All articles by Jennifer Paterson – Page 185
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Marks and Spencer staff to share £80mn bonus pot
More than 50,000 Marks and Spencer employees will split an £80 million bonus pot.Depending on the hours worked, staff at the retail chain will receive between £200 and £500 each in bonus payments.Announced as part of the final trading update from Sir Stuart Rose, who is due to step down ...
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Shoosmiths appoints Suzanne Burrell as pensions specialist
Suzanne Burrell has joined the law firm Shoosmiths as a partner and pensions specialist.Moving over from Mayer Brown International, where she was most recently a senior associate, Burrell brings with her experience advising trustees and sponsoring employers of occupational pension schemes.While advising companies on pensions matters, such as the issues ...
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Stephen Watson promoted at Alexander Forbes
Stephen Watson has been named head of defined contribution (DC) delivery for Alexander Forbes Financial Services. Before his appointment Watson held the position of new business consultant with the company since 2006.In 2001, Watson founded a specialist risk management company in Johannesburg, South Africa called Fusionry, which he headed as ...
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AA patrol staff vote to strike over pension scheme
AA patrol staff have voted to strike in a dispute over proposed changes to the company's pension schemes, raising the threat of the first walkout in the motoring organisation’s 105-year history. The first of a series of two-day strikes will begin on 2 May.A consultation on the proposed changes, which ...
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Johnson Service Group introduces new payroll and HR system
Johnson Service Group (JSG) has introduced a new payroll and hosted HR system for the 2,500 employees within its textile service division.JSG has signed a five-year contract with NorthgateArinso to supply its ResourceLink Aurora, which is accessible online.Avi Kar, financial director at JSG, said: “We needed a firm to provide ...
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Benefits cost can be reduced by shopping around
Employers could save up to 20% of the cost of their insured benefits by shopping around for a better deal.According to research by consultancy Mercer, employers could save between 10 and 15% of their premium costs in cases where the benefits remain with their existing provider, but they can secure ...
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Most effective employer brand is supported by employee rewards
Integrating employer branding and reward strategy can help position companies positively for the upturn, according to a new report from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) and consultancy Mercer.The report, Employer Branding and Total Reward, draws from a survey of 44 organisations, a panel discussion and nine case ...
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Pension contributions decrease during recession
Almost half (45%) of independent financial advisers (IFAs) have seen a reduction in pension contributions among employers during the recession.According to Aegon's latest IFA Insights research, which interviewed 100 IFAs that deal with corporate clients, 45% have also seen increased use of salary sacrifice arrangements around pension contributions.†A further 60%, ...
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HBOS hands bulk of pension scheme management to Legal and General
HBOS pension trustees have handed the bulk of the management of its multi-billion pound pension scheme to Legal and General.Since Lloyds TSB's takeover of HBOS, there have been a number of structural changes to HBOS' and Lloyds TSB's pension and fund management arms, including the sale of Insight, the HBOS ...
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Generation Financial Services launches employee benefits division
Generation Financial Services has introduced an employee benefits division.The new division will be integrated at board level with the company’s core independent financial advice (IFA) business.As well as offering the implementation, management and administration of employee benefits, it will also provide fee-based consultancy, either as a standalone service or within ...
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CBI calls for public sector pensions to be reformed
Public sector pensions must shift from unsustainable final salary models to a more affordable system to contain a burden of £1 trillion on the taxpayer.According to the report Getting a grip: the route to reform of public sector pensions by the Confederation of British Industry, due to an unpredictable guarantee ...
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Public sector ahead of private sector in pay race
Public sector employees have seen their pay packets, including salary and pensions, increase at nearly double the rate of their counterparts in the private sector.According to research by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) and funded by the IFS Retirement Savings Consortium, public sector pay grew more rapidly than private ...
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Friends Provident introduces corporate investment platform
Friends Provident is launching a new corporate investment platform aimed at employee benefit consultants and trustees in the unbundled pensions market.Developed in partnership with FNZ, the investment platform is the first stage of Friends Provident’s new corporate savings platform, which will be rolled out later this year.Key features of the ...
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PensionDCisions research: most DC plans to review default option
More than half (54%) of defined contribution (DC) plans intend to review or change their default strategy in the near term. This figure is up from 20% in 2009.The findings are part of the 2010 PensionDCisions UK Sponsor Default Survey, which polled 62 large UK plans, representing 630,000 DC members ...
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Gala Coral Group outsources fleet management
Gala Coral Group will be outsourcing the management of its 300 company cars and 180 grey fleet cars to Fleet Alliance.In line with the betting and gaming conglomerate’s environmental policy of reducing the CO2 emissions of its fleet, all new vehicles will have a CO2 level of 160g per km ...
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Cigna launches a new private medical insurance plan
Cigna Healthcare has launched a new private medical insurance (PMI) plan for employers with 150 to 400 employees.The Smarter Health plan includes a managed care service that provides access to a nurse throughout the course of an employee's treatment.In addition, the plan provides the employer with the ability to restrict ...
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First Great Western introduces employer-funded cash plans
First Great Western has launched employer-funded healthcare cash plans for its 4,800 staff members across the UK.The scheme, provided by Health Shield, went live at the beginning of the month. Prior to the scheme being introduced cash plans were only offered as a voluntary benefit and were taken up by ...
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ING Car Lease introduces onsite servicing for company fleets
ING Car Lease has launched an onsite maintenance and repair service for fleets running company cars and light commercial vehicles.The new service allows employees to schedule vehicle maintenance or repairs at their convenience, for instance, during the working day while their car is in the workplace car park.Additionally, employees can ...
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Alliance Medical signs fleet management contract
Alliance Medical has outsourced the management of its 300 company cars to Zenith Provecta.Zenith Provecta will provide servicing, maintenance, accident and risk management to the independent diagnostic imaging company. The firm's employees will also have access to an account manager who will look after their fleet management needs from one ...
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Aviva UK Health expands free cover limit on group life policies
Aviva UK Health is to increase its maximum free cover limit on its group life policy from £1.75 million to £1.8 million.The change, which will effect approximately 3,000 people, applies to all new and existing Aviva group life schemes that are started or renewed on or after 1 April 2010.Steve ...