Accessibility helpSkip to navigationSkip to contentSkip to footer

Cookies on FT Sites

We use cookies for a number of reasons, such as keeping FT Sites reliable and secure, personalising content and ads, providing social media features and to analyse how our Sites are used.

Accept & continue
Manage cookies
  • Sign In
  • Subscribe
Open side navigation menuOpen search bar
Financial Times
SubscribeSign InmyFT
  • Home
  • World
    Sections
    • World Home
    • Global Economy
    • UK
    • US
    • China
    • Africa
    • Asia Pacific
    • Emerging Markets
    • Europe
    • War in Ukraine
    • Americas
    • Middle East & North Africa
    • Australia & NZ
    Most Read
    • Boris Johnson on the brink after Rishi Sunak and Sajid Javid quit UK cabinet
    • Nadhim Zahawi: rapid rise of Britain’s new chancellor
    • Nadhim Zahawi to review corporation tax rise as Boris Johnson battles to stay in office
    • Congo’s president Félix Tshisekedi warns of risk of war with Rwanda
    • Cabinet ministers call on Boris Johnson to quit
  • US
    Sections
    • US Home
    • US Economy
    • US Companies
    • US Politics & Policy
    Most Read
    • Crypto collapse reverberates widely among black American investors
    • US bond market flashes warning signal of economic slowdown
    • Facebook owner Meta to push ahead with digital collectibles plan
    • Oil prices turn sharply lower on fears recession will undercut demand
    • America’s unending horizon of mass shootings
  • Companies
    Sections
    • Companies Home
    • Energy
    • Financials
    • Health
    • Industrials
    • Media
    • Professional Services
    • Retail & Consumer
    • Tech Sector
    • Telecoms
    • Transport
    Most Read
    • Property set to cool as investors face ‘new paradigm’, Brookfield warns
    • Warren Buffett-backed Chinese group BYD overtakes Tesla in global electric vehicle sales
    • BA flight cancellations and refuelling strikes set to bring more travel chaos
    • KPMG’s business in UAE split by partner infighting and coup attempt
    • EY boosts accountancy title inflation by dubbing senior staff ‘partner’
  • Tech
  • Markets
    Sections
    • Markets Home
    • Alphaville
    • Markets Data
    • Capital Markets
    • Commodities
    • Currencies
    • Equities
    • Fund Management
    • Trading
    • Moral Money
    • ETF Hub
    • Cryptocurrencies
    Most Read
    • Live news updates: Senior cabinet ministers to tell Johnson to quit as UK prime minister
    • US bond market flashes warning signal of economic slowdown
    • ECB’s crisis-fighting scheme risks being tied up in legal and political knots
    • The stock market still has high hopes
    • Pound traders look past UK political turmoil
  • Climate
  • Opinion
    Sections
    • Opinion Home
    • Columnists
    • The FT View
    • The Big Read
    • Lex
    • Obituaries
    • Letters
    Most Read
    • This is the endgame for Boris Johnson — but it may not be quick
    • Cryptocurrencies are not the new monetary system we need
    • America’s unending horizon of mass shootings
    • Supreme Court EPA ruling puts regulators in handcuffs
    • The stock market still has high hopes
  • Work & Careers
    Sections
    • Work & Careers Home
    • Business School Rankings
    • Business Education
    • Entrepreneurship
    • Recruitment
    • Business Books
    • Business Travel
    Most Read
    • Michael Lewis: ‘The thing that really works for Trump is: the system’s rigged’
    • Meet the founders with the boomerang factor
    • British Rail: A New History — a timely reminder of how to run a railway
    • Pop-up leaders and flexible staff are ready for a new crisis
    • Help truly wanted, even if you’ve been in jail
  • Life & Arts
    Sections
    • Life & Arts Home
    • Arts
    • Books
    • Food & Drink
    • FT Magazine
    • House & Home
    • Style
    • Travel
    • FT Globetrotter
    Most Read
    • Chess: Nepo wins Candidates again as Carlsen asks for new world title format
    • Galápagos now: when a superyacht meets world heritage site
    • Worth a shot: 10 intriguing new tennis gadgets
    • Postcard from Norfolk: the churches marooned behind army lines
    • Swimsuits to make a splash in 
  • HTSI
MenuSearch
  • Home
  • World
  • US
  • Companies
  • Tech
  • Markets
  • Climate
  • Opinion
  • Work & Careers
  • Life & Arts
  • HTSI
Financial Times
SubscribeSign In

Your guide to a disrupted world

Start a 4-week trial

Sarah O'Connor

Employment columnist

Sarah O'Connor is a columnist, reporter and associate editor at the Financial Times. She writes a weekly column focused on the world of work, as well as longer reported articles.

