Tuesday newspaper round-up: Workplace absences, Nissan, London offices
Stress was one of the biggest contributors to a rise in workplace absences over the past year, according to research that found the number of workers taking sick leave has hit a 10-year high The Chartered Institute of Personnel & Development (CIPD) analysed sickness absence and employee health among 918 organisations representing 6.5 million employees, with 76% of respondents reporting they had taken time off due to stress in the past year. – Guardian
Nissan has vowed to go all-electric in the UK and Europe by 2030 as the car giant’s chief executive said “the world needs to move on” from petrol vehicles. Its commitment to the 2030 deadline comes despite Prime Minister Rishi Sunak last week pushing back a ban on the sale of petrol and diesel cars to 2035. Makoto Uchida reiterated Nissan’s EV timeframe at an announcement in London on Monday, where he unveiled the Japanese manufacturer’s latest battery-powered car design. – Telegraph
The American billionaire Ken Griffin is in talks to help fund a transatlantic takeover bid for The Telegraph led by his fellow hedge fund manager Sir Paul Marshall. Sir Paul, co-founder of the hedge fund Marshall Wace and a joint-owner of GB News, has lined up financial firepower from Mr Griffin ahead of an auction expected to begin within weeks. The discussions are said not to have been finalised and may not lead to a partnership, however. – Telegraph
Offices in London have lost almost a fifth of their value over the past year, much more than blocks in most other European countries. On average, London office values have dropped 17.1 per cent since summer 2022, having fallen in each of the past five quarters, data from BNP Paribas shows. – The Times
The health of Germany’s economy “remains bleak” amid an entrenched downturn in the country’s industrial sector, experts warned after a survey of business activity fell for the fifth month in a row. The German Ifo Institute’s business climate index fell to 85.7 this month, from a revised 85.8 reading in August, as sentiment in Germany’s construction sector slid to its lowest level since 2009. – The Times