How to spot a maverick (and channel their talents)
Ever wondered how to spot a maverick? Look for someone who uses their left rather than their right ear to listen at a closed door or at a colleague’s chest to hear their heartbeat. According to the London School of Economics and Political Science and the University of New South Wales in Australia, the […]
Most employers believe fit notes don’t work, studies reveal
The majority of employers do not believe that fit notes work effectively in cutting sickness absence rates, two studies have revealed. An online poll undertaken by the Chartered Institute of Payroll Professonials discovered that a huge nine out of ten employers felt that ‘The Statement of Fitness for Work’, which replaced the old ‘sick note’ […]
Employers offered hiring incentives under £1bn ‘Youth Contract’ scheme
Employers are to be given financial incentives for taking on young people and/or providing them with work experience or apprenticeship places as part of the coalition government’s £1 billion Youth Contract scheme. The aim of the initiative, which is being led by deputy prime minister, Nick Clegg, is to help 18 to 24-year olds either […]
Balfour Beatty warns its 12,000 staff of possible redundancies
Just as Balfour Beatty warned all of its 12,000 UK construction services staff of possible redundancies today, the OECD forecast that the UK had moved back into recession. With new infrastructure projects expected to fall sharply after the Olympic Games in London this summer, the building giant, which employ 50,000 people worldwide, said it was […]
Employers and unions spat over extent of public-private sector pay gap
Employers and unions were at odds today over official government figures showing that public sector workers are paid on average 8% more than their private sector colleagues. The spat came about after the Office of National Statistics published its latest snapshot details of UK Plc’s employment profile. Apart from telling us that the number […]
2,100 Game-rs lose their jobs following closure of half UK stores
Game is to close nearly half of it 609 UK stores today, leaving 2,104 people without a job in the biggest collapse since Woolworths four years ago. Mike Jervis and Stuart Maddison from PricewaterhouseCoopers were appointed joint administrators of the gaming retailer, after failing to reach a rescue deal or negotiate a ‘pre-pack’ over the […]
Public sector jobs cull to lead to “tectonic shift” in UK labour market
More than one in seven public sector jobs will be lost as a result of coalition government budget cuts, leading to "a tectonic shift" in the nature of the UK labour market, according to the CIPD. The organisation cited the Office for Budget Responsibility‘s latest employment projections, which indicate that the public sector workforce is […]
Rooting out the “cancer” of employee cynicism
We are living through one of the most, if not the most, challenging, uncertain economic times of our lives. The US economy has been on rocky ground for a number of years and the Euro is under threat as major countries in Europe face potential insolvency. Even the Far East is facing numerous economic […]
Public sector jobs cull will jump to 730,000 by 2017, forecasts OBR
A huge 20,000 more public sector workers than expected will lose their jobs over the next four years, taking the total cull to 730,000, the government’s independent forecasters revealed yesterday. In November, the Office for Budget Responsibility had forecast that the number of public servants being axed would be 310,000 higher than the 400,000 predicted […]
Budget 2012: Fears over lack of prep time for Olympics Sunday working plans
With the Olympic and Paralympic Games only just over three months away, plans to suspend Sunday trading laws over the eight weekends of the events have sparked concern over the lack of time that employers have to prepare. In his Budget today, Chancellor George Osborne proposed emergency legislation to enable large shops in England and […]
Budget 2012: Local pay deals ‘could expose public sector to discrimination claims’
The public sector will need to tread carefully when negotiating local pay deals or risk opening itself up to discrimination claims, a law firm has warned. As expected, the Chancellor announced in his Budget speech today that he was looking to see whether he could “make public sector pay more responsive to local pay rates”. […]
Budget 2012: Income tax changes branded ‘Robin Hood lite’ at best
Although the Chancellor may have redrawn taxation boundaries, his Budget has done nothing to improve the outlook for growth and jobs, according to an influential HR body. Dubbed by the deputy prime minister, Nick Clegg, as a ‘Robin Hood Budget”, John Philpott, chief economic adviser at Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development was sceptical, however. […]
Budget 2012: Pensioners are today’s “biggest losers”, claims industry body
Pensioners are the “biggest losers” in today’s Budget, an industry body has claimed. Although the National Association of Pension Funds welcomed the Chancellor’s proposals to introduce a single tier state benefit for future pensioners to replace the Basic and second State Pension, it warned that existing claimants stand to lose more than £2 billion in […]
Budget 2012: Five industries singled out for special treatment
The Chancellor picked out the aerospace, energy and pharmaceuticals, creative media and science industries as being crucial in helping the UK reduce its reliance on the financial services sector. George Osborne said in his Budget speech today that he would be “backing” the five industries as part of a “deliberate strategy to create a more […]
Budget 2012: The dismantling of national pay bargaining begins
The Chancellor will announce in his Budget speech on Wednesday that he is bringing forward plans to allow a handful of central government departments to set their own local employee pay rates. In a move that could lead to further strike action among unions already angry over proposed changes to staff pensions, three departments are […]
Government’s compensated no fault dismissal proposals garner mixed response
Coalition government proposals to introduce a ‘compensated no fault dismissal’ system for micro-businesses have met with a mixed response. The proposals, which were first put forward in Adrian Beecroft’s controversial report, form part of a wider ‘call for evidence’ around existing dismissal processes for organisations of all sizes. They would result in employers with […]
Legal Insight: Employee or consultant? Lessons from the Student Loans Co
Taxation has never been a more contentious issue. Political arguments have been raging for months now over everything from the 50p rate and tax evasion among high earners to the reintroduction of a £10,000 threshold for people on low incomes. Also to hit the headlines recently, however, was the case of Ed Lester, chief […]
Four years of redundancies cost UK employers £28.6bn
Nearly 2.7 million people, or one in 10 workers, have been made redundant in the last four years, costing UK employers a huge £28.6 billion. According to a report by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, the manufacturing and construction sectors accounted for about a third of the job losses, while public administration, education […]
Talent Spot: Vikki Sly, global recruitment director at QlikTech
The old cliche that people decide whether or not to hire someone within the first few seconds of an interview horrifies Vikki Sly, global recruitment director at business intelligence software provider, QlikTech. “I don’t believe that, and if that’s the way you treat your recruitment, then you’re doing people a huge disservice,” she asserts. For […]
EU Parliament votes in favour of binding female boardroom quotas
The EU Parliament voted in favour of introducing binding quotas for women at the top table at the same time as a report revealed that UK progress on appointing females to executive board-level positions had been slow. The vote by the EU Parliament followed a consultation that was launched last week by EU Justice Commissioner, […]
