleagues. Here at the we have witnessed an increasing number of stories supporting the growing belief that older workers are disproportionately paying the highest Covid-19 price.
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Bosses. What's not to like? Plenty, say employees
“You’ll never have another boss like me, someone who’s basically a chilled-out entertainer”
So said, David Brent, the fictional manager of Slough-based paper merchant Wernham Hogg in the seminal TV comedy The Office. Ricky Gervais’s portrayal of Brent as a flawed, narcissistic, incompetent, and deluded manager was so well observed that many (including me) believed it was a genuine fly-on-the-wall documentary when they alighted accidentally on the first ever episode.
Rolling with the Payroll
To mark National Payroll Week the team at the Human Times has provided some insight into the industry that we hope you’ll find useful.
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