All articles by Helen Gilbert
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Case StudiesHavas Group UK helps boost resilience with coaching and Whinge Wednesdays
Integrated marketing and communications agency Havas Group UK employs around 2,000 people in London’s Kings Cross and forms part of a wider global family of 22 agencies.The nature of the business, which works with some of the biggest brands in the world, is demanding, fast paced and ever changing. Unsurprisingly ...
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AnalysisWhat makes a resilient workplace culture thrive?
Need to know:Employers should lead from the top with consistent messages and strategies.They can conduct reviews and invest in resilience-building training.Employee assistance programmes (EAPs) and mental health and wellbeing support should be regularly promoted.If there was ever a year to collectively test our resilience, 2020 was it. Absence management provider ...
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AnalysisTop tips to help employees create a healthy home office
Need to know:Feelings of stress and anxiety around underperformance can arise without the cues an office environment provides.Boundary setting is essential to prevent burnout and overwhelm.Employees have a responsibility to share concerns as soon as possible rather than let problems fester.It’s been one year since the first lockdown but millions ...
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Case StudiesWattbike helps employees stay healthy with home health initiatives
Indoor cycling brand Wattbike is based in Nottingham and employs 75 people, 25 of whom were taken on during the first lockdown.Since that time the business has focused on making teams feel connected, looking after their health and welfare and making it as easy as possible for staff to adapt ...
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ArticleEmployees embrace al-fresco working
Something for the weekend: With the clocks going forward an hour this Sunday (28 March), the promise of long balmy evenings beckons. But now it seems employees are springing into the season with a desire to be outdoors and embracing al-fresco working.A poll of 1,000 UK adults has found that ...
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Article42% of leisure workers would hide mental health issues
As many as 42% of leisure workers would not be honest with their employer about the need to take time off for a mental health issue, a national study has revealed.The Workforce state of mind survey 2021, which polled 1,140 individuals and employers across 81 organisations in the fitness and ...
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ArticleVirgin Care introduces EWA incentive for staff
Photo credit: Virgin CareVirgin Care, the health and social care provider, has unveiled an Earned Wage Access (EWA) incentive for its 4,500 full-time workers.The collaboration with financial wellbeing platform Wagestream is designed to help employees deal with unexpected expenses and prevent financial strain.Under the scheme, individuals will be able to ...
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Case StudiesWe are Adam supports health of employees with a cash plan
Digital recruitment consultancy We Are Adam has offices in Manchester and London, and looks after the health of its 12 members of staff with the provision of a health cash plan through Medicash.Leanne Scaletta, operations director, says: “We have always offered private [medical insurance] but found that very few employees ...
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AnalysisHas the role of health cash plans changed during the pandemic?
Need to know:The use of online counselling, virtual GP services and employee assistance programmes (EAPs) has soared since the start of the pandemic.Health cash plan providers are offering claim period extensions and payment holidays to help employees.The importance of providing all-round health support, as cash plans do, has become ever-more ...
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ArticleTime to send employees to sleep?
Something for the weekend: The arrival of World Sleep Day today (19 March) cannot have come too soon for many of us, as the nation struggles with lockdown lack of sleep thanks to the stress of Covid-19 (Coronavirus), remote working and a lack of routine.Now new research by sleep experts ...
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ArticleEXCLUSIVE: BT discusses what reward will look like in a post-Covid world
Employee Benefits Insights 2021: Megan O’Shaughnessy, head of reward at BT, detailed the "growing importance of flexible reward strategies post-Covid" at the online event.O’Shaughnessy acknowledged that many organisations may not be in a position to offer traditional reward levers such as pay rises, bonuses or long-term incentive plans as a ...
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ArticleEXCLUSIVE: Shortcut AS highlights the importance of human communication
Employee Benefits Insights 2021: Astrid Sundberg, chief HR officer and mobile app developer at Shortcut AS, discussed 'How to connect with employees during difficult times' during her presentation at the virtual event.In her address yesterday (17 March), Sundberg spoke about the importance of written communication, messenger tools, people analytics software ...
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ArticleEXCLUSIVE: Brunel University details cost-effective benefits
Employee Benefits Insights 2021: Hazel Robinson, associate director, human resources, HR reward and wellbeing at Brunel University, London, discussed ‘How to make benefits rewarding and engaging without costing the earth’ at the virtual event yesterday (17 March).Robinson acknowledged that the Covid-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic had caused many people to become disengaged ...
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ArticleEmployee Benefits prepares for Insights Online Series
Employee Benefits Insights online series, which explores the latest trends and solutions in reward strategies for 2021 and beyond, starts on Monday (15 March).The four-day event will see industry experts take to the virtual stage to share their first-hand experience and knowledge during keynote addresses, as well as practical 'How ...
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ArticleAldi on the hunt for cracking Easter egg tasters
Something for the weekend: Aldi is on the hunt for three cracking connoisseurs to road test a selection of its Easter eggs and get paid in chocolate. Yes, really. No yolk.The retailer is offering an eggsciting opportunity for recruits who have an "infatuation for confectionery, experimental taste buds and bucketloads ...
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ArticleEXCLUSIVE: Danone to discuss how to make inclusion and belonging matter
Danone will share details of its three-pronged approach to diversity and inclusion at this month's Employee Benefits Insights 2021 event.Opening keynote speaker Putri Realita, the food company's global head of diversity and inclusion, will explore how organisations can embed this into their business agenda.The talk, to be held on 15 ...
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ArticlePawternity leave among the perks employees really want
Something for the weekend: Work perks have long been used by employers to inject a feel-good factor into the lives of employees and as a tool to retain top talent, but benefits such as paid pawternity leave haven't always made the cut.Now a new UK poll of 2,000 people by ...
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ArticleIncome tax thresholds frozen until 2026
Budget 2021: Income tax thresholds will be frozen until 2026, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak said today (3 March).Setting out plans to help the UK recover from the £407 billion spent on Covid-19 (Coronavirus) support measures, he revealed the personal income tax allowance would rise with CPI as planned ...
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ArticleNational living wage to increase by £345 per year
Budget 2021: The national living wage (NLW) is to rise by £345 a year from April, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak confirmed in the Budget today (3 March).Under the plans, the existing rate of £8.72 an hour will increase by 19p to £8.91 – equivalent to £345 annually for ...
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ArticlePensions lifetime allowance frozen until April 2026
Budget 2021: The pensions lifetime allowance (LTA) limit will be frozen for five years, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak confirmed in his Budget 2021 speech.Under the plans, LTA will be held at its current level of £1,073,100 until April 2026.The measure is one of a number designed to freeze ...