An introduction to social recruitment with Bill Boorman
Social recruiting – myths, legends and a take on reality from Bill Boorman, social recruiter and TRU Events unconference organiser. You’ve probably heard a lot of noise about social recruiting. From the champions to the naysayers, everyone has a view. With so much written about theory, and what ‘social’ could do, and so few real […]
Recession successes invested in training
Even though there is a direct link between investment in learning and development and financial performance, nearly half of all UK employers made cost-cutting rather than innovation in this area a priority during the recession. According to a survey, among 200 learning and development (L&D) professionals in organisations with more than 1,000 staff, undertaken by […]
Pregnant RAF officer awarded £16,000
A female RAF officer who was removed from her post because she was pregnant has been awarded more than £16,000 by an employment tribunal. In a case funded by the Equality & Human Rights Commission (EHRC), the officer – who chose not to be named as she still works for the air force – was […]
Leadership training should be a ‘national priority’
A professional management body has called on employers to commit to investing in leadership training as a national priority in order to spearhead a return to sustained economic growth. The plea from the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) followed the launch of a public consultation on Northern Ireland’s skills strategy by Minister for Employment and Learning, […]
Outrage against ‘minority only’ council work placement
A council’s decision to ban white graduates from applying for an £18,000-a-year management training scheme in order to boost staff diversity ratios has caused outrage. The initiative by Bristol City Council, which offers two candidates a two-year placement with the local authority, is only open to people from black or ethnic minority backgrounds. The scheme, […]
Union anger at HP plan to axe 9,000 jobs
Hewlett-Packard’s decision to cut 9,000 jobs worldwide in a bid to save up to $700 million per year has outraged unions, which claim they were not informed of the decision. The IT vendor intends to slash the posts at part of the ongoing restructuring of its EDS services acquisition, which was purchased 20 months ago […]
SMEs could add £15bn by applying HR planning
SMEs could add £15bn to the economy by using HR planning to become more effective and profitable, according to a recent survey. A recent study has concluded HR planning is one of six key principles SMEs should adopt to tap into their competitiveness. A six-month study commissioned by Royal Mail compared growth rates among 500 […]
Employment law issues during the World Cup – playing the odds
The World Cup will bring with it a lot of management concerns, and not just for Capello. Absences, form, motivation and even dreaded yellow cards adding up to a suspension are all likely contenders this summer, and in order to help you make the most of the beautiful game we’re running a book to give […]
Cloud Computing and its effect on the HR industry
The concept of ‘cloud computing’ is fast becoming the darling of the IT world. As one of the biggest changes to hit IT infrastructures since the invention of the personal computer, the rise of cloud-based computing is predicted to have an impact on organisations of all sizes. In the next few years, whether a corporation, […]
Creating and communicating a total reward culture
The statistics say it all – 65% of employees admit to not fully understanding the value of their employee benefits. This is commercial madness when you consider organisations across the UK spend millions in developing and offering employee benefits. However there is a simple solution to this problem. Here Andy Philpott outlines the reasons for […]
McDonald’s flexible football league
Flexible working is being utilised by McDonald's this World cup season to ensure staff are happy to fit their shifts around football. David Fairhurst comments on the ideas behind the policies. We have reported on McDonald's flexible working and apprenticeship policies before on HRzone, but having a great HR function in place is useless without […]
‘Recession stress’ costs employers £26 billion
Stress and depression cost employers £26 billion last year as staff felt compelled to work longer hours and compete against each other to keep their jobs as a result of the recession. According to a study undertaken among 2,050 workers by Populus on behalf of mental health charity Mind, this situation resulted in one in […]
Jobs up but wages fall, claims job index
Although the number of posts being advertised may be on the up, wages are continuing to drop – unless you happen to be a senior HR director in Whitehall. According to the latest Reed Job Index, which is based on data from reed.co.uk, the UK’s largest jobs board, demand among employers for new staff increased […]
1/4 of employees want to leave
The days of staff staying with their employer due to economic uncertainty are coming to an end, with about one in four workers currently disengaged and planning to leave. According to a survey of more than 4,000 employees undertaken by market research company GfK NOP, about 13% of workers intend to leave their organisation as […]
BA union launches new strike ballot bid
Unite, the union representing British Airways’ cabin crew, is expected to announce plans for a new strike ballot today, leaving passengers facing a summer of chaos. Tony Woodley, Unite’s joint general secretary, will announce at the union’s first policy conference in Manchester that a ballot could take place as early as next week due […]
It’s the way I tell ’em: keep up the benefit conversation
Pay and benefits… Frank Carson… bear with me, I can explain. (For those of you who are now asking yourself or a colleague "who on earth is Frank Carson?" you’ll have to doodle it on your i-berry). It is pretty much universally accepted by employers of today that you need to offer your employees a […]
The new age of ethical recruitment
Mark Roberts looks at how the recession has created a new wave of ethical recruitment and explains how it works in practice. As we emerge from recession, the recruitment industry is a very different beast to the one that enjoyed the boom times of the late 1990s and early 2000s. In those hectic, sales-focused, days […]
Ask the expert: Diagnosed with bowel cancer – what rights do I have?
A worker is diagnosed with bowel cancer – what rights to preferred shifts do they have? Martin Brewer and Esther Smith advise. The question: Diagnosed with bowel cancer – what rights do I have? Upon a change of shift patterns within the company I opted to swap my preferred shift with my […]
Understanding leadership styles to navigate the leader maze
It hardly needs saying that effective teamwork and motivated team members increase the likelihood of optimising business outcomes. If good business results aren't achieved the buck stops with the team leader for it is the team leader who is responsible for ensuring that the team is motivated to achieve results and effectively deployed to do […]
Females feel ‘unsupported’ by smaller businesses
Female workers are nearly twice as likely to experience sex discrimination in small companies rather than large and almost half of all women in the UK feel that their employer does not give them enough support to attain a reasonable work-life balance. These are the sobering findings of two reports looking at the plight of […]