All Article articles – Page 754

  • Article

    International perspective at Employee Benefits Connect

    2012-11-26T06:08:00Z

    Nicos Nicolaides, director of compensation and benefits for Europe at InterContinental Hotels Group, will speak on building a global reward infrastructure as a foundation for expansion. Caroline Jowett-Ive, group vice-resident of reward at Travelport, and Spencer Roach, compensation and benefits manager, international at Nuance Communications, using a global reward strategy ...

  • Article

    Buyer's guide to motivation vouchers

    2012-11-26T05:40:00Z

    Motivation vouchers are a great benefit to offer employees during an economic downturn while pay increases and bonuses remain in short supply.A simple thank-you is sometimes not enough to make staff feel appreciated, but a retail voucher or gift card, because of its tangible nature, can do the trick.Employers are ...

  • Article

    Interview with Jane Earnshaw, head of reward and recognition, Asda

    2012-11-26T05:00:00Z

    Jane Earnshaw has had a varied career at Asda, during her 20-year tenure. She joined the grocery retailer in 1995 as a company secretarial assistant and has since risen through the ranks to become head of reward and recognition.Earnshaw made the transition into reward after being introduced to share schemes ...

  • Article

    Flexible leave plans could pose pay challenges

    2012-11-26T00:00:00Z

    Audrey Williams, partner and head of discrimination at Eversheds, said the changes could cause complications for enhanced maternity pay schemes. These schemes can include above statutory-rate pay and a returner’s bonus, raising the question of whether these benefits should be extended to men who take flexible parental leave.“The current paternity ...

  • Article

    Decrease in gender pay gap over past year

    2012-11-23T12:45:00Z

    The gender pay gap for full-time employees has decreased over the last year, from 10.5% to 9.6% in 2011, according to research by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).The Annual survey of hours and earnings 2012 found that women in full-time employment earned a median hourly wage of £12, a ...

  • Article

    EAP guidelines published

    2012-11-23T12:31:00Z

    EXCLUSIVE: The UK Employee Assistance Professionals Association (UK EAPA) has published a set of guidelines that provide an up-to-date review of issues relating to the commissioning, delivery and evaluation of employee assistance programmes (EAPs).The guidelines, which include a foreword from Cary Cooper, professor of organisational psychology and health at Lancaster ...

  • Article

    Lorica adds Aviva’s auto-enrolment product to portal

    2012-11-23T12:28:00Z

    Lorica Employee Benefits is to integrate Aviva’s online auto-enrolment modelling and compliance product into its auto-enrolment portal Simplicity.The product, Auto-enrolment Manager for Employers (AME), provides employers with a way to prepare for and manage their responsibilities around auto-enrolment. This includes keeping up to date with compliance duties such as employee ...

  • Article

    Sweetening the benefits package

    2012-11-23T06:00:00Z

    Something for the weekend…Reducing stress at work is an important issue for most employers because it can help improve productivity.One employer has decided to sweeten its benefits package by offering employees an opportunity to take a break during the day to enjoy a treat.The Big Word, a language services provider, ...

  • Article

    Former Rangers football club wins tax case

    2012-11-22T12:21:00Z

    The former Rangers Football Club plc, which is now in liquidation, has won its appeal against a tax bill from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) for its use of an employee benefit trust (EBT).In a majority decision, the first tier tribunal concluded that the club’s payments to players and staff ...

  • Article

    Adactus sends out Christmas cards to staff

    2012-11-22T12:20:00Z

    EXCLUSIVE: Adactus Housing Group has sent out a Christmas card to all staff with their payslip to remind them of the offers available via its voluntary benefits scheme.The scheme, Adactus Perks in Employment, was introduced in November 2011. At launch, it was communicated to suit an online and offline workforce, ...

  • Article

    ITM to partner PensionsFirst for data audits

    2012-11-22T12:15:00Z

    ITM, a pension data specialist, is to partner PensionsFirst to offer its Pfaroe risk management platform to enhance its data risk audit service for defined benefit (DB) pension schemes.The organisation will use the platform to assess the potential liability impact of data and benefit errors discovered during employers’ data risk ...

  • Article

    Busy Bees Benefits launches online discounts product

    2012-11-22T12:11:00Z

    EXCLUSIVE: Busy Bees Benefits has launched an employee discounts scheme, which employers can offer to staff to help them make savings on lifestyle costs.The scheme, BusyBuyer, is an online portal that provides exclusive offers, discounts, cash back, and national and local deals at specific stores and online shops.The offers include: ...

  • Article

    Above-inflation UK pay rises predicted in 2013

    2012-11-22T09:32:00Z

    Employees in the UK will experience a year of above-inflation pay rises in 2013, according to research by Mercer.Its Salary movement snapshot, which tracked the pay plans of 570 multi-national organisations operating in 76 countries in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, found that UK employers are anticipating base pay ...

  • Article

    Caerphilly Council launches eyecare scheme

    2012-11-21T12:02:00Z

    EXCLUSIVE: Caerphilly County Borough Council has launched an eyecare scheme for its 4,500 employees using a series of roadshows to communicate with staff.During the roadshows, which were held at the end of October across various locations, employees were able to view a range of glasses and have their vision screened ...

  • Article

    Tube Lines staff plan strike over pensions

    2012-11-21T11:55:00Z

    Tube Lines’ staff are to strike for 24 hours on Friday 23 November over equal access to pensions and benefits.The Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) has called on Transport for London (TFL) to allow Tube Lines’ employees to re-enter its defined benefit (DB) pension scheme since 2010 when Tube ...

  • Article

    Majority of employers aware of auto-enrolment

    2012-11-21T11:49:00Z

    The majority (88%) of respondents to research by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) are aware of their requirements to auto-enrol staff into a pension scheme.Its Labour market outlook: Focus on pension auto-enrolment, which surveyed more than 1,000 employers, found that more than half (59%) of respondents have ...

  • Article

    Greencore employees win pay deduction case

    2012-11-21T11:45:00Z

    More than 400 employees have been successful in an unlawful pay deductions complaint against employer Greencore.The claim, brought before an employment tribunal, involved 408 employees at the convenience food manufacturer’s Hull facility who agreed in 2010 to a one-year suspension of premium pay rates and enhanced holiday pay in order ...

  • Article

    Cabinet Office awards EAP agreement

    2012-11-21T10:45:00Z

    The Cabinet Office has awarded four providers a framework agreement to deliver pan-government employee assistance programme (EAP) services.The agreement was awarded as part of a tender process carried out by the government procurement service.Government departments have the option to select a preferred supplier from the four providers. Alternatively, the four ...

  • Article

    American Express extends wellness scheme to Italy

    2012-11-20T11:56:00Z

    EXCLUSIVE: American Express has rolled out its global wellness programme across its offices in Italy.It has now launched its Healthy Living programme in 15 of the 45 countries in which the credit card company is based.The launch, which took place in early November, included a series of presentations for its ...

  • Article

    Over half of respondents may postpone auto-enrolment

    2012-11-20T11:36:00Z

    More than half (56%) of respondents said they will take advantage of the three-month window for postponement before auto-enrolling employees into a pension scheme, according to research by Mercer.The research, which surveyed 300 of its employer clients with auto-enrolment staging dates in 2013 or later, also found that 43% of ...