Workforce planning: How many staff does it take to run an organisation?
Workforce planning is become an essential element in these lean times. In the first of this four part series George Blair looks at how many staff you actual need and how to increase their productivity. Workforce planning is rapidly rising to the top of the HR agenda. Companies are being forced to consider the prospect […]
Volunteering – but who benefits?
Voluntary work for charities has become an increasingly popular government-backed activity to be offered in the workplace over the last few years, and has been shown to give great satisfaction to those who volunteer. But is it really a useful and beneficial tool for charities themselves? Or does volunteering detract from the fundraising efforts of […]
2010: The year of interesting jobs?
As HR professionals know only too well, the recent months have been a difficult time for organisations but in 2010, this fluctuating operating environment can actually offer a great chance for HR teams to improve engagement among staff, says Carla Cavanagh of Best Companies. Coping with radical change has been one of the biggest challenges, […]
Abandoned to their fate – ex-employees whose companies cannot afford outplacement?
Richard Alberg, CEO of MyWorkSearch, says there’s no excuse for ‘not affording outplacement’ when so much is offered for free… I must declare a vested interest. I run an online outplacement firm. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) provides our services free of charge to jobseekers via its Jobcentre Plus offices. I am writing […]
HR tip: Phone before sick visiting?
Learn HR is a leader in the provision of HR and payroll training and nationally-recognised professional qualifications, and is experienced in advising on common HR and payroll problems. A wide selection of tips and guidance can be seen below. HRzone.co.uk recommends that any tips are taken as a starting point for guidance only. This week, can […]
HR professionals exploit the potential of social media
HR is becoming the next key function after sales and marketing to explore the potential of social media and other Web 2.0 technologies as managers increasingly set their sights on acquiring and retaining high quality staff. According to Rachel Philips, technology director for Oracle’s Enterprise 2.0 collaboration software, HR professionals are now "starting to realise that […]
Group call for government support on equal pay research
An employers’ membership group has called on the government to support organisations in collecting, analysing and publishing pay data in order to help them get to grips with tackling the ongoing gender divide. The move came in response to recommendations published by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) around the government’s pay reporting and […]
Survey uncovers ‘simmering employee discontent’
Although the UK has now officially limped out of the worst and longest recession since records began in 1948, job satisfaction levels have hit an all-time low, with younger workers particularly unhappy at work. News that the economy grew a mere 0.1% in the final three months of 2009 alarmed financial experts, who were predicting […]
Retirement age abolishment would herald major HR rethink
Proposals by the UK’s equality watchdog to abolish a default retirement age would require a careful rethink of many existing HR policies and practices, according to one consultancy. A report by the Equality and Human Rights Commission has recommended that the government scrap a law, which enables employers to force staff to finish work at […]
New legal ruling clarifies employers’ obligation to risks assessments of pregnant workers
A new legal ruling clarifying that employers are only obliged to carry out assessments on pregnant workers if evidence shows they are subject to health and safety risks should help to reduce the burden on HR professionals. The clarification in the law came about following a judgement handed down in respect of O’Neill versus Buckinghamshire County […]
Do professional HR personnel need professional training?
HR is a profession many ‘fall into’. Whether this is a good or a bad thing, does it really mean you don’t need training? Dave Snow investigates the role of HR today and says training is never wasted. There are some within the HR profession who knew where their future lay from a young age […]
Ask the expert: Holiday on sick leave?
Can an employee go on holiday when they are on sick leave, and if so, what are we supposed to pay them? Martin Brewer and Esther Smith advise. The question: Holiday on sick leave? An employee on long-term sick leave (work-related stress) obviously accrues his/her holiday entitlement during this absence. However, during this time if […]
Competition: Win a Water Wellpoint Wellbeing review for your organisation
Getting fit for 2010? How healthy do you think you and your work colleagues are? You could win a Wellbeing review worth more than £500 with our competition. The Water Wellpoint online wellbeing review assesses how employees believe their work affects their health and provides a valuable insight for employers on how they can better […]
Personal development – essential to managers – essential for everyone?
Personal development starts from the very beginning of our lives and should not end when we start work. John Pope looks at professional and practical development. We start off in life not knowing much about ourselves and what we could be capable of achieving; we know little about managing other people. But we learn gradually […]
Stress assessed: 40 million Europeans suffering from stress
Stress appears to be endemic in workplaces across Europe, affecting more than 40 million employees in the European Union and costing the regional economy a huge E20 million. In response, the British Standards Institute and Nottingham University are leading an international team to develop good practice standards for assessing and managing work-related stress. But while European […]
Council pay freeze leads to thaw demands
Unions are urging local councils to reconsider a decision to impose a pay freeze on their 1.5 million workers, which they claim was made without negotiation. The year-long freeze, which is due to come into force from April, flies in the face of the 2.5% or £500 increase – whichever was greater – that Unison, […]
Good HR is E.ons away
Utility firm E.On has caused outrage among staff after finding out about its decision to axe 800 jobs following the closure of its Rayleigh call centre from a local Essex newspaper. The German-owned company, which supplies gas and electricity to 5.5 million UK customers, said that the decision to close the facility was not “taken […]
HR tip: Employee refuses contract
Learn HR is a leader in the provision of HR and payroll training and nationally-recognised professional qualifications, and is experienced in advising on common HR and payroll problems. A wide selection of tips and guidance can be seen below. HRzone.co.uk recommends that any tips are taken as a starting point for guidance only. This week, can […]
Recruiting? Get the job spec write!
Rob Ashton explains how to write your way to the ideal candidate. It’s the start of the new year and the UK is sitting on a glut of unwanted Christmas presents. Matching present to person is seldom an easy task. It takes time and effort. But in the run up to Christmas, many people will […]
A carrot a day – keeps employee churn at bay
Charlie Duff interviews Chester Elton live at the HR Director’s Business Summit in Birmingham to find out why HR’s favourite colour should be orange. If you haven’t seen Chester Elton speak, perhaps you should. His motivation speeches are always funny and inspiring: his continual message is appreciate your people. Known for throwing things into/at his […]