The big ‘pensions’ interview … continued
HR Zone Q9: Can HR professionals and recruiters turn the pensions issue to their advantage?Boulding: What is important is the perceived value that an employee attaches to a pension scheme. A moderate pension scheme that is well presented will have a greater perceived value than an expensive scheme that is poorly perceived. So HR professionals […]
The big ‘pensions’ interview
Adrian Boulding is Legal and General’s Pensions Strategy Director; Annie Hayes spoke to him about A-Day, the survival or otherwise of final salary schemes, the link between pensions and productivity and that big black hole. HR Zone Q1: What impact has the recommendations of the Turner report had on employers and employees? Boulding: Very little […]
The great debate: Will IT skills make people skills extinct?
Is sacking by text message acceptable? Is face-to-face no longer reguired? Adam Ripley, managing director of IS Integration debates the points. The last two decades have seen IT become an integral part of the workplace. The internet explosion has given us access to more information than previous generations had access to in entire lifetimes. The […]
What happened next? Stubbing out smoking… continued. By Sarah Fletcher
Read on to learn more about how Lucy Hibbert addressed her problem of staff smoking. How are you going to evaluate its success?I suppose the easiest way will be if anyone quits smoking! I think though after the presentation and workshops and once people have finished and attend the courses I will send out a […]
What happened next? Stubbing out smoking. By Sarah Fletcher
Repeated cigarette breaks, staff that stink like an ashtray, and a collective smokers’ cough that makes the ground shake…what can be done to encourage employees to kick the habit? We look at What Happened Next when a member asked the Any Answers forum for tips on lifting the cloud of smoke from her workplace. By […]
Changes to the Benefit In Kind taxation of vans … continued
Company car or company van?Van drivers who are allowed to use their vehicle for private use will in April 2007 face a sixfold increase in tax. If they have a choice over the type of vehicle, they need to reconsider the car option when they next change vehicle. Employers should also reconsider their vehicle policies […]
Changes to the Benefit In Kind taxation of vans
The first line of defence for companies wishing to avoid BIK taxation for van drivers as well as employers Class 1A NICs is a clear policy on prohibition of private use, says Rupert Russell, publisher of www.comcar.co.uk, a specialist company car tax website. What is a company van?HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) defines this as […]
Off the record: Transsexual employees … continued
The employer and employee should discuss the expected timescale of the medical and surgical procedures including any requirements for time off, bearing in mind appointments will often involve travel. Another point to discuss is the expected point or phase of change of name, personal details and social gender and how this will impact on, for […]
Off the record: Transsexual employees
Ranjit Dhindsa, employment partner at Reed Smith explains how to handle the logistics when an employee undertakes gender reassignment including directions on which toilet should be used during the process. When an employee announces they are about to have a sex change, what they need (and are legally entitled to) is support and understanding. Gender […]
HR Tip: Return from maternity leave
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: A woman on maternity leave wishes to return early but has given us only one week's notice to do so. Can she do this? A: If she informed you about her pregnancy […]
Gaynor’s Thoughts: Career breaks, sabbaticals and personal transformation … continued
In my research around work and life skills development, I came across the following views expressed about an extended period away from work: “The time off helped me gain perspective. It’s easy to put your head down, look up 20 years later, and wonder about all the things you didn’t do.”“My idea of listening used […]
Gaynor’s Thoughts: Career breaks, sabbaticals and personal transformation
“Companies find that if they don't give people the opportunity to take time off, they'll burn out and leave – or worse still, they'll burn out and stay!" When I was 22 years old I had a dead-end job in a factory, a wife and two babies, played football at the weekend and performed in […]
Life Coach at Large: Meeting … yourself … continued
What next?When you are happy with your eight values, you need to rank them in importance for you, at the moment. (Your values will rarely change as you move through your life, however they may take on a different importance.) The easiest way to do this will be to number them in the order they […]
Life Coach at Large: Meeting … yourself
The next stage of finding balance in our lives, both at work and at home is to find out what makes us do the things we do. Who do you think you are?Now be honest. If you were walking past a room and over heard colleagues discussing you, what would you do? Would you: 1. […]
How Did I Get Here? Anne Harley, HR Director, RSPB … continued
Keep reading for HR Director of RSPB Anne Harley’s insights into that “can’t win” feeling and the inspiration offfered by Charles Darwin. 6. Will HR survive outsourcing and changes to service delivery?In RSPB? Definitely, at least for the foreseeable future. We want to maintain the feeling of belonging that we hope is embedded in our […]
How Did I Get Here? Anne Harley, HR Director, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB)
HR Director of RSPB Anne Harley reveals her feelings on having to do “horrid things” to people, and why HR is perceived as a “no” culture. 1. How strategic is your current role and what does it involve? I am a member of the management board and participate in all strategic decisions. In particular I […]
News in Brief: Culture change biggest HR challenge … continued
Firms fail to measure recruiters’ skillsBusinesses are failing to accurately assess the skills base of their recruiters, according to new research. The study by Executive Online found that the skills of recruiters are vaguely and unscientifically assessed, despite the potentially significant impact upon the economy’s success. Almost half (46%) of organisations are using “rather arbitrary […]
News in Brief: Culture change biggest HR challenge
Catch up on the week in HR including the new HR challenge, age overrides skills in UK market, jobless count rises, government chastised over pensions and ex-offenders are source of new labour. W/C 13/3/06Culture change biggest HR challengeThe biggest HR challenge facing companies this year is implementing culture change. This is according to new research […]
Book review: Challenging Behaviour
Title: Challenging BehaviourProducer: Skill Boosters Price: £995 plus VATFormat: DVD and VHS with 26 page Trainer’s Notes bookletLength: Total running time: 25 minutesReviewer: Richard L. Berry How do you deal with a colleague who will not leave you alone? How do you feel when your group excludes you because you are different in some way? […]
HR Happy, HR Horror
In this new Friday column, we look at the week’s stories that have made us either happy or horrified. HR Zone invites you to jump aboard the HR emotions rollercoaster and see for yourself.Happy: For northerners – If it’s “grim up north”, our pay packets certainly aren’t feeling sad. Working in Yorkshire, Scotland or the […]
