Case Study: Investors in People Champion ClinPhone
Since putting in place the Investors in People (IiP) Standard Clinphone Group has won an American Business Award, two Queen’s Awards for International Trade and Innovation, and was ranked 47th in the 2003 “Sunday Times 100 Best Companies to Work For.” Read on to find out how and why it became an IiP Champion. The […]
Boom time for HR outsourcing
Most companies are satisfied with outsourcing and plan to outsource more in the next three years.These are the findings from HR consultant and outsourcing provider, Hewitt who say that HR outsourcing is on track to continue record growth in the United States.The most commonly outsourced HR functions include: outplacement services (91%) employee assistance programmes (89%) […]
Skills gap hits 12 year high
Skills shortages are at a 12-year peak, according to the Business in Britain survey from Lloyds TSB Corporate. Over half (52%) of the companies who responded said they had faced sustained difficulty in recruiting skilled staff in the last year – the highest level since the survey began. Across the sectors, finding skilled employees is […]
Editor’s Comment: Leadership the ‘Ramsay’ way
A critic once accused chef hot-head, Gordon Ramsay of being capable of ‘bayoneting the wounded’ and it would be fair to say that television series including ‘Hell’s Kitchen’ have done much to reinforce this image but beyond the bravado you find a man passionate about food and simply striving for the best; Editor’s Comment finds […]
Leadership development is top skills challenge
Developing potential leaders, enhancing managerial and supervisory skills, and dealing with competitive pressures are at the top of the list of challenges faced by HR and training executives, according to the 2005 Business Issues Survey conducted by The Ken Blanchard Companies.Respondents were asked to define their organisation’s top management, employee development and business challenges from […]
Jobless count soars
Unemployment has risen by 4.8%, a rise of 29,000 people over the quarter while the claimant count has also soared by 11,000 to a total of 828,700 over the same period.Despite the gloomy news, however, official figures from the Office of National Statistics show a hike in the employment rate of 148,000 over the period.The […]
Liberal Democrats flag single tax-raising measure
The Liberal Democrats have declared that their priorities for the next parliament include “an end to the unfair Council Tax – because the amount you pay should be based on the amount you can afford.”Charles Kennedy said at the launch of the party’s manifesto: “We say no hidden taxes. We have only one tax raising […]
‘Under-management’ epidemic, at large
A shortage of good leaders is impacting on productivity levels and staff morale.These are the findings from professional body, the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD).According to their research, two-thirds of organisations are suffering from a shortage of effective leaders, a problem the CIPD has dubbed ‘the under-management epidemic’.Dr Carolyn Martin, RainmakerThinking Inc commented: […]
Opinion: Going East to plug the skills gap
Keith Robinson, Commercial Director for Totaljobs.com looks at how Britain can plug the skills gap using talent from Eastern European and assesses the impact this will have on the UK’s labour market.Tesco recently announced its recruitment plans to hire staff from Eastern Europe for its distribution centres and to drive its delivery vans. This comes […]
Rover workers petition PM; MGSR up for grabs
At least one part of the MG Rover group is looking like a desirable stand alone prospect investment buyer: MG Sport and Racing Limited (MGSR.) On Tuesday 12 April, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) partners Steven Pearson and Rob Hunt were appointed joint administrators of the standalone racing business, which employs 48 people at a separate site at […]
Labour pledges no increase in income tax rates
The Labour Party has launched its general election manifesto and pledged not to increase the basic or top rate of income tax.The party has promised to continue to make “targeted tax cuts for families” but there is no mention of national insurance contributions in the 112-page manifesto.The manifesto said at page 16: “Labour believes tax […]
Childcare vouchers: Advice is misleading, tax body warns
Employers are providing misleading advice, and many employees attracted by the new tax exemption for childcare vouchers will find themselves worse off, according to a leading tax body.Childcare vouchers provided by employers are free of tax and national insurance up to £50 per week with effect from 6 April but many people taking the vouchers […]
BLA publishes Best Practice Guide to support learners
New learner support guidelines aimed at training managers and providers are available from the British Learning Association (BLA).The best practice guide 10 Steps to Develop Learner Support – a guideline through the key issues gives an overview of what is meant by learner support and the different options. The free guide also includes a step-by-step […]
Shift from training to learning applauded
A four year study claims a shift from training to learning has occurred in recent years.Research from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) shows that leading organisations are tackling skills shortages by creating a culture of learning.Martyn Sloman, CIPD Learning, Training and Development Adviser said, “Training is one method by which you can […]
Labour says ‘balls’ to pensions
Labour’s candidate in Normanton and Chancellor Gordon Brown’s top aide, Ed Balls, has publicly ruled out compulsory pension saving for the years to come should Labour win a further term.Speaking at a recent press conference, Balls, said that Labour would wait for expert advice on pensions policy and warned that ‘future elections will occur’ before […]
The UK has the longest work hours
The Work Foundation, a left-leaning think tank has proclaimed the UK as the official ‘work horse’ of the European Union.In the UK around 896,000 men and 492,000 women regularly work more than 60 hours per week. Just behind Ireland, the UK has the second highest proportion of men putting in more than 60 hours a […]
Work worries ‘cloud’ holiday rest
A shocking 85% of workers admit to worrying about work even when they’re on annual leave.These are the findings from Peninsula employment law firm.And according to their survey, not only are most workers worrying about work when holidaying but 69% are also concerned that their jobs won’t be there when they get back.All this results […]
Legal focus: Case law round-up
Alison Wallace, head of employment practice at Steptoe & Johnson presents a quarterly round-up of employment law case rulings including details of the first ever successful claim by a gay manager for constructive dismissal under the new Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Act. 1. Continuity of employment London Probation Board v. Kirkpatrick EATMr Kirkpatrick was dismissed. […]
MG Rover hangs onto its ‘million to one’ chance
Workers at ailing car manufacturer, MG Rover were sent home yesterday on full pay as the chances of securing a deal to save the business were said to be as little as a ‘million to one’ by the unions.A last minute emergency government loan of £6.5 million has been drafted in to buy some time.PWC […]
Conservative manifesto omits details of tax cuts
The Conservative Party has published its general election manifesto but has not yet provided further details of the £4bn of tax cuts it has vowed to make in its first Budget.The party will provide details within the next week of cuts other than the council tax rebates already promised, according to reports. It declared that […]
