Pros and cons of leasing office furniture
In this article Jorgen Josefsson, Managing Director at Scandinavian Business Seating UK, looks at the pros and cons of leasing. Leasing your office furniture and equipment could be a cost effective option as long as you are aware of both the advantages and disadvantages. Consider your office equipment needs, financial situation and your line of […]
News: House of Lords blocks ‘shares for rights’ scheme
The House of Lords has blocked an initiative that would have allowed employees to surrender certain employment rights in return for company shares. The scheme would have allowed business owners to give shares worth between £2000 and £5000 to employees. In return the employee would have to give up certain employment rights, including redundancy and […]
Workplace conflict – challenge or opportunity?
This article was written by Sue Hook of Sapience HR. You know what it’s like, the atmosphere in the team is prickly and ‘those two have obviously had words again’. They clearly don’t get on or it’s a case of the notorious ‘clash of personalities’. But do you have to just continue to accept this poor […]
News: inaccurate mileage claims could open firms to HMRC fines
Close to half of UK business drivers surveyed in a new study admit to submitting false mileage claims. This is according to new research from TomTom Business Solutions, which found 46 percent of drivers have over-estimated their mileage when claiming expenses. Over a third (35 percent) do so regularly. This is despite the fact that […]
Talent spot: Paul Ethell, HR Director for BAE Systems’ Combat Aircraft business unit
“I started getting interested in HR when I was at university. I thought it would be useful to do a business elective as part of my course and out of naivety thought HR sounded interesting,” remembers Paul Ethell, HR director for BAE Systems’ Combat Aircraft business unit. Ethell’s hunch proved correct and he did find […]
Smart office furniture decisions to improve employee wellbeing
This article was written by Mark Foster, Head of Furniture and Interiors at Office Depot. On the average day, the two things people spend most time doing are working and sleeping, generally for about eight hours each. As a result, it is no surprise that people devote a large amount of time to buying the […]
Retirement courses – value for money or flirting with age discrimination?
This article was written by Lee Coles, Head of Money After Work at Jelf Employment Benefits. Funding spaces on courses for those approaching retirement can be a wise investment, but there are good, bad and ugly courses out there. I would like to state the financial case for the ‘good’ specimens of what is arguably […]
News: European clock-watchers ‘here to stay’
New research suggests European workers are clocking in – then zoning out. One in three employees globally (32.7 percent) has no intention of leaving their current job in the next 12 months. European employees are most set on staying put at 37.8 percent, compared to one in five (21.7 percent) employees in Asia. CEB’s latest […]
Budget 2013 – what it means for HR
Chancellor George Osborne has announced his 2013 Budget to Parliament – referred to by the chancellor as one for an ‘aspiration nation.’ Read on for our analysis of how new measures introduced could impact the HR function. You can keep up with comments on the budget by following hashtag #Budget2013 on Twitter. Tax incentives for […]
News: skills gap dragging down leading economic powers
Many of the world’s strongest economies are suffering losses in productivity revenue due to a skills gap, according to new research from CareerBuilder. Employers in economically strong countries said that extended job vacancies have resulted in an inability to grow their business. Those in China were most likely to report the negative effects of open […]
‘The Cloud’ leaves HR & learning’s traditional relationship up in the air
Gerry Griffin, director of Skill Pill M-Learning, looks at how the cloud environment is set to shape the face of learning in the workplace and asks where HR will sit in the aftermath? Cloud computing, a relatively new addition to the workplace, has already managed to establish itself as an indispensable asset for organisations. The […]
Facilitating the cultural shift to remote working
This article was written by Jane Kirk, director at search and intelligence consultancy Armstrong Craven. The news that Marissa Mayer banned Yahoo!’s entire workforce from home-working sparked an immediate surge of protest. The move seemed to fly in the face of growing evidence to support flexible working. Engagement and well-being are cited as key benefits, as […]
That sinking feeling – handling difficult conversations
This article was written by Kate Russell, MD of Russell HR Consulting. Managing difficult people and helping managers to manage difficult employees comes with the HR turf. The question is how can HR professionals best grasp the nettle when trying to manage difficult people/scenarios, either their own team or the wider workforce? For the purposes […]
News: sickness a major issue affecting service delivery
Sickness and absence is a major issue affecting service delivery and the customer experience, according to new research. The research, conducted by Redshift Research on behalf of Cognito, surveyed 200 business managers responsible for mobile workers across the UK to examine the key hurdles to delivering service excellence. Sickness was ranked as the most common […]
News: Work is biggest cause of stress in people’s lives
Work is the most stressful factor in peoples’ lives, with one in three people (34 percent) saying their work life was either very or quite stressful, above debt or financial problems (30 percent) and health (17 percent). This is according to a study of 2000 people conducted by mental health charity Mind. Frustration with poor […]
Interview: Jenny Westworth, 2013 Apprentice Champion of the Year
BAE Systems apprentice Jenny Westworth, 23, was recently announced as the first Apprentice Champion of the Year, an award which recognises inspirational role models that champion the benefits of apprenticeships in the UK. She talks to HRZone about her journey so far and the ways in which HR functions can better attract and nurture apprentices. […]
News: older workers more worried about job security than Gen Y
Older workers’ confidence in their job security fell by as much as 10 percent in January 2013, according to new research from Legal & General’s Job Security Index. Confidence over job security among workers aged 45 and 54 fell by 10 percent since October 2012 to 69 percent. Workers aged 55 and over experienced a […]
How to deal with sexual harassment in the workplace
This article was written by Vanessa James, Joint Head of the Employment department at SA Law. It seems sexual harassment in the workplace is rarely out of the headlines at the moment, with the recent Liberal Democrat scandal surrounding claims that Lord Rennard behaved improperly to female members of the party again shining a light on […]
The Position of Employer in the Family Unit
A person’s primary social group is called their family unit. The family unit traditionally includes parents and children; some will include grandparents and wider relatives. Close friends will be included in a minority but the family unit is typically populated by blood relatives only. The workplace has been historically outside the family unit. Work divides […]
Research: concerns over trust in flexible working highest among HR professionals
Almost half of HR professionals (46 percent) responding to a new study said that a lack of trust over productivity was the biggest barrier to flexible working, compared to an average of 28 percent and 19 percent in the legal profession. HR respondents were also divided on whether they make more of a conscious effort […]
