News: Childcare costs biggest employment barrier for single parents
The biggest barriers to work for single parents are childcare costs and a shortage of flexible and well-paid enough jobs, a study has revealed. According to research published by charity Gingerbread, single parents with children over the age of 12 face double the rate of long-term unemployment as the rest of the population (8%). […]
CEO Insight: Employer Pool’s Chris Murray on ethical recruitment
Over the last 10 years, corporate social responsibility has increasingly found its way onto the board room agenda. Because of its links to staff retention and helping to generate positive external and internal relations, CSR is now widely regarded as a business priority by many private and public sector organisations. As a result, the […]
News: HR is “ineffective” and “non-essential”, say senior execs
The majority of senior executives believe that the HR function is ineffective and consistently fails to provide value to the organisation. According to a survey among 418 C-suite managers conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit and sponsored by management consultancy KPMG, a mere 17% believe that HR does a good job, with many seeing it […]
Blog: Does Boris demonstrate the five fundamentals of leadership? Part 1
Mayor of London Boris Johnson’s popularity has risen to such an extent that commentators are increasingly speculating over the possibility that the eccentric former journalist could be the next Prime Minister. The mayor’s meteoric rise received a welcome boost from a successful London 2012, but has he got what it takes to be an international […]
News: Barclays’ staff bonuses to be linked to customer satisfaction
Barclays’ frontline employees will no longer receive bankers’ bonuses based on sales but will be paid according to the level of service given to customers. The bank’s new ‘Service Incentive’ programme will see Barclay’s 22,000 retail staff earning commission based on how satisfied customers are with the service provided, as well as the extent to […]
News: Repeal of equality legislation will “let bad bosses off the hook”
The government’s decision to repeal sections of the Equality Act less than two years after their introduction has been branded by unions as an attempt to “let bad bosses off the hook”. Provisions in the Equality Act 2010 that make employers liable for the harassment of their staff by third parties such as customers or […]
News: Kite marked pensions required to plug employer “advice gap”
A kite mark system should be introduced in order to help employers find value for money pension schemes and help plug the current “advice gap”, a report has recommended. If change does not take place, millions of workers signing up to the government’s auto-enrolment scheme, which came into force for large employers on 1 October, […]
News: Financial services firms scoop up at race diversity awards
Financial services organisations topped the charts this year in terms of accolades for promoting race diversity and equality in the workplace. Business in the Community’s Race for Opportunity campaign hosted its annual awards dinner at the London Hilton on Park Lane last night, in which four out of nine of the winners came from the […]
News: Celebrity campaigns help reduce mental health stigma at work
Less stigma is being attached to mental health issues than a year ago following a number of TV and press campaigns and celebrities talking openly about their conditions, research has found. A survey among 1,000 employers and 1,000 staff conducted by insurance provider Aviva, published to coincide with World Mental Health Day, revealed that just […]
News: Sickness absence down, presenteeism and mental illness up
Although average employee absence levels have dropped by as much as a day, job insecurity has led to a rise in presenteeism and mental health problems such as anxiety and depression. According to a survey conducted among 667 employers by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development and health insurance provider Simplyhealth, staff absence levels […]
Blog: The shares-for-rights conundrum – A fair exchange?
Is the lure of owning an amount of shares, and not paying capital gains tax on the profit that those shares make (if any) a fair exchange for surrendering some of your employment rights? The Chancellor’s proposal has about as much detail as a child’s sketch of a cloud so let’s consider the following scenario: You […]
News: Chancellor’s shares-for-employment-rights scheme ‘open to abuse’
The Chancellor’s plans to enable staff to sell employment rights in exchange for company shares could be open to abuse by unscrupulous employers, experts have warned. George Osborne in his Conservative party conference speech today said that, as of April next year, employees who are given company shares worth between £2,000 and £50,000 will no […]
News: Sheila Lawlor – Scrap “family-unfriendly” maternity leave
The UK should scrap paid maternity leave because it creates a “perverse incentive” for women to return to work and replace it with an unpaid career break instead, the head of a right-wing think tank has said. Sheila Lawlor, director of Politeia who will chair the organisation’s fringe ‘Women in The Boardroom’ event at the […]
News: Extent of ‘off payroll’ deals in public sector “shocking”
The widespread nature of “off payroll” payments being made to thousands of public servants has been branded “shocking” by a committee of MPs concerned over potential tax avoidance activities. A Public Accounts Committee report singled out the BBC for paying 25,000 employees – 13,000 of whom were broadcasters – a gross amount into a company […]
News: Workmates more important than bosses for job satisfaction
While getting on with the boss certainly helps to keep staff happy at work, it is nowhere near as important as having a good relationship with colleagues, according to research. A survey undertaken among 1,000 UK workers by online recruiters Jobsite.co.uk revealed that seven out of 10 see their ‘nine-to-five buddies’ as being most crucial […]
News: Lack of HR support means 1/3 senior hires consider quitting in first 3 months
A failure by top managers to work closely enough with HR means that two out of five senior hires consider quitting in their first 90 days and are 50% less productive than they would otherwise be. According to a survey among 283 senior executives and 38 HR directors conducted by recruitment consultancy, Harvey Nash, a […]
News: Fear of fitness-to-work test driving disabled to suicide
Fear of fitness-to-work tests are driving some disabled people to suicide and causing others mental health problems, according to the latest research among GPs. A survey of more than 1,000 family doctors in the UK revealed that more than four out of five had patients who had developed mental health issues such as stress, anxiety […]
Blog: Are British workers really the most idle in the world?
British workers are among the most idle in the world, according to a book written by five Tory MPs. In the book ‘Britannia Unchained: Lessons for Growth and Prosperity’ the authors wrote: “Once they enter the workplace, the British are among the worst idlers in the world. We work among the lowest hours, we retire early and […]
News: Staff play with fire bringing hair straighteners to work
UK employees are putting themselves at risk of fire and personal injury because they bring their personal electrical items into work but don’t get them safety checked, a survey has found. Two out of five staff members bring devices ranging from heaters and hair straighteners to fairy lights and even power tools into the workplace, […]
News: Govt plans to post mandarin’s performance goals online “damaging”
Government plans to publish the performance targets of all permanent secretaries online risk damaging the current relationship of trust between ministers and their top civil servants, a union has warned. At a speech for the Institute of Government think-tank yesterday, cabinet office minister, Francis Maude, warned that it was “unacceptable” for senior mandarins to veto […]
