All Article articles – Page 772

  • Article

    Nationwide expands flexible benefits scheme

    2012-09-03T10:40:00Z

    EXCLUSIVE: Nationwide will add membership in the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) and expand its range of shopping vouchers, rechargeable cards and NCP car parking locations when it opens the enrolment window for its 2013 flexible benefits scheme.The flex enrolment window for 2013 opens on 5 October and closes 16 November. ...

  • Article

    Premier launches auto-enrolment product

    2012-09-03T10:15:00Z

    Pensions and actuarial firm Premier has launched a product to help employers manage their auto-enrolment obligations.The Premier Auto-enrolment Manager (PAM) can be tailored to suit any size of organisation. It can also be adapted to work with multiple pension schemes and can interface with all payroll systems.Paul Couchman, managing director ...

  • Article

    Over-55s would support appointment of a retirement minister

    2012-09-03T10:15:00Z

    Nearly two our of three (64%) of over-55s would support the appointment of a retirement minister to focus on the issues facing employees as they approach retirement, according to research by retirement income specialist firm Primetime Retirement.Its survey found that 25% of respondents would not support the appointment of a ...

  • Article

    Adoption of corporate platforms still very low

    2012-09-02T23:00:00Z

    Corporate platforms are something of a cause celebre in the world of workplace savings, but their penetration remains very low, according to research from Employee Benefits magazine.The Employee Benefits/Premier pensions and workplace savings research 2012, published in August, showed that only 8% of employers have an online platform to allow ...

  • Article

    Staff more active in Isas

    2012-09-02T23:00:00Z

    Employees with corporate individual savings accounts (Isas) are increasingly proactive in their schemes and are managing their investments more regularly, according to research from Equiniti.The study found that, on average, employees are making three distinct investment decisions a year, with those trades representing about £317 of their fund. This activity ...

  • Article

    James Kirkland: Does flexible working reduce stress?

    2012-09-01T00:00:00Z

    In the run-up to the Olympics, we at O2 held the UK’s biggest ever flexible working trial for our 1,700 Slough-based office staff. With the rowing at nearby Eton Dorney attracting up to 30,000 visitors a day, we needed to find alternative arrangements for staff or risk losing them in ...

  • Article

    Mary Mercer: Does flexible working reduce stress?

    2012-09-01T00:00:00Z

    Flexible working, when first developed as the concept of work-life balance, had at its heart the ability of the employee to control their working life and reduce stress. A range of organisations that measured employee stress levels before introducing work-life balance programmes and then remeasured the stress levels of flexible ...

  • Article

    David Smith: Does flexible working reduce stress?

    2012-09-01T00:00:00Z

    Employers should be encouraged to adopt a strategic approach to addressing rising levels of stress. Research may point to flexible working as a useful tool that employers can use to reduce stress, but it is important they do not regard it as a standalone solution for this type of issue ...

  • Article

    Corporate platform guide to be launched

    2012-09-01T00:00:00Z

    Employers who are trying to get to grips with the ever-changing corporate platform market may be relieved to learn The Platforum is to launch a Corporate platform guide later this month.The market, still in its early development, can be confusing for organisations looking at how they might deploy a platform.This ...

  • Article

    Debi O'Donovan: DC needs careful attention

    2012-09-01T00:00:00Z

    I am very pleased to see the debate about pension charges hitting the headlines. Not only because we desperately need transparency on annual management charges to avoid a future mis-selling scandal, but also because it means defined contribution (DC) schemes are finally getting more attention.As Lee Hollingworth, head of DC ...

  • Article

    Finally, a pen just for the ladies

    2012-08-31T11:40:00Z

    The women here at the employeebenefits.co.uk offices were aghast to hear that stationary manufacturer Bic has launched a tool specifically for them, namely a pen ‘reserved for women’.We agree that it is important that employers provide employees with the correct equipment to be able to carry out their jobs effectively, ...

  • Article

    EOA appoints Hasdell to taskforce

    2012-08-31T11:38:00Z

    The Employee Ownership Association (EOA) has appointed Iain Hasdell to its employee engagement taskforce.Hasdell has been the chief executive of the EOA since April 2012. He previously spent 10 years as a senior partner at KPMG.Hasdell said: “As a long-standing supporter of greater involvement and fairness in the workplace, I ...

  • Article

    Standard Life makes corporate changes

    2012-08-31T11:36:00Z

    Standard Life has made a range of changes to its business, including:Its corporate function will now be known an Workplace under Ronnie Taylor. He will also remain accountable for the firm’s implementation of the retail distribution review (RDR).Its retail adviser, proposition, wealth and investment solutions businesses will report into Richard ...

  • Article

    Bluefin appoints Ian Treece

    2012-08-31T11:33:00Z

    Bluefin Corporate Consulting has appointed Ian Treece as a consultant in its auto-enrolment practice.Treece joins from Barclays, where he was associate director for the bank’s pension scheme.He has also spent seven years at Xafinity Paymaster as a senior project manager.

  • Article

    Benefex and Enrich form partnership

    2012-08-31T11:32:00Z

    Benefex and Enrich have become flexible benefits partners to offer a range for services to all sizes of employers.Enrich will combine its broking experience with Benefex’s flexible benefits technology.Cheryl Brennan, director and head of strategy and change management at Enrich, said: “Rather than going through the usual industry practice of ...

  • Article

    Cineworld launches flexible benefits

    2012-08-31T11:29:00Z

    Cineworld has introduced a flexible benefits scheme, added in new benefits, introduced a salary sacrifice arrangement, and rebranded its benefits communication.The cinema group, which has 650 monthly-paid employees and 4,200 fortnightly-paid employees, launched the online scheme for its monthly-paid staff on 1 August.Nicole Tomlinson, senior HR business partner at Cineworld, ...

  • Article

    Participation in share plans motivates staff

    2012-08-31T00:00:00Z

    Three-quarters (75%) of respondents who participate in a share plan were more motivated and committed to their employers, according to research by Loughborough University.The research, which took data from 1,500 employees in an HM Revenue and Customs- (HMRC) approved share plan, was commissioned by BT, IFS Proshare and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC).It ...

  • Article

    Enterprise to expand flexible working

    2012-08-31T00:00:00Z

    Enterprise Rent-A-Car is to expand its home-working programme after experiencing positive results during a pilot.The car hire company launched the pilot to establish whether home working was a viable approach to growing its call centre, based in Aldershot.During the pilot, call centre employees from its Enterprise Business Support (EBS) facility ...

  • Article

    Simon Moffatt: Would more flexible parental leave end reward inequality?

    2012-08-31T00:00:00Z

    The government’s Modern Workplaces consultation on plans to introduce a new system of flexible parental leave from 2015, enabling both parents to share some of the statutory time out, will provide a more flexible foundation for both parents to share childcare duties while maintaining their careers and earning power.It also ...

  • Article

    Edenred relaunches online total reward statements

    2012-08-31T00:00:00Z

    Edenred has redesigned its online total reward statements to help employers find their benefits information more easily.The roll out of the new statements follows the launch of the employee benefits provider’s updated flexible benefits and employee savings platform.Sam West, product manager, employee benefits at Edenred, said: “Our job at Edenred ...