Getting to grips with new employment laws
2003 has so far been a busy year for employers having to get to grips with new employment laws – and the pace looks set to continue. The Government has recently published a number of consultation documents on forthcoming regulations and proposals. HR Zone provides a summary of what’s in store and where you can […]
Why reorganisations often fail…
<img src="/files/siftmedia-photolib/photo_exec_meeting.jpg" alt="Executive meeting" vspace="5" hspace="5" height="94"Reorganisation often sees simultaneous “hiring and firing” yet organisations are failing to audit existing skills before making redundancies, according to new research.The CIPD survey of 800 executives found that, while over 85% of reorganisations involve a reduction in the workforce and two-thirds of reorganisations lead to the recruitment of […]
Rising healthcare costs present dilemma for firms
More than 4 in 10 companies will cut eligibility for healthcare benefits if costs continue to rise, a new survey claims.However, 8 in 10 companies believe they would have difficulty attracting and retaining good employees if they did not offer private healthcare, the survey by Mercer Human Resource Consulting found. Although 8 out of 10 […]
Lack of evaluation impacting on training budgets
<img src="/files/siftmedia-photolib/photo_trainer2.jpg" alt="Teaching" height="100" Despite significant annual expenditure on public sector training, a lack of formal evaluation means there is little way of proving a return on investment (ROI). Consequently, gaining senior management buy-in for bigger training budgets is a difficult task, according to new research.Responses from 101 central and local government and NHS bodies […]
Stop whingeing about red tape, says TUC
British business is stuck in a "low-road" rut, under-investing and competing only by driving down costs and prices, says the Trades Union Congress (TUC). In its response to Professor Michael Porter’s UK Competitiveness report, 'Shifting to the high road', commissioned by the DTI, the TUC agrees that UK business is building on sand by fighting […]
Community feature: Introducing…
In this popular feature, we take a closer look at the working lives of some of HR Zone’s 18,000 membership. This week, Crispin Garden-Webster, HR Specialist at the Asian Development Bank, shares some of his experiences of working in HR. What’s your current job role? I am an HR Specialist with the Asian Development Bank […]
UK holiday entitlement amongst lowest in Europe
UK entitlements to statutory annual leave and public holidays are amongst the lowest in Europe, according to a new study. The research, by Mercer Human Resource Consulting, reveals that wide discrepancies continue across the EU in paid holiday entitlements. When added together, statutory annual leave and public holidays range from just 28 days in the […]
Flexible training “essential” to future of NHS
The NHS must allow more junior doctors to train part-time if it is to meet the demands of the NHS Plan and the European Working Time Directive, claims a BMA-led working group.As the number of female trainees is expected to increase, and research has shown that half the UK’s 39,000 junior doctors would like to […]
Only a seasonal job?
Seasonally led businesses that employ extra staff during peak trading periods could be among those caught out by regulations on fixed term contracts. Nichola Evans, partner and employment law specialist at Rowe Cohen Solicitors, in London, spells out the rules that apply. Same deal as permanent staff ‘Fixed term’ employees (that term includes temporary or […]
HR should “take a lead” on corporate social responsibility
HR managers should use their skills as change management specialists to take a lead on CSR, argues a new CIPD report. The report, Corporate Social Responsibility and HR’s Role, reveals that HR has lead responsibility for CSR in a fifth of organisations – up from 7% in 1995.It claims that HR has a crucial role […]
Softworld HR & Payroll preview – new product launches
Softworld HR & Payroll returns to the NEC, Birmingham on 24–25 September 2003.As sponsors of the event, HR Zone will be publishing a range of updates and news from the event before, during and after it takes place. Featuring an exhibition of 30 leading vendors, the showfloor will play host to a number of new […]
Be flexible in sweltering workplaces, TUC urges employers
As UK workers find themselves at the peak of a heatwave, the TUC is urging employers to be flexible in these hot temperatures. It is recommending that employers relax dress codes, allow workers to take more breaks and encourage more shift rotation, in addition to taking obvious steps to reduce the temperature, with fans or […]
Warning – Data Protection scam
This is a warning to all companies of a scam relating to the Data Protection Act. We were nearly caught out by it.If you receive a letter from the Data Processing Protection Corporation claiming that their records indicate that your business is not registered under the Data Protection Act and wanting a fee of £95, […]
Basic pay increasingly depends on company performance
Almost half of companies say company performance is the most important factor when setting basic pay increases – up from 42% last year – according to consultants Watson Wyatt.Individual performance is now considered less important, as only a fifth of the 100 leading UK companies surveyed ranked it as the most important factor, compared with […]
Firms urged to reduce stress
An NHS hospital may face court action after being accused of failing to protect doctors and nurses from stress at work.West Dorset Hospitals NHS Trust is required to assess and reduce stress levels among its staff, after being issued with an “enforcement notice” by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). If it fails to do […]
£1 million compensation for bullied broker
A City worker has won £1 million in compensation from his former employer, the broking firm Cantor Fitzgerald.A High Court judge awarded the compensation to Steven Horkulak, who quit his job in June 2000 because he had been subjected to “foul and abusive” bullying by his boss, Lee Amaitis. Mr Amaitis allegedly told Mr Horkulak […]
Fat cat pay rises 23% and average earnings 3.2%
Boardroom wages have risen seven times faster than average earnings, according to a recent survey by the Guardian.Executive directors at the UK’s top 100 companies received an average pay increase of 23%, yet average earnings rose by just 3.2%, the research showed. The average pay for FTSE-100 chief executives is now £1,677,685. A total of […]
Companies lack clear performance management strategies
Fewer than half of employers have a clear strategy for performance management, according to new research.Although nine out of 10 employers believe that performance management is a major organisational issue, responses from 49 HR departments across the private and public sectors reveal that only a quarter involve HR in the goal-setting process – with the […]
Senior posts are hard to fill
Recruiting the right employees at senior level is proving difficult for employers, according to the latest figures from the Recruitment Confidence Index (RCI).Out of those firms expecting to recruit to the board and other senior posts over the next six months, around three in five anticipate difficulties, according to this quarter’s research which draws on […]
Job-seekers hunt for homeworking opportunities
<img src="/files/siftmedia-photolib/mobilcom.jpg" border=0 alt="Mobile communications photo – courtesy Ericsson" UK job-seekers are more likely to choose a job offering a homeworking option than their European neighbours, say the latest findings.The option to homework was cited as an important consideration for future work by over half of the UK respondents in the Epson survey of 750 […]
