UK seeks to create jobs and cash in on tourism

British Airways and P&O are among the companies backing a £100 million government fund to promote tourism with the aim of creating 50,000 jobs and bringing in an extra one million overseas visitors to the UK.  Cash and payment in kind has also been pledged by the Radisson Edwardian hotel chain, Lastminute.com and ferry operator […]

Immigration cap could be challenged

The coalition government’s decision to cut off Tier One visas to skilled workers from outside of the EU with effectively no notice could be subject to legal challenge, an immigration specialist has warned.  The same applies to the setting of an interim limit of 10,832 on the number of certificates of sponsorship that are available […]

Recruitment freeze thaw forecast to hit London

London-based employers are expected to abandon widespread recruitment freezes over the next six months despite widespread uncertainty over the UK economy’s growth prospects.  According to the latest ‘London Business Survey’, which was undertaken among 91 businesses by employers lobby group the CBI and management consultancy KPMG, 45% of London companies are planning to start hiring […]

Charity and retail workers ‘not party animals’

While recruitment and marketing staff enjoy a good Christmas party more than any other group of workers, back office personnel in the retail sector are the most likely to make their excuses and not turn up at all.  According to a survey among 2,500 UK office staff across eight industries undertaken by serviced office provider […]

Does social recruiting actually deliver?

We’ll be considering the questions most often asked of any recruiter (or ‘recruitment guru’) who espouses the benefits of using social media in recruitment. Does it actually work? Can I actually hire somebody by using Social Media?  Where does direct sourcing fit into this mix?  Is it really an integrated approach or just another series […]

SMEs the place to be, say interim managers

Many interim managers would prefer to work for small-to-medium-sized businesses even if they have to take a 50% pay cut to do so, according to research.  A survey of 1,500 interim managers commissioned by specialist provider Interim Partners found that 31% would prefer their next role to be in a small business compared with only […]

Christmas temp labour shortage

Although growing numbers of employers are looking to take on temps in favour of permanent staff over the next 12 months, high levels of demand for temporary labour are creating shortages in the run-up to Christmas despite rising unemployment levels.  According to a survey among 600 employers undertaken by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC), […]

Globalisation creates challenges for HR

Globalisation across workforces has seen exponential growth in the last two decades, and after a dip during the most recent recession, is now emerging again within HR, creating challenges as well as opportunities, and tremendous uncertainty. In a new major study by the IBM Institute for Business Value, more than 700 chief HR officers and […]

Ask the expert: Internal job post -applications after closing date?

The experts, Adam Partington and Esther Smith advise on whether late applications can be accepted in an internal job post.   The question: Internal job post – applications after closing date?  My employer listed a job on the internal recruitment website; for a position which I applied; I know for a fact I am the […]

3/5 workers overestimate their value to employers

Although nearly four out of five UK workers would like to change employer, three fifths overestimate their financial value.  According to a survey undertaken by vocational distance learning provider the Home Learning College, while some 78% of staff would like a new job, just over a third are actively looking.  Some 27% have chosen not […]

Recruiters beware: 2/3 of jobseekers lie about previous salary

Just over two thirds of potential job candidates inflate the salary that they were paid in their last position in a bid to get more money, making it the most common interview fib. Next on the list come lies about candidates’ qualifications or grades in order to impress potential employers (61%), followed by bending the […]

Morrisons to employ and train 1000 homeless

The Morrisons supermarket chain is to give 10% of the 10,000 new jobs it creates by opening a raft of new stores to homeless and other vulnerable people.  The UK’s fourth largest retailer, which is running the initiative in partnership with the Salvation Army and social enterprise Create, aims to train homeless staff in traditional […]

Director who withheld £11k banned from running business

The director of a recruitment firm has been banned from running a similar business for seven years after withholding wages from staff.  Christine Lewiss from Trimmingham near Norwich ran two recruitment firms, Rail Recruit UK Ltd and Rail Recruit UK Projects Ltd, which supplied employers with rail workers. The action was taken against her following […]

Job creation plan: time to get real

The coalition government must act quickly to flesh out its National Infrastructure Plan to boost job creation and stimulate economic growth as it currently lacks the necessary specifics to generate business confidence, employers have warned.  At business lobby group the CBI’s annual conference yesterday Prime Minister David Cameron outlined his “strategy for growth” for the […]

Immigration cap already too tight

Despite an overall drop in the use of temporary agency workers during September, the social care, logistics and manufacturing sectors are being hard hit by the coalition government’s temporary cap on skilled labour from outside Europe.  According to a study undertaken by consultancy de Poel, which helps employers optimise their relationships with recruitment agencies, just […]

Public sector workers not suitable for private sector jobs

Although 85% of the 600,000 public sector workers facing redundancy would consider working in the private sector, more than 90% of commercial employers believe that their background and experience is irrelevant. The situation is not helped by the fact that 87% of private sector bosses believe that public sector candidates need to better identify and communicate […]

Equality Act: It’s recruitment, but not as we know it…?

We consider what changes will need to be made to recruitment in reality in the light of the equality act. Fergal Dowling, Partner in the Employment team at law firm Irwin Mitchell warns recruiting is tough enough as it is but now there are more things to look out for than ever before. The advice […]

Career management for retention and engagement

It might seem a bit out of place for an employer to get involved in career managing its employees – after all, isn’t a career a personal thing? However that’s no longer the case. Despite economic pessimism, there is still demand for talent and the skills gap means there will always be demand for those […]

Milkround still valued by graduates

Graduate recruiters should not dismiss the value of the traditional ‘milk round’ as two thirds of final year students intend to use the experience to help make up their minds as to which employer to go for.  According to a survey among 915 students that are about to graduate undertaken by recruitment outsourcers TMP Worldwide, […]

Top tips for mitigating seasonal recruitment risks

Fiona Dawson of Experian Background Checking explores the risks and rewards of recruiting temporary staff and offers top tips for building a reliable and flexible workforce to meet seasonal as well as ongoing business demands. According to the latest figures from the International Confederation of Private Employment Agencies (CIETT), the UK has the highest number […]