All Article articles – Page 838

  • Article

    Government to consult on introduction of protected conversations between employers and staff

    2011-11-11T10:32:33Z

    The government will consult on introducing protected conversations that would allow employers to discuss issues such as retirement plans and work performance with employees without fear of being referred to an employment tribunal.The consultation will also address employers’ fears of a tribunal by increasing the qualifying period for unfair dismissal ...

  • Article

    Specsavers research: One-fifth of employers have no eyecare policy

    2011-11-11T10:30:25Z

    One-fifth (20%) of employers have no eyecare policy in place, according to research by Specsavers Corporate Eyecare.The research, conducted among 223 organisations in both the public and private sectors, found that 42% of employers use the option of reimbursing eyecare costs through expenses, and 33% purchase eyecare vouchers.Additional findings include:77% ...

  • Article

    Ferrier Pearce launches online rewards portal

    2011-11-11T10:26:31Z

    Ferrier Pearce has introduced an online rewards portal that enables employees to access and interact with all their benefits, even if they are from different providers.The Works - My Total Rewards Hub allows employees to tailor their benefits through personalised resources and interactive tools.The Works, which is accessible from home ...

  • Article

    Lorica launches online portal for auto-enrolment

    2011-11-11T09:34:41Z

    Lorica Employee Benefits has partnered with Staffcare to launch an online portal to assist employers to auto-enrol staff into workplace pensions from 2012.The portal, called Simplicity3, can be linked to any pension scheme provider. It will manage administration of the entire process, ensuring that each employee is opted in or ...

  • Article

    ABI research: Bulk-insured pension fund assets reach £30 billion

    2011-11-10T11:05:02Z

    Bulk-insured pension providers have reported that pension funds under management totaled £30 billion at the end of 2010, according to research by the Association of British Insurers (ABI).The pension schemes of over 600,000 members are now covered by these bulk buy-outs.In response to increased interest, the ABI and the National ...

  • Article

    Headteachers' union backs strike over public sector pensions

    2011-11-10T11:03:40Z

    Headteachers have voted for industrial action in response to the government’s plans for public sector pensions.More than three-quarters (76%) of the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) that took part in a ballot on 9 November voted in favour of strike action.It is the first time in the union’s 114-year ...

  • Article

    Fujitsu to implement pension scheme accounting software

    2011-11-10T11:00:00Z

    Fujitsu and DHL have implemented new pension scheme accounting software.The software, Aviary, is supplied by Profund Solutions, part of JLT’s UK employee benefits business.Katherine Terry, head of pension operations at Fujitsu UK and Ireland, said: “Our incumbent system was not specific to pension fund accounting and we felt there was ...

  • Article

    B&CE targets lower paid, transient workers with new auto-enrolment pension

    2011-11-09T11:22:58Z

    B&CE has introduced a pension scheme, 'The People's Pension', that will assist employers with auto-enrolment duties, particularly those with low to moderate earners and transient workers.The People’s Pension is available across all industry sectors and is designed to offer a low-cost, portable pension.It offers:A range of online tools and systems ...

  • Article

    EXCLUSIVE: Toshiba Information Systems rolls out employee discount scheme

    2011-11-09T00:00:00Z

    Toshiba Information Systems has introduced an employee discount scheme as part of ongoing efforts to improve the benefits on offer to its 250 UK staff.Following an employee survey in April 2011, the consumer electronics firm learned that employees were interested in having access to discounts through the benefits package.The scheme, ...

  • Article

    EXCLUSIVE: Jelf research: Half of employers will offer voluntary benefits because of welfare reforms

    2011-11-09T00:00:00Z

    Almost half (48%) of employers expect to offer more voluntary benefits as a result of government welfare reforms, according to research by Jelf Employee Benefits.The survey, which was conducted in October among 169 small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), found that the reforms introduced in the Welfare Reform Bill 2011, may ...

  • Article

    Animal Health Trust reduces costs with bundled pension and insurance plan

    2011-11-09T00:00:00Z

    Animal Health Trust will bundle together its pension and life assurance benefits to reduce management costs.Its adviser, Creative Benefits will provide the animal charity with advisory and consultancy services for the bundled scheme, provided by insurance firm Aviva.Animal Health Trust previously closed its defined benefit (DB) pension scheme to future ...

  • Article

    Allen & Overy employees stage opera at Sadler’s Wells

    2011-11-09T00:00:00Z

    Allen & Overy staff have staged a production of Bizet’s Carmen at Sadler’s Wells in London to an audience of 1,200.The event raised over £15,000 for the British Red Cross and three East London primary schools: Christ Church, Sir John Cass and Stepney Greencoat.More than 100 members of staff and ...

  • Article

    ABI research: UK employees unsure about employers' sickness absence benefits

    2011-11-08T11:32:16Z

    The majority of employees (77%) that have been off sick for more than three months have received, or are currently receiving, NHS healthcare, according to research by the Association of British Insurers (ABI).The ABI Quarterly Consumer Survey found that employers have paid, or are currently paying for 9% of respondents ...

  • Article

    Aegon UK set to close final salary scheme to future accrual

    2011-11-08T11:16:00Z

    Aegon UK is planning to close its own employee defined benefit (DB) pension scheme to future accrual on 31 March 2013 and remove the link to final salary for calculating pension entitlement from that date.The changes, which are due to be consulted on with employees and unions, are part of ...

  • Article

    ComRes research: City workers believe their colleagues are overpaid

    2011-11-08T10:43:35Z

    Employees in the financial services sector believe that City bond traders, FTSE 100 chief executives and stock brokers are paid too much, according to a survey conducted to mark the 25th anniversary of the ‘Big Bang’ of financial deregulation.The report Value and values: Perceptions of ethics in the City today, ...

  • Article

    Mercer research: UK employers anticipate below inflation pay rises in 2012

    2011-11-08T10:34:38Z

    UK employers anticipate pay rises at 3% which is below inflation, according the Mercer’s TRS Quarterly Pulse Survey.The survey also found that organisations in Western Europe predict that their employees will be given pay rises that average 2.7%; the lowest increase across the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region.Inflation ...

  • Article

    Oracle is awarded Pensions Quality Mark

    2011-11-07T11:28:37Z

    Oracle has been awarded the National Association of Pension Fund's (NAPF) Pensions Quality Mark (PQM) for its new group personal pension.The mypension@oracle scheme, which was installed and communicated by Secondsight in November 2010 through to March 2011 to Oracle's 4,700 UK employees, has been identified as one of the leading ...

  • Article

    Alexander Forbes research: Annuity rates fall across the board

    2011-11-07T11:06:00Z

    Annuity rates are falling across the board, according to the latest figures from Alexander Forbes Annuity Bureau.This month saw across-the-board falls in male single life annuities as providers again cut their rates. Table topper Aviva reduced its rate by £90 to £5,720 per annum, while second placed Canada Life cut ...

  • Article

    Towers Watson research: FTSE 100 pension deficits grew by £27 billion in one week

    2011-11-07T10:34:32Z

    The aggregate deficits of FTSE 100 organisations’ pension deficits grew by £27 billion in one week, according to data from Towers Watson.The consultancy estimates that the deficits of the defined benefit (DB) schemes stood at £8 billion at the beginning of last week, but had increased to £35 billion when ...

  • Article

    London School of Economics research: Senior executives' pay clearly linked to corporate performance

    2011-11-07T10:25:08Z

    Senior executives’ pay is clearly linked to the success of an organisation, according to research by the Centre for Economic Performance and the London School of Economics.The study, Firm Performance and Wages: Evidence from Across the Corporate Hierarchy, found that when an organisation’s performance improves, so does pay, but it ...