All articles by Debbie Lovewell-Tuck – Page 47
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Article
Employee Benefits/Cigna UK HB Healthcare Research 2012
Download a PDF of the Employee Benefits/Cigna UK HB Healthcare Research 2012Editor’s comment:Our 14th annual healthcare research reflects the pressures many employers are experiencing because of the current economic climate. As the UK has once again entered into recession, more than half of our respondents say they have come under ...
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Article
Healthcare research 2012: Key Findings
Our survey was carried out in April 2012, with analysis based on 216 responses from Employee Benefits readers and users of www.employeebenefits.co.uk††††Read more Healthcare research 2012
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Article
Healthcare research 2012: Stress
More than half of respondents now have specific benefits or strategies to tackle stress in the workplace, and concern for staff wellbeing is the main driver, says Debbie LovewellThis year has seen a big rise in the percentage of respondents that have implemented specific benefits or strategies to tackle stress. ...
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Article
Healthcare research 2012: Current issues
Healthcare benefits are being used increasingly to help employees cope with stress, while fit notes have had little impact on the workplace so farThe difficult economic climate of the past few years has affected people in numerous ways. For many, a recurring theme has been increased pressure and stress, be ...
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Article
Healthcare research 2012: International
More than half of respondents have a business presence outside the UK, and healthcare benefits are a key attraction for employees working abroad, says Debbie LovewellIn the light of new, rapidly growing markets across the globe, it is perhaps unsurprising that the percentage of respondents with operations or divisions outside ...
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Article
Healthcare research 2012: Benefits offered
Employee assistance programmes' rise in popularity continues as employers seek to support staff who may be under pressure for a variety of reasons, says Debbie LovewellThe top core healthcare benefits have changed little in recent years, although the order in which they are ranked has altered slightly. For the second ...
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Article
Healthcare research 2012: Changes
The economy has put employers under increasing pressure to reduce the cost of benefits, with many seeking better deals from providers and insurers, says Debbie LovewellAs the economic climate has deteriorated once again over the past year, more than half (57%) of respondents say they have come under increased pressure ...
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Article
Healthcare research 2012: Attitudes
Cost remains the dominant influence on employers’ decisions to provide healthcare benefits, but most still do not measure the return on their investment, says Debbie LovewellSince 2006, cost has remained the most important factor influencing employers’ decisions to buy, or to continue to offer, healthcare benefits. Cost and obtaining the ...
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Opinion
Debbie Lovewell: Employers under pressure to reduce costs
Our 14th annual healthcare research reflects the pressures many employers are experiencing because of the current economic climate. As the UK has once again entered into recession, more than half of our respondents say they have come under increased pressure to reduce costs over the past 12 months.To tackle this ...
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Article
Healthcare research 2012: Sickness absence
Reactive perks such as employee assistance programmes and private medical insurance have risen in importance as ways to help reduce sickness absence, says Debbie LovewellBenefits designed to help employers manage employees’ mental and physical wellbeing top the list of methods to reduce sickness absence levels. This year, respondents cite employee ...
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Article
CIPD conference: G4S structures pay policy from the top down
Executive employees at security services firm G4S have proposed a pay freeze for themselves during 2012.This is the second time they have done so, following a previous freeze in 2009, demonstrating the organisation’s top-down approach to pay policy, said Matthew Davies, group compensation and benefits manager at G4S.Speaking at the ...
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Article
More than 300 extra employers to join real-time information pilot
A further 310 employer schemes are to join the real-time information (RTI) pilot following its launch last month.The additional employers will join the pilot between 8 May and the end of June 2012.More than 100,000 employee records have been successfully received by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) since 10 volunteer ...
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Article
Benefits research 2012: Legislation
This year will finally see the introduction of legislation under the Pensions Act 2008. From October, the first tranche of employers (those with more than 120,000 staff) will be required to comply with the reforms, which will see the introduction of automatic enrolment to a qualifying pension scheme, compulsory minimum ...
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Article
Benefits research 2012: International benefits
The number of employers that operate a global benefits framework has grown in the last few years.Offering benefits on this basis can offer several advantages for employers. As well as achieving cost and efficiency savings, it can also help an organisation build a single, overarching benefits brand that is recognisable ...
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Article
Benefits research 2012: Changes to benefits provision
Keeping a benefits package fresh and relevant is the best way to ensure it continues to keep staff interested and engaged with what is on offer. In the past year, just under half (44%) of respondents said they had introduced a new benefit to the mix.Failing to hold employees' interest ...
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Article
Benefits research 2012: Flexible benefits
Despite all the attention and discussion that flexible benefits schemes have generated over the years, they have never really taken off in the same way as other mechanisms for offering benefits. Although the number of employers offering flex to at least some of their workforce has grown over the years, ...
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Article
Benefits research 2012: Salary sacrifice
Given the tax and national insurance (NI) savings that are available when offering tax-efficient benefits via a salary sacrifice arrangement, it is perhaps not surprising that the proportion of respondents offering perks in such a way has remained consistently high in recent years.Back in 2004, 69% of respondents offered benefits ...
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Article
Benefits research 2012: Voluntary benefits
Voluntary benefits schemes have a number of advantages for both employers and employees, so it is perhaps unsurprising that the percentage of respondents offering perks on this basis has risen year on year. During the ongoing economic downturn, when benefits budgets may tight or non-existent, voluntary schemes can be a ...
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Article
Benefits research 2012: Core benefits
Over the past eight years, there has been little change in the top core benefits that employers offer to all staff. As in 2004, 2010 and 2011, this year, life assurance (also known as death in service) is the most commonly offered core benefit.In third place comes counselling or employee ...
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Article
Benefits research 2012: Benefits package
TYPES OF BENEFIT ON OFFERThe evolution and complexity of employee benefits have led to myriad definitions. For the purpose of this research, we have used the following:Core packageThe traditional package of employer paid benefits in which employees can now opt out of, or switchbetween, perks.Flexible benefitsA package of employer-paid benefits ...