What if most workplace well-being initiatives miss the real issue—not how people feel at work, but how the job itself is designed?

In this episode of the HRchat Podcast, host Bill Banham is joined by Carol Atkinson, Professor of Human Resource Management at Manchester Metropolitan University, to rethink what “good work” actually looks like in practice. Beyond pay and benefits, Carol argues that dignity, voice, stability, and meaning must be built into roles from the ground up.

Drawing on research across adult social care, SMEs, and gender equity, Carol explains why transactional basics (fair pay, predictable hours) must be paired with the relational experience of work—and why free fruit and yoga apps won’t fix excessive workloads or chaotic schedules.

We explore how learning labs bring academics, policymakers, and practitioners together to co-design solutions that actually get used, including conflict-management tools developed during COVID. The conversation also tackles job security in an AI-shaped labour market, zero-hours instability, the structural drivers behind the medical gender pay gap, and what practical menopause support really looks like day to day.

If you care about HR strategy, job quality, employee voice, and the future of work, this episode offers a clear roadmap: design better jobs, raise the floor through smart policy, and listen to the people doing the work.

In this episode, we cover:

• What “good work” really means beyond perks
• Transactional vs relational elements of job quality
• Why job design is the foundation of well-being
• AI, insecurity, and the limits of job tenure
• Zero-hours contracts and the hidden costs of churn
• Employability through learning, skills, and confidence
• Learning labs and research-to-practice impact
• COVID-era conflict-management interventions
• Structural drivers of gender pay gaps in healthcare
• Practical and cultural menopause support at work

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