All Article articles – Page 641

  • Article

    Stay ahead of top trends at Employee Benefits Connect

    2014-01-27T06:00:00Z

    How the role of the benefits manager is evolving.What impact will 2014 tax changes have on salary sacrifice?Retaining talent with a limited budget during a changing economy.Evolving technology: future view of how benefits will be delivered.What is down the road for salary sacrifice car schemes? Dealing with cancer in the ...

  • Article

    Debi O’Donovan: Positive work spaces have great benefits

    2014-01-27T05:30:00Z

    Over the years I have worked mostly in offices and have only had a couple of roles that were public-facing across a counter. I have never worked in a manufacturing or construction environment. So my experience of workplaces is narrowly confined to the pokey, dusty office, the open plan office, ...

  • Article

    Ikea pays pension contributions as bonus

    2014-01-27T05:10:00Z

    Ikea Group became one of the first organisations to take this approach with the launch its reward programme Tack! at the end of last year. Through the scheme, Ikea will pay a total €100 million (£83.6 million) in pension contributions to reward employees with at least five years’ service, assuming ...

  • Article

    Employee Benefits magazine – February 2014

    2014-01-27T00:53:00Z

    The workplaces in which we do our jobs affect our productivity as well as health and wellbeing. So this month we explore what benefits and HR managers can do to maximise the positive aspects of the physical work environment. Read our coverstory Creature comforts (page 22)East Coast Mainline is keeping ...

  • Article

    Court rules how to handle ill-health dismissals

    2014-01-27T00:00:00Z

    Clarification has been given on how employers should handle an employee dismissal following an extended period of absence due to ill-health.In the case of BS v Dundee City Council, BS had been off sick for 272 days with stress and depression. During his absence, he was signed off sick by ...

  • Mindell-Jeremy-2014
    Article

    Jeremy Mindell: Will the increase in share scheme limits boost scheme numbers?

    2014-01-27T00:00:00Z

    While most governments in Europe have been cutting back on tax-advantaged schemes, the UK’s increase in tax-free limits is a pleasant contrast.Given that all three major political parties favour wider share ownership, the tax relief is unlikely to be reversed in the foreseeable future. This should give organisations confidence to ...

  • Article

    John Collison: Will the increase in share scheme limits boost scheme members?

    2014-01-27T00:00:00Z

    IFS Proshare was delighted to learn that Chancellor George Osborne is to increase investment limits on sharesave plans to £500 a month and on share incentive plans (Sips) to £1,800 a month.Although no one can say for certain whether increasing the limits will immediately result in more organisations launching employee ...

  • Buyer's guide to flexible benefits technology
    Article

    Buyer's guide to flexible benefits technology 2014

    2014-01-27T00:00:00Z

    THE FACTSWhat is flexible benefits technology?It is a technology system, operating in-house or from cloud-based servers, that provides a platform to deliver a flexible benefits scheme. Increasingly, systems are designed to interface with other elements of benefits and reward, including pensions, and often have interactive and data-modelling tools that can ...

  • Buyer's guide to bike to work schemes
    Article

    Buyer's guide to bikes-for-work schemes 2014

    2014-01-27T00:00:00Z

    One of the main attractions of the scheme is the tax and national insurance (NI) breaks it offers employees and employers.Employees can reduce their tax and NI liability when they buy a bike for their commute to work through a salary sacrifice arrangement. The typical saving for a standard-rate taxpayer ...

  • Article

    Win an iPad mini by completing flexible benefits survey

    2014-01-24T12:13:00Z

    Employee Benefits’ annual survey is designed to help employers benchmark their organisation’s flexible benefits plan with those of competitors. To have your say and gain an insight into how your flex plan compares with those of your peers’, please participate in this short survey by 31 January 2014.As a thank ...

  • Article

    Allianz launches global benefits practice

    2014-01-24T11:55:00Z

    Allianz has launched a global benefits unit to address the needs of multinational organisations. Allianz Global Benefits will co-operate with Allianz Global Corporate and Specialty and Allianz global Investors. Its focus will be on benefits such as: corporate life; pensions and health products.Combing global and local approaches, Allianz Global Benefits ...

  • Article

    DOD’s blog: Three little pigs blow up the pensions numbers

    2014-01-24T05:30:00Z

    A great infographic from Schroders and the Policy Exchange caught my eye this week. (View The UK is sitting on a pensions time-bomb as people are failing to save enough graphic).It shows three pigs each of a different size. Using an average salary of £27,000 the Policy Exchange worked out ...

  • Article

    Overseas holidays boost promotion chances

    2014-01-24T05:00:00Z

    Something for the weekend…Employees looking to get ahead at work may not consider buying more holiday through a holiday trading scheme or taking advantage of workplace travel discounts as the obvious way to do so.But new research by travel agency sunshine.co.uk has found a link between the number of overseas ...

  • Article

    Top 10 most read stories this week

    2014-01-24T04:45:00Z

    The top 10 most read articles on employeebenefits.co.uk from 16-23 January:1. BBC restructures pay processes for presenters2. Government to delay pension charges cap3. Reed Smith staff move to online savings platform4. Aberdeen Asset Management increases staff pay by 4%5. How should employers communicate default funds?6. Government confirms delay to pension ...

  • Article

    Government confirms delay to pension charges cap

    2014-01-23T12:27:00Z

    Pensions minister Steve Webb has confirmed that the introduction of a pensions charge cap will be delayed by a year until April 2015.The charges cap was due to be introduced in April 2014. A ban on active member discounts and defined contribution reforms on governance and transparency will also be ...

  • Article

    Willis restructures global benefits practice

    2014-01-23T12:19:00Z

    Willis Group is creating a new human capital and benefits practice which will combine its existing employee benefits and related consulting practices. The global risk adviser, insurer and reinsurer is to make the move in order to develop and execute a co-ordinated global strategy. These businesses include: pensions and retirement ...

  • Article

    University staff strike over pay

    2014-01-23T12:08:00Z

    University staff across the UK are taking further strike action over proposed pay increases on Thursday 23 January.Members of the University and College Union (UCU) will walk out for two hours in protest of a proposed 1% pay rise.These include staff at academic institutions, such as: Oxford Brookes University; Nottingham ...

  • Article

    Ford Retail promotes Sharon Ashcroft

    2014-01-23T06:01:00Z

    She will be responsible for overseeing the organisation’s HR function, which includes pay and reward, learning and development, and health and safety.Ashcroft has worked at Ford Retail for eight years in a range of roles, including head of HR and HR manager.Her previous jobs include senior HR consultant at Coda ...

  • Article

    Astellas Pharma appoints Julia Watts

    2014-01-23T06:00:00Z

    She moves to the organisation from her role as compensation and benefits manager, Europe, Middle East and Africa at Hess Corporation.Previous interim roles include global remuneration manager at Tata Global Beverages, reward consultant at New Look and reward partner at Hays.Watts’ other roles include director and reward consultant at Alston ...

  • Article

    BBC restructures pay processes for presenters

    2014-01-22T12:22:00Z

    The BBC is restructuring how it pays some employees.The broadcaster has applied a new employment test to all staff, including its well-known presenters, that it has previously employed as freelancers.Where individuals were hired on a freelance basis, they were paid through personal service companies, which can enable high earners to ...