Spotlight: The Turner report
Wyn Derbyshire, Head of Pensions at SJ Berwin LLP looks at the pensions’ options as recommended by Adair Turner in his much-awaited report on how to fill the £57 billion a year retirement black hole. In a blaze of publicity, the second report of the Pensions Commission, established to make recommendations into the future of […]
What can HR learn from: Employment Tribunals?
The Employment Tribunal is where most HR professionals do not want to end up. Nevertheless, occasional visits are a helpful reminder of the backdrop to which much HR work is done and of what it can be like when things go wrong. Here are a few tips for HR professionals gleaned from my experience both […]
Clawing back training costs: The truth
The mindset that requires staff to claw back training costs is probably the same one that is responsible for high staff turnover and retention difficulties. An estimated 85% of people leave their employment because of what has been done to them by management.When you invest in training for the workforce you are sending a message […]
HR Tip: Lateness caused by industrial action
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: To what extent should I take into account industrial action on the railways when dealing with lateness? A: In case of industrial action affecting the means of transport, employees should take all […]
Top HR tips to beat the workplace January blues
It’s official – January 24 has been voted the most depressing day of the year. According to research from Cardiff University, miserable weather, debt, fading Christmas memories, failed resolutions and a lack of motivation all contribute to the January blues. Employees have returned to work after the festive break and HR needs to prepare and […]
Civil partnerships and your employee benefits package
The introduction of the Civil Partnership Act (CPA) has brought a huge amount of media interest. This is certainly an important change in legislation for gay and lesbian employees, but what are the implications for the employee benefits package? BackgroundThe CPA came into force on 5 December 2005 and allows same sex couples to register […]
HR Zone Members Newswire #134 Commute more, work less?
================================================================HR Zone Members Newswire Issue 13424 January 2005www.hrzone.co.uk================================================================ Editor's note=============Nik Kellingley advocates a just say no policy when it comes tologging travel time against hours of work. But what do youthink? Should managers make provisions for that long trekhome?http://www.hrzone.co.uk/item/149860 Elsewhere in this latest members' newswire we've got legalguidance from Browne Jacobson and Clarkslegal LLP on […]
HR Zone talks to: Don Rhodes about HR life down under
Red-tape and its burden is a problem shared with our friends in New Zealand; Don Rhodes reveals the ups and downs of life in HR in his country. HR Zone Q1: What is your current job title and how long have you been working within the HR field?Don Rhodes: Currently I am a Consultant Advocate, […]
Life Coach at Large: HR gets loaded and happy
On the couch this week is Andrew a seasoned HR professional who has a fear of all things sales-associated; Emma Ranson Bellamy reveals her tips for addressing his concerns. Andrew has a dirty secret he has kept very close to his chest for 20 years. He can’t sell and he hates sales people selling to […]
The HR interview: Tips from Frazer Jones
Being in the interview seat rather than across the table can be a strange experience for some HR professionals so if you’re looking to make a New Year’s leap then don’t miss these great interview tips honed specifically for those in HR. Be PreparedEven though you might appear to be the best candidate on paper, […]
News in Brief: The Week in HR – Jobless count climbs
Catch up on the week in HR including more on: official statistics reveal employment levels are slipping, rose-tinted glasses skew HR’s own perception, a lack of testing undermines the PAYE filing standard and why board members are hampering coaching efforts. W/C 16/1/06Jobless count climbsThe unemployment rate has increased by 111,000 over the quarter, and by […]
The Couch?! Takes time out
As keen multi-taskers, the Couch?! team were interested to learn that more than a quarter of us are so short of time that we now eat breakfast at our desks.A survey of more than 2,000 workers, conducted by pollsters 72 Point on behalf of the Travelodge hotel chain, found that two-thirds of weekday breakfasts consumed […]
HR Practitioner’s Diary: The revival of Jurassic Park
HR Consultant Sue Kingston files her latest report from the HR front-line and reveals the tales of a sexual harasser brought to book together with a bogus sickness claim that has raised a few eyebrows; read on to see all this and a sneak preview of her latest stats – boyfriends, weight and chocolates consumed! […]
What’s the answer: Contacting absent employees
Rebecca Hewett gets legal guidance this week from Helen Badger, employment law expert at Browne Jacobson and Nicholas Snowden, senior solicitor at Clarkslegal LLP on the rules governing contact rights for the long-term sick. The question: We are currently dealing with an employee who is on long-term sick absence who does not have a permanent […]
Colborn’s Corner: Who remembers final salary pension schemes?
Closing final salary pension schemes is the emerging trend for many businesses; in some cases new entrants are the unlucky ones to dip out, in others the scheme as a whole is being wound down so what does HR have to say about all this and should they care? Of those companies reported about in […]
Opinion: Assessment centres the Sugar way
Last year, HR Zone’s, Editor’s Comment considered the merits of the TV reality show The Apprentice and picking up from hiring and firing the Sugar way is Kathy de Beer of the Centre for Team Excellence who has explored its application to graduate recruitment assessment centres. The key focus of a recent master class talk […]
Internet surfing: Kicking the habit
Addictive behaviour need not only belong to the realms of drugs, alcohol and smoking indeed internet surfing is becoming a very real problem for employers who should look out for the signs of this productivity brain-drain. The ICAS National Support Centre (NSC) in the UK is currently recording a sharp increase in the number of […]
Stone speaks: Balancing the scales
Glenda Stone CEO of Aurora, the international organisation working for the economic advancement of women, reports back on revelations by the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) that women must wait 200 years to gain equal power. Almost 80 years after women over 21 got the vote and 30 years after the introduction of the Sex Discrimination […]
Preparing for an avian flu pandemic
What should HR be doing to prepare for a potential avian flu pandemic? Dr Neil Nerwich, Group Medical Director – Assistance, EMEA and Americas, International SOS explains. But the failure of an outbreak to materialise immediately should not prompt complacency. For the corporate multi-national, it is a major issue. This very much relates to the […]
HR Tip: A live issue
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: An employee has started bringing his stick insects to work. Some employees have complained but the man says that his situation is no different from people who have potted plants on their […]
