All articles by Debbie Lovewell-Tuck – Page 49
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Article
Employee Benefits/Worplace Savings Research 2011: Investment
Employers are grasping the importance of adequate default funds and ensuring employees understand their investment choices, says Debbie Lovewell†More than three-quarters of respondents that offer a defined contribution (DC) pension scheme include at least one default investment fund for staff who do not choose to make active investment decisions. Some ...
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Employee Benefits Workplace Savings and Pensions Research 2011: Contributions
Many employers are already contributing more to their pension schemes than will be required under the Pensions Act 2008, says Debbie Lovewell†When the Pensions Act 2008 begins to come into effect next year, employers will be required to auto-enrol all eligible employees into either a qualifying workplace pension scheme or ...
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Employee Benefits Workplace Savings Research 2011: Attitudes
Most employers are getting serious about ensuring their employees' long-term financial wellbeing, but some feel they should be doing more, says Debbie LovewellDespite sensationalised press coverage to the contrary, employers appear to take their responsibility for employees' long-term financial wellbeing seriously. Nine years ago, 51% of respondents said they felt ...
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Employee Benefits Workplace Savings and Pensions Research 2011: Schemes on offer
As the move from DB to DC pension schemes continues, employers are helping staff take a more holistic approach to workplace savings, says Debbie Lovewell†Just 4% of respondents now only operate a DB arrangement, while 71% only offer DC and 25% offer both types of scheme. More than half (54%) ...
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Employee Benefits Workplace Savings and Pensions Research 2011: Legislation
Employers are focusing on the effects of next year’s pension reforms, including how to mitigate any increased costs from compliance, says Debbie LovewellWith the Pensions Act 2008 due to begin taking effect next year, employers must increasingly consider the impact it will have on their pension schemes and plan how ...
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Article
Employee Benefits Workplace Savings and Pensions Research 2011: Key Findings
Our survey, which was carried out in June 2011 among readers of Employee Benefits magazine and users of www.employeebenefits.co.uk, received 261 responses†KEY FINDINGS 74% say complying with the 2012 pension reforms will increase costs. 38% intend to review future pay increases to help fund compulsory employer contributions, while 30% will ...
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Employee Benefits Workplace Savings and Pensions Research 2011
Key findingsLegislationSchemes on offerAttitudesContributionsInvestment†Editor’s commentThere is now just over a year to go until the Pensions Act 2008 comes into effect for the first tranche of employers.Planning for the reforms and considering the impact compliance is likely to have on their pensions provision and overall costs will be an increasing ...
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Article
Heath Lambert Consulting becomes Gallagher Employee Benefits
Heath Lambert Consulting has been renamed Gallagher Employee Benefits following its acquisition of Arthur J Gallagher and Co in May.Michael Brown, chief executive of Gallagher Employee Benefits, said: “Becoming a member of the Gallagher group of professionals enables us to broaden the services we deliver and where we deliver them, ...
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Article
Close Asset Management research: Employers unaware of RDR
Just a third of employers are aware of the implications of the Retail Distribution Review (RDR) and the planned regulatory changes in response to that, according to research by financial education provider Close Asset Management.Although these changes could impact on their benefits packages and benefits providers, 69% of employers said ...
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Article
Employee Benefits Summit 2011: Communications must be transparent to fully engage staff
Honesty and transparency are essential attributes for reward communications in order to engage employees, particularly at a time when pay increases may remain low.Speaking in a panel debate on the second day of the Employee Benefits Summit 2011, Craig Truter, reward manager at Centrica, said that the best reward messages ...
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Case Studies
Case study: PWC calculates best options for flex
PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) considers several factors when deciding which benefits to include within flex.Carolyn Wilkinson, benefits leader at PWC, says its flex plan includes perks that can make employees' lives easier, such as travel insurance; look after the employee and their family, such as critical illness cover; and result in tax ...
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Analysis
Which benefits should be part of flexible benefits schemes?
If you read nothing else, read this... Some benefits may work better when offered on a core or voluntary basis rather than in a flexible benefits plan. Factors determining how to offer a benefit include: cost, employee demographics, an employer's objectives in offering the benefit, and how often staff will ...
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Benefits Research 2011: Benefits strategies
The economic difficulties of the past few years have inevitably left their mark on organisations. Tough circumstances have seen employers focus on getting the best possible return for their investment, while working to sustain staff motivation and engagement through difficult situations, such as redundancies and other cost-cutting exercises.These remain key ...
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Analysis
Debbie Lovewell, deputy editor of Employee Benefits: Battle goes on to get the best value from benefits
Although the country has been out of recession for a couple of years now, employers are still facing a number of challenges posed by the economic climate. In particular, budgeting for benefits in a stagnant economy can cause headaches for benefits professionals as they try to strike a balance between ...
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Benefits Research 2011: Responsibility for and branding of benefits
Who is responsible for organisations' benefits decisions has changed little in recent years. As reward, compensation and benefits have increasingly been recognised as an HR specialism, the profession has seen a rise in status. This is reflected in an increase in responsibility given to compensation and benefits or reward directors ...
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Article
Benefits Research 2011: How employers offer benefits
Most employers still offer traditional core benefits to at least some of their employees. But beyond this, where employers offer benefits through another mechanism, the market has seen a significant shift in the way perks are offered, largely because of product and provider evolution.In recent years, this has resulted in ...
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Benefits Research 2011: Core benefits provision
Apart from the occasional switching of the benefits in first and second place, there has been little change in the top core benefits offered to all staff over the past seven years. This year, life assurance (also known as death in service) is the most commonly offered core benefit just ...
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Benefits Research 2011: Voluntary benefits provision
Voluntary benefits schemes have advantages for both employers and employees. For employers, they can be a cheap, cost-effective way to offer benefits, particularly if budgets are limited, or they are looking to provide something extra at little additional cost. For employees, voluntary benefits can help stretch their salaries a bit ...
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Benefits Research 2011: Benefits offered through salary sacrifice
Given the tax and national insurance (NI) savings that are up for grabs when offering tax-efficient benefits through salary sacrifice, it is perhaps not surprising that 93% of respondents offer benefits on this basis to some, if not all, of their workforce. This is a rise of six percentage points ...
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Benefits Research 2011: Flexible benefits provision
Flexible benefits schemes have attracted a lot of attention from employers, but this has been relatively slow to translate into action. Although the number of employers offering flex schemes continues to rise, it has typically been at a much slower rate than for voluntary and salary sacrifice schemes. This year, ...