All articles by Katrina McKeever – Page 6
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Autralian Navy given two month's Christmas leave
Most of Australia’s navy has been given two month's leave over the Christmas period in a bid to make naval life appear more family friendly and boost recruitment.All ships that are not on overseas operations have been ordered to return to port and crews onboard will be reduced to a ...
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UBS announces new executive compensation plan
UBS is to adopt a new compensation strategy for its board of directors and group executive board after canceling this year's bonuses for its top executives.From 2009, variable cash and equity compensation for the group executive board will be based on a bonus/malus (which is Latin meaning good and bad ...
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Pension Protection Fund consults on including longer-term risk in levy
The Pension Protection Fund (PPF) has launched a consultation on including the individual longer-term risk of schemes in future levy calculations.The consultation sets out the PPF's proposals to make the pension protection levy paid by eligible pension schemes more tailored to the individual risk that each scheme poses to it. ...
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Employers urged to help fight obesity through their health and wellbeing strategies
Helping employees fight obesity will lead to a healthier and in turn more productive workforce, say experts.As National Obesity Week draws to a close, Dr Colin Waine, who chaired the national Obesity Forum for three years, has called on employers to support staff in the workplace by providing healthy food ...
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Unemployment reaches eleven-year high
The number of people out of work in the UK has reached an 11 year high. Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) released today show a jump of 140,000 in the three months to September to 1.82 million.This follows the announcement of 5,000 job losses yesterday, with Vodafone, ...
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Pre-Budget report set to include tax cuts to boost economy
Tax cuts to boost the economy are likely to be included in the Pre-Budget report which is due to be unveiled on Monday, 24 November.In an interview on GMTV yesterday, Gordon Brown hinted at possible future tax cuts funded by a temporary increase in borrowing with the aim of getting ...
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Credit crunch drives take-up of cycle-to-work schemes
The economic downturn is thought to be driving a boom in cycle-to-work schemes as increasing numbers of staff are signing up to the benefits to save money on their commute.The number of staff opting to take up bikes has risen threefold on the same period last year, according to several ...
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New Pensions Bill changes will help employers
New measures designed to ease the administrative and financial burdens on employers running their own pension schemes when personal accounts come into effect have been announced by Pensions Minister, Rosie Winterton.Following discussions with stakeholders, employers will now be able to self certify that their pension scheme meets the quality standard ...
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SBJ Group acquires pension firm EB Consultants
Employee benefits consultancy firm SBJ Group has announced today that it has acquired EB Consultants, a specialist fee-based actuarial and pensions administration firm.The expansion will see Surrey-based EB Consultants, which employs 50 people, come under the banner of SBJ in the new year, when the company will be rebranded under ...
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BT overhauls final salary pension scheme
BT is planning to overhaul its defined benefit (DB) pension scheme after its deficits rose by an estimated £5bn this year to approximately £16bn, as well as review its defined contribution plan.The telecoms group is considering raising the retirement age from 60 to 65 years, increasing employee contributions and switching ...
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National Express extends sharesave scheme
National Express has launched a new sharesave scheme which has been extended to National Express East Coast (NXEC) for the first time.The move follows a successful bid by National Express to take over the contract to run the East Coast Main Line franchise from GNER last year.National Express had previously ...
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University of Glasgow switches staff to salary sacrifice pension plan
The University of Glasgow has automatically enrolled employees into a salary sacrifice arrangement for making pension contributions.The university administers two defined benefit schemes: its own final salary plan and the industry-wide Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS). Members of both were automatically placed into the salary sacrifice arrangement, but given the opportunity ...
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Analysis
Bonuses in financial services sector come under scrutiny
Executive bonuses in the financial sector have come under scrutiny in the wake of the global banking crisis. Both the government and the Financial Services Authority (FSA) have been quick to condemn some top-level remuneration practices in the City on the grounds that these encouraged excessive risk-taking in the banking ...
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Analysis
Benefits for staff in Croatia
Croatian employees regard performance-related pay and opportunities for professional training as being more valuable than benefits such as pensions or healthcare, says Katrina McKeeverThe Republic of Croatia is gearing up for entry into the European Union in 2010 and its labour force is readying itself for fresh opportunities. International companies ...
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Analysis
Impact of Welfare Reform Act on absence management
The introduction of the Welfare Reform Act could prompt employers to take a fresh look at what steps they can take to help long-term absentees return to the workplace, explains Katrina McKeeverThe Welfare Reform Act, which came into effect last month, is the government's latest move to reform the welfare ...
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Tesco launches financial education for staff
Tesco has launched a financial education programme for its 280,000 employees.†The retailer will distribute a guide to personal finance published by the Financial Services Authority (FSA). Just the facts about making the most of your money, to all its UK workforce. The guide is designed to help staff manage their ...
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Employers plan redundancy pay above statutory minimum
Employers expect to make more redundancies in the year ahead, but half plan to offer severance awards above the statutory minimum.The Labour Market Outlook Redundancy Special survey by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development and KPMG found that 50% of employers offer redundancy deals above the statutory minimum. This ...
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Heath Lambert introduces new healthcare perks
Heath Lambert Group has introduced a case management service for its private medical insurance (PMI) scheme and a healthcare cash plan for its 1,500 employees. Under the new arrangement, the insurance broker will continue to self insure its own PMI cover but the BHSF-provided healthcare cash plan will pick up ...
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Alexander Forbes Financial Services appoints new HR director
Alexander Forbes Financial Services has appointed John Hubner as the company’s new HR Director.Hubner will lead the HR team at Alexander Forbes, which he joins from Legal & General where he held the role of head of HR for service operations, followed by head of HR for sales, protection and ...
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Pension Protection Fund's deficit could increase during downturn
The Pension Protection Fund (PPF) has warned its deficit could increase as more organisations become insolvent during the economic downturn.This will be a marked change from the 2007/08 financial year, during which it managed to reduce its deficit from £609m to £517m, according to the PPF's annual report. Chairman Lawrence ...