She joined the FT in 2007 and has covered the US economy from Washington DC, the UK economy from London and the financial crisis from Iceland.

Email Sarah O'Connor @sarahoconnor_  on Twitter (link opens in a new browser window)
Email Sarah O'Connor @sarahoconnor_  on Twitter (link opens in a new browser window)

Add to myFT Digest

Add this topic to your myFT Digest for news straight to your inbox

  • Tuesday, 5 July, 2022
    Working It podcast21 min listen
    Is hybrid work a trap for women?

    Many women want flexibility but there is evidence it is not good for their careers

  • Tuesday, 28 June, 2022
    UK employment
    Young men are slipping quietly through the economy’s cracks

    A positive employment trend for young women masks a rise in the proportion of inactive young men

  • Tuesday, 14 June, 2022
    Employment
    Farewell to the servant economy

    ‘On-demand’ services might have made people feel wealthy, but now the model is in jeopardy

  • Tuesday, 7 June, 2022
    UK employment
    Why are we all working so hard?

    The intensification of work doesn’t seem to be making us richer, but it does appear to be making us sicker

  • Tuesday, 31 May, 2022
    UK employment
    Splintered UK labour market makes a wage-price spiral unlikely

    The decline of trade unions and rise of self-employment argue against a repeat of 1970s-style inflation

  • Tuesday, 24 May, 2022
    Minimum-Living wage
    Why a higher UK minimum wage fails to spur productivity

    A British experiment ended up with companies accepting lower profits, charging more or cutting investment

  • Tuesday, 17 May, 2022
    UK employment
    Beware the promise of salary advance schemes

    Such products look increasingly attractive to some employees as the cost of living crisis bites

  • Tuesday, 10 May, 2022
    New Zealand
    New Zealand’s jobs law will cause ripples beyond its shores

    Introducing fair pay agreements would reverse 30 years of labour market deregulation

  • Tuesday, 3 May, 2022
    UK employment
    Rot festers in the lower depths of the British labour market

    Poor regulation of umbrella companies is bad for workers, taxpayers and decent businesses alike

  • Tuesday, 26 April, 2022
    Pension automatic enrolment
    When a pensions policy is a resounding success, we should say so

    There remains more to do but automatic enrolment has had a transformational effect

  • Tuesday, 12 April, 2022
    UK employment
    Why the middle-class capture of apprenticeship matters

    Reforms have led to a sharp fall in England in younger apprentices from poorer areas

  • Tuesday, 5 April, 2022
    Working It podcast29 min listen
    Is this the end of work as we know it?

    Why millions are quitting their jobs, working less, or declaring themselves anti-work

  • Tuesday, 5 April, 2022
    Amazon.com
    Union victory for Amazon warehouse could change US labour movement

    Grassroots Staten Island win shows the power of organising from the bottom up

  • Tuesday, 29 March, 2022
    UK employment
    The P&O debacle shows that UK labour law needs an overhaul

    There are too many loopholes and grey areas that unscrupulous employers can exploit

  • Tuesday, 22 March, 2022
    Future of work
    A four-day week might benefit employers as well

    Experiments have shown that workers’ hours can be cut without a corresponding drop in output

  • Thursday, 17 March, 2022
    FT Magazine
    How did a vast Amazon warehouse change life in a former mining town?

    Ten years after her groundbreaking investigation into the retail giant, Sarah O’Connor returns to Rugeley to find out what’s changed

  • Tuesday, 15 March, 2022
    War in Ukraine
    Europe has done the right thing by allowing Ukrainian refugees to work

    But access to employment must be underpinned by services to help new arrivals to support themselves

  • Thursday, 3 March, 2022
    FT CollectionsClaudia Goldin
    Claudia Goldin: ‘Greedy work has been made less greedy’

    The pandemic has helped facilitate flexible working, which might make top jobs more compatible with family life

  • Tuesday, 1 March, 2022
    Coronavirus economic impact
    Better UK sick pay will help us live with Covid

    Britain lags behind countries like Germany in the help it gives to workers who fall ill

  • Tuesday, 22 February, 2022
    Artificial intelligence
    Never mind Big Tech — ‘little tech’ can be dangerous at work too

    ‘Algorithmic management’ is spreading beyond gig platforms and logistics warehouses to other sectors

  • Tuesday, 15 February, 2022
    UK immigration
    Keeping asylum seekers in limbo is bad for everyone

    ‘Human capital’ is damaged when people are shut out of labour markets and forced to sit idle

  • Tuesday, 8 February, 2022
    UK employment
    In unequal Britain, why aren’t there more Dick Whittingtons?

