Maximum performance: Managing talent seminar
“Many major organisations are increasingly realising the importance of the acquisition, management and retention of talent. Some foresee severe shortages in the next ten years; others see that they are vulnerable to the loss of high-performing teams or ‘star’ executives,” says management consultant John Pope; who reviews a seminar on talent management, run by Maximum […]
Straight talking wins in leader communication
When it’s time for your CEO or MD to communicate to staff do you relax, knowing everything will be fine, or do you wince, knowing it will take months to repair the damage?Workplace communications consultancy CHA has studied the way business leaders communicate and employees’ preferences and published the results in a report ‘Straight Talking’.Surprisingly, […]
Job future worries for UK workers
UK workers are the most pessimistic in the world about the future of their jobs with a third fearing redundancy in the coming year.The figures are revealed in the latest edition of HR consultancy Right Management’s global career confidence index.The bi-annual survey covers 18 countries and reveals that confidence in the UK has plunged by […]
Work-related stress and dismissal
Is it automatically unfair to dismiss an employee who is off long-term sick due to work-related stress?That was the question that came before the employment appeal tribunal this week in the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) v McAdie.Mrs McAdie, who had worked for RBS for 20 years, had developed a stress-related condition owing to the […]
Review of working time regulations announced
The Department for Transport (DfT) has announced terms of reference for a review of the working time regulations which implement the European Road Transport Working Time Directive.This particular directive and its associated regulations applies to drivers, crew and other travelling staff.It provides for a 48-hour average working week, a 60-hour maximum for any single week […]
Smoking ban start date July 1
The Department of Health has announced that the ban on smoking in enclosed public places and workplaces in England will start on 1 July 2007.As previously reported by HRZone, the ban includes smoking in company cars when they are used by more than one employee.With seven months to go, the TUC and the government are […]
Ask the expert: Grievance during redundancy
Is the company obliged to pay time in lieu if an employee resigns during a redundancy process and doesn’t complete the notice period at work? Martin Brewer, partner and employment law specialist at Mills and Reeve, and Esther Smith, partner at Thomas Eggar, explain. The question:An employee decides to end the trial period of alternative […]
Pensions Bill finally published
After weeks of waiting – not to mention a fair bit of criticism – the government has finally published its Pensions Bill.The debate has been such that there are no real surprises: the bill makes provision for a gradual increase in the state retirement age – from 65 to 66 between 2024 and 2026; to […]
Tribunal system gets a shake-up
The Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Bill has begun its legislative process in the House of Lords – and one of the key areas it aims to tackle is non-payment of employee tribunal awards.Sections of the bill state that any award made by a tribunal must be treated as if it were made by the high […]
Incentive pay – Getting it right. By Dan Martin
Incentive pay schemes can be a effective way of keeping staff motivated. But such initiatives can go wrong if the business has an inappropriate culture or the scheme is not managed effectively. HR Zone business editor Dan Martin examines the pitfalls to watch out for when running an incentive pay scheme. For managers, productivity is […]
Colborn’s Corner: Outsourcing: Need we worry?
The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) has insisted the threat to HR jobs from outsourcing is minimal, despite fresh warnings of a “slow and painful death” for the sector. Will outsourcing kill HR? Strange to think that outsourcing, in terms of HR input, now seems to have gone the full circle. There was […]
Statutory increases to tribunal compensation announced
The statutory increase in compensation awards that can be made by tribunals has gone before parliament. The increases will come into force on 1 February.The compensation covers unfair dismissal cases – there are no upper limits for discrimination claims – the basic award increases from £4,000 to £4,200 while the compensatory award rises from £58,400 […]
Employers ‘sceptical’ about new parental rights
Many employers think the new parental rights under the Work and Families Act, due to come into force next April, will cause them ‘difficulties’.That’s the finding of a joint study by KPMG and the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.The legislation extends maternity and adoption pay from six to nine months and extends the right […]
Christmas benefits on the slide as manufacturing firms feel the squeeze
Tougher economic conditions for manufacturing firms mean that Christmas benefits are on the slide, according to new research.The figures come from the preliminary findings of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development’s (CIPD) annual reward management survey, to be released in February.There’s been a sharp drop in the number of manufacturing firms planning to provide […]
HR Tip: Behaviour outside work
These questions are being answered by Learn HR, a market leader in the provision of HR and payroll training and nationally-recognised professional qualifications. Q: "One of our employees started a fight in a local pub and broke a lot of furniture. Can we discipline him?" A: Probably not. The acid test really is whether the behaviour is likely […]
Any Answers: Upward appraisals
Is it wise to agree to assess your boss’s performance or is an employee that appraises their line manager risking victimisation if the information is leaked? Three members of HR Zone give their cautionary advice to HR manager Rebecca Young, who sought support from the Any Answers forum. Advice from members of HR Zone: “It […]
Does sick pay encourage sickies? By Sarah Fletcher
Many employees believe sick pay is a right not a privilege, but could refusing to pay up improve business by reducing the amount of absence claims that aren’t for genuine illnesses? Sarah Fletcher asked HR Zone members whether sick pay does more harm than good. If you’re on the brink of death, too ill even […]
Business ethics: Why bother?
Philippa Foster Back, director of the Institute of Business Ethics, called on businesses to embrace ethical behaviour in a speech given at the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) annual conference. HR Zone business editor Dan Martin reports. Back started her address by referring to the key ethical words which companies using in their business […]
Pensions bill due to be published
The pensions bill is set to be published next week – and the work and pensions secretary John Hutton has been defending what the government sees as the most significant provision, the raising of the state retirement age.But the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) has become the latest organisation to point out that the proposed personal […]
Free online absence management tool available
Tackling absence remains one of the most difficult problems for UK organisations to overcome – now the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), Acas and the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) have joined forces to develop a free, online absence management tool for line managers.CIPD research has consistently highlighted the importance of line managers […]
