Blog: Quiet optimism for 2012 HR budgets

The economic world remains in a state of flux as we watch and wait for a resolution to the debt crisis. And, after using our veto, the UK is very much a spectator in this process. The uncertainty surrounding the Euro and a flat economy suggests a tough year ahead.  But I was buoyed to […]

Half of UK managers expect redundancies in 2012

Nearly half of managers expect their organisations to cut more jobs in 2012, with more than a third feeling insecure about their own employment prospects. These are the key findings of a survey among 800 bosses in UK companies undertaken by the Chartered Management Institute. The study also revealed that more than half of those […]

Unemployment so bad ‘even Santa’s elves feel insecure’

The official pre-Christmas job figures are so bad that even Santa’s elves should be worrying about their positions, experts have warned. According to data from the Office for National Statistics, the number of unemployed jumped by 128,000 to 2.64 million for the three months to October – the highest figure since 1994. The overall joblessness […]

Four-year central government HR framework deal goes to Logica

Responsibility for providing transactional HR, payroll and finance services to central government has been handed to Logica under a four-year framework contract valued at between £50m and £500m. Marie-Helene Durif, head of sourcing and category management at the Government Procurement Service, said: "The award of this contract is another milestone in the government’s strategy to […]

Government must give gangmasters’ enforcement agency more teeth

The Gangmasters Licensing Authority risks becoming “emasculated” unless the Coalition Government provides it with enough teeth and funding to protect temp workers in the food industry properly, a recruitment consultancy has warned. Media reports in October had suggested that the enforcement agency was under threat of abolition as part of the Government’s Red Tape Challenge. […]

2011: The HR year in full

HRZone Editor Cath Everett picks out her personal highlights from a challenging year for the HRD community. January Youth unemployment hits new high – and set to worsen Stress and depression ‘no reason to take time off’ Pension age change will ‘hit women and disadvantaged hardest’   February Company revises Facebook policies after firing employee […]

2011: That was the HR year that was

If it were possible to sum up the key preoccupations of 2011 in just a few words, for me, they would be ‘fairness’ and ‘democratisation’.  At the macro-economic level, the climate has got steadily worse as the Eurozone crisis has deepened and economists increasingly start to warn of a double-dip recession.    This situation has […]

Blog: Recruit now – Why December is the new January

January 1st will see people up and down the country commit to their New Year’s resolutions. Whether it’s signing up to the gym or searching for a new job – 2012 will signal fresh starts for all. So surely this is a great time to start a recruitment drive?   I’d argue, not necessarily. January […]

Two out of five employers plan to axe Christmas party

Two out of five employers are axing this year’s Christmas party, but half have yet to break the news to staff, according to a study. The survey of 2,532 company bosses undertaken by online restaurant booking service www.table7.com also revealed that, even those still planning to continue with the festive celebrations intended to have a […]

High Court rules in Government’s favour on pension change

The High Court has ruled in favour of the Coalition Government’s decision to link public sector pensions to a lower inflation measure than used to be the case up until April. Trade unions had brought a judicial review into the legality of the Government’s switch from using the Consumer Prices Index rather than the faster-growing […]

Asset-based pension contribution crackdown could put off large employers

 Changes introduced in Tuesday’s Autumn Statement to restrict tax relief on asset-backed contributions to pension schemes are likely to make them less attractive to large companies. The new limits on tax relief for asset-backed pension contributions were set out in draft clauses of the Finance Bill 2012, but came into effect from the date of […]

250 employers win funding bid to offer degree-level apprenticeships

Unilever, Legal & General and Burberry are among the 250 employers that are to start offering degree-level apprenticeship schemes for the first time after being awarded Government funding. The winning bids were unveiled today by Business Secretary Vince Cable when he visited TNT UK, in Bodmin, Cornwall. The parcel delivery company is to work with […]

News Analysis: ‘Glimmers of hope’ for jobs market as incomes set to drop

While there are “glimmers of hope” that the jobs market may revive somewhat over the next year, real household incomes are in contrast expected to fall by 7.4% over the next 36 months. The Recruitment & Employment Confederation’s JobsOutlook report for November, which is based on a survey of 600 employers, revealed that, although employers […]

Update: PM dismisses national day of action as “damp squib”

The Prime Minister dismissed the biggest national walk-out since the 1970s as a “damp squib”, even though the majority of schools across the UK were shut, services were disrupted and demonstrations took place across the country. His statement at Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday came only hours before Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson, appearing on […]

Round-up of Chancellor’s key Autumn Statement pronouncements

Public sector pay rises are to be capped at 1% for two years, the Chancellor announced today in his Autumn Statement. The cap will follow straight on from a two-year-long pay freeze for public sector workers and is only likely to inflame anger over the Coalition Government’s proposed changes to pensions. Among other things, the […]

Clegg to fund youth wage subsidy by taxing rich

A new £1bn wage subsidiary scheme for employers hiring jobless youths is likely to be funded by taxing "people with the broadest shoulders", Nick Clegg said today.  The Deputy Prime Minister announced that, from April next year, the £1 billion Youth Contract scheme will provide a subsidy worth £2,275 to any business owner taking on an […]

Update: Auto-enrolment delayed for small businesses

Small businesses are to be given an extra year before they have to start enrolling their employees into workplace pension schemes. The move will apply to firms employing less than 50 staff and is being portrayed as a boost for business. More than 44% of the entire UK workforce – the equivalent of about four […]

Are we ready for an older workforce?

Up until the middle of the last century, when a worker retired, the expectation was that they would not live for long afterwards. Sadly, this situation is still true in a minority of cases, although most have much longer to enjoy their retirement than in the past.   In 2011, people born in 1946 will […]

Autumn Statement Preview: What to expect

The Chancellor, George Osborne, will get up at the Houses of Parliament on Tuesday 29 at 12.30pm, facing calls for dramatic interventions and tax changes to kickstart the flagging UK economy. Alongside the Chancellor’s statement, the Office for Budget Responsibility will publish its latest Economic and Fiscal Outlook. The Bank of England cut its 2011 […]

News Analysis: Cleggs’ ‘Youth Contract’ meets lukewarm reception

The Coalition Government’s £1 billion scheme to offer employers wage subsidies to hire young people has met with a lukewarm reception. From next April, the aim of the so-called ‘Youth Contract’ is to create up to 400,000 work and training placements for 18-to-24 year olds by paying employers wage incentives equivalent to half of the […]