Businesses at risk from poor communication of security policy
One in four workers believe their employer needs to do more to communicate information security policies effectively, with just under two thirds admitting that ignorance or lack of understanding had already led to a security breach. These are the findings of a survey undertaken among 2,000 office workers across the world by security software provider […]
HR ineffective at conflict resolution
Although workplace conflict is on the up as a result of the stress caused by increasing workloads, less than one in five employees would turn to the HR function to bring about a resolution. According to a study among 1,000 UK workers commissioned by the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR), some 87% of […]
Podcast: Working with unions
Whether you have never dealt with unions before, have forged a good working relationship or actively love to hate them, for many HR practitioners, dealing with unions is likely to become part of your job. In this podcast Croner discuss what HR professionals need to be aware of given possible union activity in the coming […]
Five steps to bagging the best talent
How to retain the best talent is a pressing issue for many businesses across the UK. To ensure they are able to attract the cream of the crop, businesses must endeavour to become an employer of choice – not only asking what the employee can offer the employer, but what tangible benefits the employer can […]
Low take-home pay still squeezing private sector employees
Although the take-home pay of private sector employees has hit a 12-month high, it has still not returned to pre-recession levels and contrasts with the “stagnating” situation in the public sector, according to a report. The VocaLink FTSE 350 Take Home Pay Index revealed that take-home pay in the private sector rose by 1.6% in […]
Ministers defend ‘work activity’ scheme
Ministers have been forced to defend plans to compel the long-term unemployed to undertake manual work or lose benefits after the Archbishop of Canterbury branded the proposals unfair. In a surprise intervention, Rowan Williams, the head of the Church of England, said he had “a lot of worries” about the coalition government Work Activity scheme, […]
Employment law round-up: Interesting developments in 2010
It’s been a busy year so far for employment lawyers. While we can’t cover all the changes that have happened in one article, here are a few interesting developments, plus ideas for ones to watch for in the near future. Fit notesThe Government suggested these would save British industry £240 million by getting us all […]
Five minutes with… Doug Shaw
On HRzone.co.uk we want to get up close and personal for five minutes with a member each month. Doug Shaw is an active blogger and songwriter on site and has in the past been voted blogger of the month. So, take a community coffee break and find out something you didn’t know about this month’s […]
Get reward and recognition right; or don’t do it at all
Many companies have a reward and recognition scheme in place, but a programme is only as good as the communication and execution of it. Glenn Elliot considers how you can boost the value in your R&R. If not personally, most of us probably have a friend or family member who would identify with this employee’s […]
National Stress Awareness Day misses the point – focus on resilience
Stress Awareness Day should be rebranded Resilience Awareness Day in order to focus attention less on the symptoms and more on potential cures for the now widespread malaise, according to an HR services firm. Kevin Friery, clinical director of Right Management’s Right CoreCare business, said that staff today were stressed about two key things – […]
Top tips to beat stress at work
Stress is still a growing problem for British workers and there is a need for greater understanding and management of it by employers in all industries. Clive James of St John Ambulance has put together his top tips to help businesses address these issues. According to a recent survey by the TUC, stress has become […]
CIPD: 1.6 million jobs will go in UK
The private sector will lose more jobs than the public sector following the coalition government’s spending cuts and VAT rise and will struggle to create a targeted 300,000 posts per year by 2015-16. The warning from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) came as researchers revealed that graduate unemployment had hit the highest […]
Attention ladies: you will not be getting paid until 2011
Despite the Equal pay Act marking its 40th anniversary, Nov 2 was Equal Pay Day,the day when the average woman is no longer paid this year, as on average women’s full-time mean hourly pay is 16.4% less than men’s. The 2 November symbolically marks the last pay cheque that women receive in a year, since […]
Engaging customer-facing employees to improve performance
Educating and engaging staff within the workplace is key to improving performance. Ian Luxford offers tips to help improve performance, ensure better service for customers: what better way of aligning your strategy with the business plans? If outstanding customer service is a must for successful businesses today, it’s also one of the biggest challenges they […]
Recruiters beware: 2/3 of jobseekers lie about previous salary
Just over two thirds of potential job candidates inflate the salary that they were paid in their last position in a bid to get more money, making it the most common interview fib. Next on the list come lies about candidates’ qualifications or grades in order to impress potential employers (61%), followed by bending the […]
Getting to the heart of the CSR for HR
The Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) signals a period of change for both private and public sectors that will last for at least the next four years. For the public sector in particular it marks one of the biggest shake-ups seen in recent times. Private sector organisations will also be forced to take stock of how […]
Ask the expert: Best way to move monthly payment?
This time the experts, Esther Smith and Martin Brewer give their advice on how to change from advance pay to arrears pay. The question: Changing from advance to arrears pay Employees are currently paid one month in advance on the 1st of the month. Obviously this can cause all sorts of recoupment problems if […]
Morrisons to employ and train 1000 homeless
The Morrisons supermarket chain is to give 10% of the 10,000 new jobs it creates by opening a raft of new stores to homeless and other vulnerable people. The UK’s fourth largest retailer, which is running the initiative in partnership with the Salvation Army and social enterprise Create, aims to train homeless staff in traditional […]
Workplace fatalities fall to lowest point
Although the number of work-related deaths and serious injuries may be falling, the incidents of stress, bullying and harassment are on the rise. According to figures published by the Health and Safety Executive, the number of workers that were killed at work dropped to 152 between April 2009 and March 2010, down from 179 the […]
HR uses hot tech to transform performance
Human resources and technology are not always bosom buddies, but the reality is that today many organisations want to achieve a sleek, integrated HR department which literally can use data for business critical elements like succession planning and managing the talent pipeline. It’s undeniable that technology plays a huge part in enabling this. However, it’s […]