All articles by Nicola Sullivan – Page 56
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Article
Sharesave bonuses fall
HM Treasury has lowered the bonus rates payable on sharesave schemes in response to falling market swap rates.The new rates are lower than those introduced in December 2008. Employees which sign up to plans after this date will receive a 1.08% bonus, rather than 2.67% on a three year plan. ...
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Article
Pension deficit changes
Amendments to employer debt legislation next month will give organisations more flexibility when settling pension deficits. The changes, to part of the Pensions Act 1995, will come into effect on 6 April. Richard Shelton, partner and head of pensions at Cobbetts, said: “The intention is to remove some of the ...
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Parents’ flexible right extended
An extension to parents’ right to request to work flexibly will come into effect on 6 April, when all staff withchildren aged under 16 years will be eligible to make a request. Currently only parents with disabled children orchildren under six years can do so.
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Analysis
Employers use cost cutting measures to avoid redundancies
As the recession tightens its grip employers are taking a cold look at reward and considering a number of cost cutting measures to avoid making redundancies says Nicola SullivanKey areas to consider are:Reduced working hours Paid sabbaticals Pensions Bonuses Contractual perks Consultation process What to consider when making changes ...
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Interview with Harsha Modha, director of benefits programmes for the UK at GlaxoSmithKline
Harsha Modha, director of benefits programmes for the UK at GlaxoSmithKline, explains how life as a working mother gave her an insight into effective benefitsHaving spent a significant part of her career as a working parent, Harsha Modha, director of benefits programmes for the UK at GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), has personal ...
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Article
New law for employers paying less than minimum wage
The Employment Act 2008, which will be enforced in April, will introduce an automatic fine of up to £5,000 foremployers paying staff less than the minimum wage. Back payments will also be due. In serious cases, courts will be able to issue an unlimited fine.
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Article
Shoosmiths reviews PMI cover
Law firm Shoosmiths is looking to cut the cost of providing private medical insurance (PMI) for its 1,500 employees.The firm, which offers the benefit to 60% of its workforce, wants to renegotiate its deal with current PMI provider Bupa, as well as look at restructuring its provision of the benefit.Shoosmiths ...
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Article
Equality and Human Rights Commission unveils radical proposals for parental leave
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has unveiled radical changes to parental leave to tackle the gender pay gap and give parents more support in bringing up their children.In its Working Better report launched on 30 March, the EHRC proposed that fathers and mothers be given four months of ...
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Article
Buyer's guide to car manufacturers (March 2009)
Corporate car sales have not fallen as much as retail sales, but the entire motor industry has been hit hard by the recession, says Nicola SullivanA number of economic and fiscal factors are currently shaping the development of the UK's company car manufacturing industry. Overall, 2008 was particularly challenging for ...
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Article
Financial Services Authority urges employers to defer two thirds of every large bonus
Financial Services Authority’s (FSA) code of practice on remuneration polices, published on 26 February, said that those setting bonuses in the banking sector should ensure remuneration policies are based on staffs' contribution to the financial performance of the company and responsible attitudes towards risk.Although the code of practice recognised the ...
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Article
Permira staff complain about food during luxury week away
Permira employees on their annual week away were served up burgers at a five-star hotel on the request of the private equity firm's chairman Damon Buffini after one of them complained about the food.Buffini asked for the burgers to be dished up for the high-paid workers, who were staying at ...
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Article
Benefits at Dallas hardware store fail to entice George W Bush
Former US president George W Bush reportedly turned down a job at Dallas-based hardware store Elliots despite the fact the firm promised his role would be a lot less stressful than his last job and would also include a generous employee benefits package.If the former president had taken on the ...
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Analysis
News analysis: Will lower-paid workers be worse of in 2012?
Some lower-paid workers could be worse off when the new pension reforms come into effect in 2012Low-paid staff may not all benefit from changes set to come into effect under 2012 pensions reform legislation due to the impact of auto-enrolment on means-tested benefits. But, despite this, pensions experts have largely ...
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Article
BSkyB gives staff 100 free shares each
BSkyB is awarding each its 16,000 permanent employees free shares worth a total of £7.2 million as part of its 20th anniversary celebrations.The broadcaster will provide each employee with 100 shares with a total value £452.50 (according to the share price on 24 February). Employees will hold the shares for ...
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Article
Northern Rock awards bonuses despite GBP1.4bn losses
Northern Rock is to pay out bonuses to several hundred employees despite the fact the nationalised bank expects to report losses of £1.4 billion for 2008.Around 400 junior management employees, subject to qualifying criteria, with an average annual salary of £21,000 will receive a 10% deferred bonus. A 10% bonus ...
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Article
BP considers salary freezes for some employees
BP confirmed that salary freezes are being considered for some employees that make up its 95,000-strong workforce in the UK and abroad.The firm has denied it will be implementing a company-wide salary freeze but has admitted that the salaries of a number of senior management employees are expected not to ...
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Article
Local authority pension funds could be used to fund school building projects
The organisation responsible for delivering the government’s private finance initiative (PFI) school projects has indicated it wants to dip into local authorities’ pension funds to stump up extra cash for its £55 billion building programme.Addressing delegates at the Building Schools Exhibition and Conference (BSEC), Tim Byles, chief executive of Partnership ...
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Article
Employees asked to pay back fares for flight that landed in New York's Hudson River
Bank of America employees travelling on the flight that landed in New York's Hudson River on 16 January were reportedly asked to refund the cost of their tickets.The 23 employees on board the US Airways flight 1549 were on their way to the bank's head quarters in North Carolina when ...
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Article
Drop in inflation prompts calls for public sector pay freeze
A drop in inflation has promoted calls by the The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) for a pay freeze for public sector workers.It comes as the Office for National Statistics (ONS) confirmed that the inflation rate, measured by the Retail Prices Index (RPI), fell to just 0.1% in ...
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Article
Pay rises set to shrink during the recession
The size of an average pay rise will shrink in 2009 as employers try to keep a tighter reign on pay awards during the recession.According to research released by Labour Market Outlook (LMO), one in eight employers do not plan to make any pay increase at all this year as ...