All articles by David Woods – Page 9
-
Article
Prime minister plans bonuses to boost armed forces' retention
Prime minister Gordon Brown has announced new retention incentives for the armed forces.He has pledged to pay increased commitment bonuses of up to £15,000 to longer-serving personnel and start a £20 million home purchase fund to respond to demand for more affordable home ownership.In his National Security Strategy Statement, Brown ...
-
Article
Willis Group Holdings launches group Sipp
Willis Group Holdings has launched a group self invested personal pension (Sipp) for its UK-based associates.Staff who participate in the firm’s sharesave schemes and other stock plans can transfer their assets in to the group Sipp when they vest and enjoy a tax break. This will allow staff to transfer ...
-
Article
E.ON launches flexible benefits scheme
E.ON has launched a flexible benefits scheme for 12,500 of its 17,500 employees.So far, over 2,500 employees have signed up to the scheme, which includes benefits such as carbon offsetting, a cycle-to-work scheme, travel insurance, life insurance, dental cover and discounted retail vouchers. Employees can also opt for payroll giving, ...
-
Article
CiC partners with The Cancer Counselling Trust
Employee assistance programme provider, CiC has partnered with the Cancer Counselling Trust to provide specialist cancer counselling.The programme is designed to assist individual employees who have been diagnosed with cancer, or who are relatives or friends of cancer patients.The counselling can take place over the phone or face to face ...
-
Article
Ceridian launches HR and payroll system for SMEs
Ceridian has launched an integrated HR and payroll system for organisations with less than 500 employees.Doug Sawyers, managing director of Ceridian in the UK, said: "UK small-to-medium [sized] enterprises (SMEs) have increasingly complex compliance and administrative challenges, often with scant resources. Having reviewed the market, we felt there was a ...
-
Article
Matalan to accept Love2reward vouchers
High street retailer Matalan has opted to accept Love2Shop reward vouchers issued by Park Retail.Rachel Scott, marketing controller at Matalan, said: "We're looking forward to a sustained partnership with Park Retail. Deciding to accept Love2shop, has opened new markets so we are pleased to add our name to the lengthy ...
-
Article
Morgan Crucible sells pensioner liabilities
The Morgan Crucible Company has sold the liabilities for the pensioners in its scheme in a deal worth in excess of £160m to Lucida.This is the largest partial scheme buyout for an on-going pension scheme so far this year.Richard Murphy, partner at Lane Clark and Peacock, which advised Morgan Crucible ...
-
Article
Thompsons Solicitors launches online total reward statements
Thompsons Solicitors has launched online total reward statements to its 800 employees in a bid to improve benefits communication.Vineeta Kaura, head of HR, said: "We wanted to improve communication with employees and decided online total reward statements would raise awareness of the value of their reward package. We really wanted ...
-
Article
Dame Carol Black publishes health and wellbeing recommendations
Employers and the government should invest more in employee health and wellbeing initiatives to reduce the £103bn that sickness absence costs the economy each year, says Dame Carol Black in her report Review of the health of Britain's working age population: Working for a better tomorrow.†The report highlights the fact ...
-
Article
First pensions from solvent employers qualify for government assistance
The first six pension schemes wound up by solvent employers have been admitted to the government's Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS).The scheme, which tops up the pensions of employees belonging to schemes that wound up under-funded, has previously only accepted schemes that had been sponsored by companies that went bust.The first ...
-
Article
Staff feel undervalued by lack of recognition
Only a quarter of employees believe they receive enough praise in the workplace although 72% of staff think it is important to be acknowledged for the work they do.According to research from leadership coaching firm White Water Strategies, two thirds of staff feel under valued by not hearing the words ...
-
Article
Budget 2008: EMI schemes limited to firms with fewer than 250 staff
Enterprise Management Incentive (EMI) schemes are to be limited to companies that have less than 250 members of staff.However, the government has issued measures to increase the individual option grant limit for EMI schemes from £100,000 to £120,000. This means that employees in these schemes will have a higher limit ...
-
Article
Budget 2008: Plans to set CGT at 18% confirmed
The government has confirmed that from 6 April, capital gains tax will be set at 18%.In addition as announced on 24 January, entrepreneurs who own at least a 5% stake in the company they work for will have a reduced tax of 10% on the first £1 million they gain.However, ...
-
Article
Budget 2008: Special remittance of taxation will continue for non-doms
The government has confirmed that the special remittance basis of taxation will continue for non-domiciled UK residents.Adults who have been resident in the UK for seven out of the last ten years will be subject to an annual tax charge of £30,000 on their foreign income and gains they leave ...
-
Article
Harsco installs new pensions administration system
Harsco, an industrial services and engineering group, has installed a new software system to administer its pension scheme, following a tender process.The five-year contract, which will cover all 7,000 scheme members and 3,000 pensioners, will be provided by Xafinity Claybrook.Lynn Bartrum, group pensions manager at Harsco, said: “We were particularly ...
-
Article
Budget 2008: Government eases rules for small pension schemes
The government is to ease the rules on trivial commutation so that pension savings below £2,000 in occupational schemes can be converted into cash.The new measures mean a one-off cash sum can now be paid as an alternative to a regular pension without the scheme member having to obtain details ...
-
Article
Boots launches workplace charity giving scheme
Boots has introduced a payroll giving initiative whereby each of its 65,000 staff members can donate to any charity of their choice through a tax-efficient scheme.As an additional one off gift, Boots will reward each charitable commitment by donating an additional £10 to each employees' charity.Louise O'Reilly, community affairs manager ...
-
Article
David Woods: Reporter, Employee Benefits
Not only is Edinburgh the capital of Scotland, brimming with history and culture, but 'Auld Reekie' as it is often affectionately known by the Scots is also a dynamic financial hub and so a perfect location for the National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF) to hold its 2008 Investment Conference.So, ...
-
Article
NAPF Investment Conference: Personal Accounts "better than nothing"
The government’s proposed national pensions savings system of personal accounts has been roundly defended as being “better than nothing” by the chairman of the Personal Accounts Delivery Authority at the National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF) conference.Speaking at the conference in Edinburgh, Paul Myners, chairman of the Personal Accounts Delivery ...
-
Article
NAPF Investment Conference: Employers urged to provide adequate DC contribution rates
Employers with defined contribution (DC) schemes have been urged to ensure that combined pension contribution rates come to 15%-20% of salary so that employees receive an adequate retirement fund.Delegates at the National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF) Investment Conference were also encouraged to target communication about their pension schemes at ...