23 minutes on a conference call – that’s your limit
Concentration starts to wane after workers have spent an average of 23 minutes on a telephone conference call, with many resorting to doodling and checking or writing emails while others simply fall asleep. A survey, undertaken among 4,800 individuals in the UK, India, Spain, Germany and Singapore by telecoms provider Cable & Wireless, revealed that […]
Reed Learning partners with ASTD to deliver training certification
Reed Learning has launched its UK partnership with the American Society of Training and Development (ASTD). Although the official announcement will not come until next month, a breakfast briefing held in London on 17 February confirmed the move, which has been interpreted by some as a challenge to the CIPD for their members who […]
Long service soldiers sacked by email in personnel blunder
The Ministry of Defence has apologised for any distress caused after sacking 38 soldiers – including one on the front line in Afghanistan – by email. According to the Sun newspaper, the warrant officers, who had each put in more than 20 years of service, received a round-robin email from career manager Major Andy Simpson […]
Redundancies ahead as cuts bite
The first three months of 2011 will be “a quarter of reckoning” for the jobs market, with the number of redundancies across the economy set to rise “sharply” as coalition government cuts start to bite. According to this quarter’s Labour Market Outlook from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development and management consultancy KPMG, the […]
Love in the office – heartbreak for HR
A stolen kiss in the stationery cupboard is one thing, but when love blooms in the office it can turn into heartbreak for HR managers, explains Adrian Martin, Partner at Burges Salmon LLP. If members of staff develop a personal relationship, there is a risk of conflict of interest and potential for discrimination and […]
Social media policy goes bad at Commonwealth Bank
The Commonwealth Bank in Australia has been forced to rethink its social media policy after revelations that staff could be disciplined or even sacked if their friends criticised the bank on sites such as Facebook. The move followed an open letter to the bank written by the Finance Sector Union. It branded the policy as […]
Man in sexual harrassment claim against John Lewis
A male worker is suing John Lewis for sexual discrimination over claims that management did not take his complaints of sexual harassment by a female colleague seriously. Konstantinos Kalomoiris attested that 68-year old Bianca Revrenna slapped his bottom on three separate occasions even after he had asked her not to and that he made a […]
Ask the expert: a TUPE puzzle
The experts, Adam Partington and Esther Smith advise on a TUPE puzzle… The question: TUPE puzzle A well known bank recently closed down the Independent Agency Network – staff are employed by an Independent Agent who has a contract with the Bank to run local agencies for them. It was decided by the bank […]
Gray to sue over sexism sacking
Former Sky Sports presenter Andy Gray is set to sue the broadcaster for £3 million in an unfair dismissal lawsuit after losing his job following a sexism row with fellow presenter Richard Keys. The football pundit was sacked on Tuesday after leaked videos showed him making sexist comments and actions. But he has now […]
Union blasts ‘outrageous’ county council cost-cutting plan
Proposals by Dorset County Council to make thousands of workers take 12 days’ unpaid leave per year as part of plans to save £55 million by 2013/14 have been branded “outrageous” by the union. The unpaid leave, which would be implemented among the local authority’s 6,500 staff in calendar years 2012 and 2013 on top […]
Job Centre Plus call centre on strike
Thousands of call centre workers at Jobcentre Plus are starting a 48-hour strike today in a dispute over “oppressive” working conditions and claims of “excessive monitoring”. Some 3,500 members of the Public and Commercial Services union at seven of the newest Jobcentre Plus call centres in Newport, Glasgow, Bristol, Norwich, Sheffield, Makerfield near Wigan and […]
IT and comms falling behind – Unite calls for better training
Unite is calling on employers in the IT and communications sector to improve their training and appraisal practices after research revealed widespread dissatisfaction among staff. A survey of just under 400 personnel working for firms ranging from Accenture and Apple to Capita and Hewlett-Packard undertaken by the union revealed that 62% were not receiving the […]
Work Programme targets are “over-ambitious”
The Association of Learning Providers has called on the government to rethink the way it structures its Work Programme-related contracts, warning that the current system could put small firms out of business. The move comes only a week after a Select Committee inquiry heard evidence that the targets set for providers to help […]
Ask the expert: Question regarding redundancy
The experts, Adam Partington and Esther Smith advise on what a vauge redundancy conversation means for an employee. The question: Question regarding redundancy I was in a meeting with my manager last week to discuss topic a. During the meeting my manager raised the issue of redundancy and suggested a possible leave date of […]
Legal challenge to civil service redundancy scheme changes
The Public and Commercial Services union is to mount a legal challenge over changes to the civil service redundancy compensation scheme this week after its members voted overwhelmingly to reject them. The union will take the matter to the High Court and has already called on the coalition government to reopen negotiations in a bid […]
Healthcare unions hit out at two year pay freeze proposals
Health service unions have rejected “divisive” proposals to introduce a two-year freeze on increments for all staff in England from April in return for an “extremely limited” guarantee of no compulsory redundancies. The British Medical Association joined The Royal College of Nursing and Unison in throwing out suggestions made by the NHS Employers body that […]
Socially acceptable – enforcing social media policies in the workplace
Consumer services such as Facebook and personal devices such as netbooks, the iPad and the iPhone are increasingly being used within businesses, eroding the line between business and leisure communications. In fact this convergence of business and leisure activity has led social commentators to coin the term, ‘bleisure’, to describe this shift in working patterns. […]
Employment law leniency won’t help employment stability, says CIPD
Coalition government plans to make it easier for employers to sack staff in their first two years of employment without facing unfair dismissal claims will do little to create hoped-for jobs but may destabilise the labour market, an HR body has warned. Under Prime Minister David Cameron’s new so-called ‘employers’ charter’, workers will also have […]
CIPD outlook for 2011 grim
Continuing job losses and falls in average earnings mean that 2011 is likely to prove another difficult year for HR professionals, with a ‘jobs-light’ recovery the best that can be hoped for, according to an HR body. In its annual employment Barometer report for the year ahead, the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) […]
Season’s Greetings: Have a wonderful Christmas and New Year
Wishing all of you and your families a wonderful Christmas, peaceful New Year and a stress-free return to work! Thank you for your support and participation in 2010 – enjoy the festive period with our best wishes on behalf of all of the HRzone.co.uk team. The very best, Charlie Duff, Editor.
