The Employee Voice Hub is a place where employee representatives from staff forums or works councils, can come together with Trade Union representatives, HR and employee engagement professionals to exchange ideas, share knowledge and experience.
The objective of the Hub is to support representatives to be a robust, informed and strategically minded employee voice in their own organisations, that contributes to the organisation’s success.
To become a member of the IPA Employee Voice Hub please email Lorraine.Modeste@ipa-involve.com
Get involved
Regular online events are held for Hub participants on topical issues relevant to the future of the workplace. Each event will involve a presentation from a specialist speaker and opportunity for discussion and sharing experience and knowledge.
- Click here to see the upcoming events and reserve your place
Join the conversation
We also have a LinkedIn group to allow discussion and questions in a safe space. Ask your peers questions and find out what everyone is thinking about current topics.
To become a member of the LinkedIn group, please join here.
Watch back previous Employee Voice Hub events
Beyond Rhetoric – what is really sustaining (or undermining) DEI in UK workplaces
The UK hasn’t seen loud contestations over DEI compared with the US, but the public narrative has been quietly reshaped. While many employers remain committed to DEI as both a moral and business imperative, others have faced increasing barriers when making the case for workplace inclusion.
In this Hub event we were joined by Dr Meenakshi Krishnan, Principal Research Fellow at IES, and explored:
- What is actually sustaining inclusion and fairness in organisations right now?
- How this intersects with increasing labour market pressures, economic volatility and the Employment Rights Act
The slides from the event can be viewed here.
Read Meenakshi’ latest blog on DEI Trends for 2026 here
Laying the Foundations: Effective joint working and negotiations with your unions – 11th March 2026
As organisations prepare for the implementation of the Employment Rights Act (2025), this event will help you to identify the essential building blocks for constructive relationships with the trade unions.
We focus on how organisations can take a strategic approach to ER and design effective structures for collective voice. We also discuss the importance of building the relationship and moving towards joint-problem solving.
The slides from the event can be viewed here.
The Impact of the Employment Rights Bill – 18th November 2025
The Bill represents a major shake-up of employment rights that will have significant implications for both employers and employees. Speakers Martin McIvor of Prospect Union and Nita Clarke and Lucy O’Melia of IPA, share their views on the ERB and practical guidance for what employers should do now to strengthen their employment relations.
The slides from the webinar can be viewed here – Martin McIvor and Lucy O’Melia
The importance of worker voice in creating safe and healthy work environments – 16th September 2025
Duncan Spencer, Head of Advice and Practice for the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health explores how worker voice and involvement is at the heart of creating safe and healthy working environments.
The slides from the event can be viewed here
Improving Employee Investigations – 9th July 2025
Andrew Cooper, Head of Programmes at Aneurin Bevin University Health Board NHS Wales, shares how to reduce avoidable employee harms by improving the application of the disciplinary process and procedure.
You can read more here.
Are you ready for change? – 10th June 2025
Is your organisation responding effectively to the current political complexity and financial uncertainty? This event explored how to become a change-smart organisation, ready to address a collective capability for change in a complex operating environment. The event offered essential insights into what can we do to help ourselves, our colleagues and our employers manage change successfully.
The slides from the event can be viewed here.
The Engage for Success UK Employee Engagement Survey 2025 – 20th May 2025
The latest insights from the 2025 Engage for Success annual engagement survey. Now in its third year, the research reveals a deepening divide in how UK organisations prioritise people-focused leadership – and the consequences are becoming critical. Dr Sarah Pass and James Court-Smith share key insights from the survey and highlight the urgent questions these pose for policy-makers and business leaders.
The slides from the event can be viewed here. A full copy of the report is available here.
Moving from Divisive Diversity to Encompassing Inclusion – 29th April 2025
Dr Meenakshi Krishnan, principal research fellow, IES considers ‘what’s next for DEI?’ and sets out the case for moving from a focus on diversity to placing greater attention on fostering genuine inclusion, and emphasising the important role of employee networks and line managers.
The slides from the event can be viewed here.
Phoenix Colleague Representation Forum: an innovative approach to empowering collective employee voice – 18th February 2025
Susan Reilly, head of colleague representation and Emma Hughes, communications and engagement consultant, shared their experiences of establishing and operating the PCRF and its role in putting employees at the heart of decision-making in Phoenix Group.
The slides from the event can be viewed here.
Work and the AI Revolution – 1st October 2024
Mary Towers, Employment Rights Policy Officer, TUC has been leading the TUC’s AI project and presented the project’s key findings and proposals for change, as well as guidance for organisations grappling with new technology that can potentially revolutionise the workplace.
