Creating and communicating a total reward culture
The statistics say it all – 65% of employees admit to not fully understanding the value of their employee benefits. This is commercial madness when you consider organisations across the UK spend millions in developing and offering employee benefits. However there is a simple solution to this problem. Here Andy Philpott outlines the reasons for […]
It’s the way I tell ’em: keep up the benefit conversation
Pay and benefits… Frank Carson… bear with me, I can explain. (For those of you who are now asking yourself or a colleague "who on earth is Frank Carson?" you’ll have to doodle it on your i-berry). It is pretty much universally accepted by employers of today that you need to offer your employees a […]
Changes to paternity leave – will they work?
The new government will face significant challenges in implementing its flexible parental leave proposals given employers’ lukewarm response to existing paternity leave measures today, a leading HR body has warned. The coalition government is keen for fathers to be able to take six months of paternity leave while their partners return to work. But the […]
The real cost of employee benefits
The outlook is still bleak for employees with regards to their pay. With employers continuing to err on the side of prudence rather than open their purse strings, wages are unlikely to rise in the foreseeable future. How can benefit packages give ROI and prove valuable? Employee benefits packages have always played an important role […]
We need a fresh approach – better benefits on a budget
In this feature with a difference, eavesdrop on these team conversations and learn about benefits on a budget. Meet the team (an entirely fictional team, but each with a foot firmly in reality…well it’s my reality so I’m setting the rules here). John: 62 – Finance DirectorJohn is a Newcastle fan because everything is black […]
Is there reward after recession?
Catherine Chubb considers the impact of changes to rewards as we emerge from recession. During the recession, surveys showed that around half of UK workers experienced a cut in pay, working hours or a loss of benefits. The most common cost-cutting approach taken by employers during the downturn was a salary freeze. But what is […]
Total reward: the holistic approach
Recent research highlighted that 80% of public sector workers have never heard of total reward packages, despite recognition that a holistic approach to health and wellbeing significantly improves staff retention and increases productivity. Public Sector organisations are increasingly expanding their rewards package to their employees, over and above their basic salaries. Do those benefiting from […]
Are your employees aware of your sickness policy?
A survey of 500 businesses has revealed up to 1/4 do not routinely tell employees about any benefits of the sickness policy, leaving many employees unaware of any benefits to them if they fall ill. When asked to elaborate, eight per cent of businesses questioned had a policy in place but preferred to maintain secrecy […]
Unpaid interns ‘may be illegal’
Employers may be breaking the law by not paying as many as one in three interns the national minimum wage even though they qualify for it, according to the TUC. The union umbrella organisation warned that any intern who is not simply observing and shadowing paid employees but is instead undertaking work-related tasks with set […]
Want engaged employees? Engage with the wellbeing of your employees
In times of financial uncertainty it can be difficult to motivate a workforce, and even harder to motivate and engage with individual members of staff. For an employee, feeling that their boss cares about them is one important aspect of engagement. However, ‘showing you care’ in a genuine and effective way can prove difficult. Showing […]
Bonuses – a balancing act
How do you maintain your well-earned reputation as a competitive employer and, at the same time, comply with the new tougher public and regulatory expectations? It is no easy task striking a balance between legal requirements and commercial pressures when putting together an effective remuneration package. The answer is that remuneration should be aligned with […]
Snow pay: should you dock wages of snowed-in workers?
Although employers may have a legal right to withhold workers’ pay if they do not come into work because of the snow, such action could not only be challenged but could also hit morale. The legal lowdown stands as follows: staff members are legally obliged to get themselves to work and companies are entitled […]
Pre-budget report: have salary sacrifice canteens had their chips?
Salary sacrifice schemes have been popular in recent years, proving a godsend for working families by providing creches or childcare vouchers and hungry workers with workforce canteens provided by the schemes. However the pre budget report’s attack on salary sacrifice workplace canteens may hint at a sea change for tax status over salary sacrifice. Aside […]
Are they being served?
With HR’s attention well and truly focused on managing redundancies and pay cuts, has it taken its eye of the ball when it comes to employee engagement? HR certainly has its hands full at the moment. If it’s not calming the waters post redundancy it’s pacifying those who may have pay, benefits or training cuts. […]
Top tips on managing your company expenses
As political leaders scramble to introduce radical new measures for better governance over the MP expenses system, organisations also need to review their business expense processes, says Tim Hardcastle. Despite the fact we’re at the tail-end of a recession, businesses are still mismanaging their operational expenses, with expense spend up to 40% higher than it […]
Colborn’s Corner: Fraudulent expenses – it couldn’t happen here, could it?
The MPs expenses scandal has dominated our front pages for quite some time now. But what does it say to those of us in HR, apart from keeping a tight reign on the expenses policy? Quentin Colborn suggests there are many lessons to be learnt and we all have questions we have to ask ourselves. For the first […]
Ten top tips on rewarding in a recession
Mark Eaton outlines some of the simple steps you can take to ensure you are ready to keep rewarding in a recession. It’s realistic that employers need to be prudent and take some tough decisions in the current recession and ongoing economic uncertainty. Yet, there’s much employers can do to galvanise their people and use […]
HR Tip: Recovering relocation expenses
These questions are being answered by Learn HR, a market leader in the provision of HR and payroll training and nationally-recognised professional qualifications. Question: "Recently we recruited a man and paid a generous proportion of his relocation expenses, only to have him leave after six months to work for a nearby company. We suspect he used […]
HR tip: Employment end date – garden leave question
These questions are being answered by Learn HR, a market leader in the provision of HR and payroll training and nationally-recognised professional qualifications. Question: "When does employment actually end when we give people pay in lieu of notice or put them on garden leave?" HR tip: Garden leave means that you continue to employ and pay […]
School’s out for summer: Flexibility for parents
Alice Cooper might not have been so chuffed about school being out for summer if he’d had to juggle his busy rock touring schedule with a couple of bored kids. Matt Henkes looks at how two top firms are providing their staff with the necessary flexibility. The excitement that once accompanied the […]