Staff resolve to be better employees
Workers are turning over a new leaf this New Year and resolving to be better employees. Instead of the usual promises to stop smoking, drink less and take more exercise, employees are resolving to kick bad work habits, according to a new report. A survey of 1,500 staff by recruitment firm Office Angels found common […]
Research day for Coaches and Mentors
Coaches and mentors from all over the UK are to meet in February to share latest research in their field. The event, to be held at Sheffield Hallam University on February 9, is the fifth in a series of successful Mentoring and Coaching Research days, held jointly by the university’s Mentoring and Coaching Research Unit […]
Review: ‘The Medici Effect’
Title: The Medici EffectAuthor: Frans JohanssonPublisher: Harvard Business School PressISBN: 1-59139-186-5 Price: $24.95Reviewer: John PopeThis is an interesting book. Its theme is that radical new ideas and innovations in business can be found at the ‘intersection’ of ideas, concepts and cultures. It is a passionate plea to remind us, yet again, of the value of […]
Taxman may be best way to beat absenteeism
The taxman may be the best way to beat persistent absenteeism, according to national law firm Rowe Cohen which believes “people would rather be at work than have the taxman snooping around their affairs”, the threat of which might “slash soaring ‘sickie’ rates across the UK.”According to Rowe Cohen, industry estimates that up to 15% […]
Work costs Brits £170k
Shock findings show that British workers are spending 15% of their average annual salary on work-related expenses including travel, lunch and clothes; a cost that equates to almost £170k over each worker’s lifetime.The research, commissioned by retail sandwich chain Benjys, shows that of the 500 workers quizzed, the majority are spending the equivalent of the […]
Opinion: Dealing with inappropriate language in the workplace
By Philip Evans, Company Secretary at NCA LtdIn response to member Douglas King’s recent query on the place of language in the workplace, HRZone contributor Philip Evans has compiled an opinion piece which examines the issues in further detail. Last year brought a situation I thought I might never see, someone lost their job due […]
TUC to give pension plans ‘public’ battering
The Trades Union Congress (TUC) have earmarked 18 February as a day of campaigning against Government plans to reform public sector workers’ pensions.In 2002 the Government published its Pensions Green Paper which sought to raise retirement ages in the public sector from 60 to 65, and to increase the age at which people could take […]
Office life hampers HR productivity
More than half (58%) of all HR professionals suffer between five and 20 interruptions per day when working in the office.Almost a fifth (17%) complain of more than 20 daily interruptions; the figures are dramatically reduced to only 17% of HR professionals who endure just five to ten daily interruptions when working from home.The research […]
Revenue is among ‘top ten’ employers for gay people
‘Stonewall’ has placed the Inland Revenue among the top ten employers for lesbian, gay and bisexual staff.The lobbying group said its Corporate Equality Index demonstrated that many major employers are “firmly committed to supporting and developing gay staff”.The British Council was the country’s top employer for gay people, Stonewall said. The Revenue was placed joint […]
Member wire #81 – ‘Snake bites back at boss’ wins
================================================================ HR Zone Members Newswire Issue 81 11 January 2005 http://www.hrzone.co.uk ================================================================ SITE HIGHLIGHTS **** SITE HIGHLIGHTS **** SITE HIGHLIGHTS **** 1. Feature: Employees’ ‘right to be consulted’ 2. Editor’s Comment: Forty winks in 2005? 3. ‘Snake bites back at boss’ wins HRZone Competition 4. Lunch hour extinction ‘supersizes workers’ 5. Any Answers: benchmarking, race […]
HR Tip: Developing women managers
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: We have a large female workforce but most of our supervisors and managers are male. We would like to redress this balance and feel that we have some women with management potential. […]
Doctors angered over pension slash plans
Temperatures are rising in the NHS as plans reveal intentions to slash final salary schemes for more than a million staff; replacing them with the less popular average career salary pensions.Government ministers argue that the new pension calculations will favour lower-paid staff and those who work part-time or take career breaks, whose salary might not […]
Feature: Homeworking – is it for you?
By Sandra Beale of SJ Beale HR ConsultOver the last few years there has been a huge growth in the numbers of homeworkers; the ability to work remotely has been achieved by widespread access to the internet and email together with faster internet connectivity (broadband), mobile phones and wireless technology all enabling workers to ditch […]
Home Office face race discrimination claims
The Home Office are answering to two counts of alleged race discrimination at Croydon Employment Tribunal.Mr Ahmed and Mr Khan, work for the Immigration and Nationality Directorate based in London Bridge. The workers, who are supported by their union, the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) claim that the discrimination took a number of forms.The […]
CIPD back rehabilitation approach to cut absence
Professional body, the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) have launched a new guide supporting the case management approach to rehabilitation which aids workers on the road to recovery from mental health complaints and stress.The guide Recovery, rehabilitation and retention offers guidance to help bosses support workers suffering from such conditions in an attempt […]
PAYE e-filing deadline shakes up payroll industry
The shift in May to compulsory online filing of employer’s year-end PAYE reports for companies with 250+ employees (May 2006 for those with 50-250 employees) is shaking up the payroll industry.While the transition to internet filing is stimulating a lot of software sales and encouraging companies to consider outsourcing options, payroll managers, software developers and […]
Focus On: HR Specialists – Satya Kartara, Director of Diversity at Royal Mail
By Annie Hayes, HRZone EditorWhen Royal Mail started to lose a million pounds a day and bullying issues escalated beyond control, Chairman Allan Leighton recognised that a change programme was the only way to turn failing fortunes around; Satya Kartara as Director of Diversity for the organisation put diversity management at the heart of the […]
TUC call for pay and pensions transparency
Businesses should disclose employee pay and pensions to investors, the Trades Union Congress (TUC) has said.TUC, General Secretary Brendan Barber said that past research had revealed two-tier pensions within companies with many directors on better terms than their staff.“This should be made clear to investors and we hope shareholder pressure can have the same impact […]
Lunch hour extinction ‘supersizes’ workers
Failure to allocate time to ‘lunch’ is having a toll on workers waistlines as more and more reach for sugary snacks to plug the hunger gap.Recruitment firm Pertemps quizzed 500 workers and found that nearly one in five took no lunch break whatsoever while 13% admitted to eating a ‘quick’ sandwich at their desk.Despite most […]
Plugging the skills gap challenges mid-size firms
Skills shortages are set to be one of the biggest barriers to growth for medium-sized companies in 2005, new research has revealed. A survey by KPMG and the London Chamber of Commerce of 1,000 middle market businesses in London found that 67% of companies felt that the high costs associated with employing staff and skills […]