    The government’s ambition to spread highly-skilled jobs more evenly around the country is a good one

  • Monday, 31 January, 2022
    UK employment
    UK plan shows how not to deal with labour shortages

    The issue isn’t that the unemployed are too picky — it’s that many have left the jobs market altogether

  • Tuesday, 11 January, 2022
    Legal services
    Don’t roll your eyes when lawyers complain about overwork

    Listening to the concerns of people at the top can inform the debate over how to improve jobs at the bottom

  • Wednesday, 29 December, 2021
    UK employment
    A decent boss can make the world of difference at work

    Job satisfaction takes many forms but beware the demoralising effects of impersonal systems for evaluating employees

Previous page You are on page 1 Next page

Be part of FT Community

Discover unmissable flagship events and members only communities to expand your thinking and elevate your career

FT LiveThe Global Boardroom: 6th EditionStrategies for a new geopolitical and economic reality
Wednesday, 7th DecemberDigital Conference
Learn more about FT Community

Useful links

Support

View Site TipsHelp CentreContact UsAbout UsAccessibilitymyFT TourCareers

Legal & Privacy

Terms & ConditionsPrivacy PolicyCookiesCopyrightSlavery Statement & Policies

Services

Share News Tips SecurelyIndividual SubscriptionsGroup SubscriptionsRepublishingExecutive Job SearchAdvertise with the FTFollow the FT on TwitterFT ChannelsSecondary Schools

Tools

PortfolioToday's Newspaper (ePaper)Alerts HubBusiness School RankingsEnterprise ToolsNews feedNewslettersCurrency Converter

Community & Events

FT CommunityFT LiveFT ForumsFT Board DirectorBoard Director Programme

More from the FT Group

Markets data delayed by at least 15 minutes. © THE FINANCIAL TIMES LTD 2022. FT and ‘Financial Times’ are trademarks of The Financial Times Ltd.
The Financial Times and its journalism are subject to a self-regulation regime under the FT Editorial Code of Practice.
Financial Times

International Edition

Subscribe for full access
  • Switch to UK Edition
  • Top sections
  • Home
  • World
    • Global Economy
    • UK
    • US
    • China
    • Africa
    • Asia Pacific
    • Emerging Markets
    • Europe
    • War in Ukraine
    • Americas
    • Middle East & North Africa
    • Australia & NZ
  • US
    • US Economy
    • US Companies
    • US Politics & Policy
  • Companies
    • Energy
    • Financials
    • Health
    • Industrials
    • Media
    • Professional Services
    • Retail & Consumer
    • Tech Sector
    • Telecoms
    • Transport
  • Tech
  • Markets
    • Alphaville
    • Markets Data
    • Capital Markets
    • Commodities
    • Currencies
    • Equities
    • Fund Management
    • Trading
    • Moral Money
    • ETF Hub
    • Cryptocurrencies
  • Climate
  • Opinion
    • Columnists
    • The FT View
    • The Big Read
    • Lex
    • Obituaries
    • Letters
  • Work & Careers
    • Business School Rankings
    • Business Education
    • Entrepreneurship
    • Recruitment
    • Business Books
    • Business Travel
  • Life & Arts
    • Arts
    • Books
    • Food & Drink
    • FT Magazine
    • House & Home
    • Style
    • Travel
    • FT Globetrotter
  • Personal Finance
    • Property & Mortgages
    • Investments
    • Pensions
    • Tax
    • Banking & Savings
    • Advice & Comment
    • Next Act
  • HTSI
  • Special Reports
  • FT recommends
  • Lex
  • Alphaville
  • Lunch with the FT
  • FT Globetrotter
  • #techAsia
  • Moral Money
  • FTfm
  • Newsletters
  • Video
  • Podcasts
  • News feed
  • FT Community
    • FT Live
    • FT Forums
    • Board Director Programme
  • myFT
  • Portfolio
  • Today's Newspaper (ePaper)
  • Crossword
  • Our Apps
  • Help Centre
  • Subscribe
  • Sign In