The slides from the event can be viewed here. And the reports and guidance here.
Flexible Working for All – 17th July 2024
Astrid Allen, a Senior Research Fellow from the Institute for Employment Studies (IES), presents findings from recent research into flexible working for frontline and site-based workers. She draws from the recently completed IES ‘Flexible working for all’ joint project with Timewise, involving an evaluation of different flexible working initiatives introduced at Guy’s and St Thomas’ Foundation NHS Trust, Sir Robert McAlpine and Wickes. The ‘Flexible working for all’ project aimed to reduce organisational disparities and improve the health and wellbeing of employees within the participating organisations. Its success is a result of driven and expert people collaborating to solve a huge challenge for organisations that has wider implications for social justice and health equity. It has resulted in practical guidance to support other organisations looking to address inequality and improve the health and wellbeing of their employees.
The slides from the presentation can be viewed here and the full report here
Insights from the 2023 Engage for Success UK Engagement Survey – 16th April 2024
Employee engagement dropped significantly during the pandemic and has struggled to return to pre-pandemic levels. Coupled with stagnating UK productivity and increasing employee unrest, the future is concerning. This specially extended event provided insights from the 2023 Engage for Success UK engagement survey that show how how variations in engagement are influenced by organisational action (or inaction).
The slides from the presentation can be viewed here
Strengthening Workplace Relations with your Trade Unions – 20 February 2024
Many employers find themselves ill-equipped to work effectively with their trade unions and lack confidence and experience when conducting bargaining and negotiation. IPA Director, Nita Clarke OBE, explores the important steps employers can take to improve workplace relations.
The slides from the presentation can be viewed here.
Promoting Minority Talent – 14 November 2023
An instructive presentation from Rob Barkworth, IES associate and experienced business psychologist specialising in managing diversity and inclusion.
The slides from the presentation can be viewed here.
Misalignment: a key communication issue
Thought provoking presentation from Lindsay Uittenbogaard, CEO and Founder, Mirror Mirror on the misalignment of communication. The presentation highlighted how misalignment can easily happen within an organisation. Lindsay highlighted how people come to work with their own assumptions, observations and stories and this can lead to a disconnect.
The slides from the presentation can be viewed here.
How do you retain young workers in an organisation?
A great presentation from Eleanor Marsea and Catherine Hogan from Youth Futures Foundation. We discussed:
- what factors influence young people to stay or leave an organisation
- the barriers for retention and progression
- the role of managers in retention and inclusion and how this helps.
The slides from the presentation can be viewed here.
Why the menopause is a commercial talent issue
We had a great discussion and presentation with Mel Bligh about why menopause is a commercial talent issue and how organisations can help support their workforce.
The slides from the presentation can be viewed here.
NHS Case Study Hub event
At this month’s Hub event, Dr Sarah Pass presented her findings from a NHS England Case Study.
The slides from the presentation can be viewed here.
Quiet Quitting Hub event
At this month’s Hub event, Derek Luckhurst discussed quiet quitting and what effect it is having.
The slides from the presentation can be viewed here.
Knowledge Exodus Hub event
At this month’s Hub event. Peter McCarthy, Director, The Knowledge Bank discusses how we can address the issue of the practice of knowledge and experience transfer. What does this mean for an organisations future success and sustainability?
The slides from the presentation can be viewed here.
Great Resignation Hub event
The slides from the presentation can be viewed here.
Ethnicity Pay Reporting Hub event
At this month’s Hub event, Duncan Brown, an independent government and employer adviser and researcher discussed the ethnicity pay gap, why it is still voluntary and what organisations need to do now to make it mandatory.
Employment Relations Hub event
In January’s hub event we discussed how the UK is experiencing serious staff shortages in many parts of the labour market which may increase the potential bargaining power of the employees in these sectors for higher pay and better conditions. We also discussed the power balance between employees and employers and how it is shifting against the backdrop of the growing challenge of recruiting and retaining staff.
Just Transition Hub event
IPA presented some key findings from Patrick Briône’s research report “Just Transition – Remembering the UK Workforce in the push for Net Zero”. We examined the potential implications of the UK’s commitments to net zero emissions by 2050.
Collaborative Team Working Hub event
A summary of the July 2021 Employee Voice Hub event where Shauna Hutchinson, Resident Engagement Manager at Network Homes talked about Staff Networks and how to improve understanding and collaborative working in teams.