Capital grinds to a halt as tube workers strike
Commuters in London were hit on Tuesday by the first full day of a 72-hour tube strike over the threat to tube workers’ jobs, forced transfers and pensions.The industrial action, organised by the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) is a direct result of Metronet, the tube line maintenance firm going into […]
Employee retention: Where is the love? By Matt Henkes
Staff retention difficulties are still on the increase as carefree employees flit back and forth in search of the perfect job. But with the multitude of available benefit options designed to make them stay put, Matt Henkes discovers the secret ingredient is love. It’s no longer enough for employers to expect loyal devotion from their […]
Bosses in the dock as employment tribunal cases climb
The number of cases brought to employment tribunals in Great Britain in 2006-07 rose by 15 per cent, from 115,039 in 2005-06 to 132,577, according to official figures from the Tribunals Service. The biggest rise comes in equal pay claims, showing a 155 per cent increase on 2005-06.The number of cases disposed of during 2006-07 […]
Appraisals: Prepare your people. By John Pope
Performance and development reviews can often be of little use if the correct processes aren’t in place, or if those involved are unprepared. Management consultant John Pope discusses the benefits of training both the manager and the appraisee to ensure successful reviews. No-one knows how successful performance and development reviews really are. Some people certainly […]
Demystifying today’s leadership challenges. By Duncan Miles
There are many books that have been written about leadership and advice aplenty as to how to enhance your leadership abilities. Duncan Miles attempts to demystify the leadership process and provides practical advice to those new to the role and those who are already well established leaders. Never ending change; the unceasing pressures to increase […]
CIPD slam efforts to simplify diversity legislation
Professional body the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) has attacked the Government’s proposals for a Single Equality Bill, saying it fails to go far enough in achieving either the simplification or consistency necessary for real progress. Dianah Worman, OBE, CIPD diversity adviser, said: “This green paper runs the risk of delivering a compliance […]
HR resignations from female workers soar as pay parity fails to bite
Female resignation rates in the HR sector are rapidly increasing, despite the fact that women are being promoted more readily than men. These are the findings of the Chartered Management Institute and Remuneration Economics, which show that resignation rates amongst women in HR stand at 5.5 per cent, up from 4.7 per cent last year. […]
Ask the expert: Withholding witness statements from the aggrieved
This week, Esther Smith, partner at Thomas Eggar, and Anna Youngs, solicitor at Mills & Reeve, advise on the implications of withholding a witness statement due to the fact it could put a witness at risk of harassment. The question:We have just concluded a very sensitive and long investigation into an employee’s grievance against their […]
Smoke without fire? By Sarah Fletcher
Two months after smokers were literally shown the door, has the smoking ban had any real impact upon the workplace? Aside from ruining post-work drinks by exposing the terrible smell of many pubs underneath that ashtray stench, has the ban affected motivation and retention, or can there actually be smoke without fire? Sarah Fletcher asks […]
Serious games tackle serious issues
A Welsh university has launched an innovative new range of online learning materials, including free interactive games, that help people explore topics such as disability, age diversity, racial equality and homelessness.The ‘Addressing Barriers: Enhancing Services’ series of Equality and Diversity toolkits, which incorporate expert video tutorials alongside interactive ‘Bytesize Basics’ serious games, have been developed […]
Practice, practice, practice – the key to training effectiveness
Setting time aside for post-course trainees to practice their new skills has a huge impact on learning, according to a survey by an IT training firm.Happy Computers said that practice time, together with training tailored to the individual, saved learners considerable amounts of time once back at work.Overall, students on a one-day course at the […]
Half of adults recognise value of training
Over half (57 per cent) of adults consider training a worthwhile investment of time and money, while a quarter are currently involved in training, a government survey shows.There are significant regional variations across England in perceptions of the value of training, with those in the West Midlands most in favour, at 65 per cent, compared […]
Employee sacked for posting video on YouTube
A supermarket manager, who was sacked for posting a video of his colleagues on YouTube, has subsequently won a claim for unfair dismissal and secured over £2,000 in compensation. Legal professionals are now urging employers to ensure they comply with the law when dealing with staff caught misbehaving on social networking and user-generated websites such […]
‘Green’ credentials not in line with employee expectations
Over half of the UK’s office-based workers believe their employer does not take ‘green’ issues seriously enough, while 40 per cent rank recycling at the top of the green credentials list when looking for a new employer.The research, by recruitment consultancy Badenoch & Clark, illustrate the fact that jobseekers are placing increasing importance on green […]
Pioneers pave the way for paperless HR
Sainsbury’s is to invest £12 million in a centralised HR services centre that can beam documents to in-store managers. John Stokdyk investigates the growing trend for HR to embrace electronic document management. The recent announcement that Sainsbury’s is going to open a shared HR services centre in Manchester raised the profile of networked, paperless environments. […]
Wildcat prison strike averted with court injunction
The Prison Officers’ Assocation (POA) was forced to call off its unlawful, wildcat strike by the Ministry of Justice which won a court injunction to end it.Reported by The Times, the planned strike, the first in the union’s history, was cut short as members returned to work following the ruling. The disruption centres around the […]
The next generation of employee assistance
Alan King, president and managing director of Employee Advisory Resource, talks about the next generation of employee assistance services and the benefits for employers. There’s no doubt about it – the employee assistance market is undergoing radical change. We are moving away from a prescriptive approach that focuses on standard definitions and products, towards more […]
HR jobs to go as BAA plans to axe 2,000 positions
BAA, the owner of Britain’s three biggest airports, is reported to be planning to cut up to 2,000 jobs. A number of the 4,000 workers in HR, IT, planning and marketing are likely contenders for the axe, and the announcement is sparking fears over airport chaos.Reported in The Times, Ferrovial, the Spanish Company that bought […]
Facebook ‘blanket ban’ is over-reaction, says TUC
The Trades Union Congress (TUC) has said that employees should be trusted to spend a few minutes of their lunchbreak ‘poking’ their friends or making plans for outside work using the social networking site, Facebook.Last week, HR Zone reported that 50 per cent of employees are blocked from accessing Facebook, including Lloyds TSB, Credit Suisse […]
Coaching high achievers
A ‘one size fits all’ approach to coaching is not always appropriate and a number of factors need to be taken into account when coaching high achievers, advises Graham Jones, research and diagnostics director at Lane4 Management Group Ltd. Of fundamental importance when coaching high achievers is the need to establish a coaching relationship built […]