Opinion – Page 5
-
OpinionAvril England: What comes next for staff in the event of a takeover?
Following the confirmation that sale terms have been agreed, all the staff will automatically transfer to the buyer under the provisions of the Transfers of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (Tupe).Tupe implements European laws designed to protect employees whose contracts of employment are in effect transferred to a ...
-
OpinionDr Duncan Brown: Should we focus on a different approach to total reward?
How is your total reward strategy holding up these days? Not that well I warrant, following the ravages of two years of the Covid-19 (Coronavirus) health crisis and now facing the onslaught of the worst cost-of-living crisis in living memory. So what is the problem with the common total reward ...
-
OpinionDavid Phillips: Money talks, but employees care about more than just salary
Attracting and retaining talent in a post-pandemic world is proving challenging for employers, with a rising cost of living, increases in national insurance and a surge in fuel prices leading many workers to seek new roles in pursuit of higher pay.In City & Guilds’ Great Jobs research, published in February ...
-
OpinionLovewell's logic: Judging excellence
Earlier this week I had the pleasure of judging this year’s Employee Benefits Awards. This is always a part of my job that I really enjoy. Call me nosy, but I find it fascinating seeing what organisations have put in place for their staff and the strategies behind these.This was ...
-
OpinionIan Hodson: 2022 will be the year to reset reward strategies
Covid-19 (Coronavirus) has certainly impacted the last couple of years, and for many agendas has served as an accelerator in respect of its impact on the ways we work, our wellbeing priorities and how we interact with our colleagues and balance work and home.I believe 2022 will give reward professionals ...
-
OpinionCharles Cotton: Flexible working should be a focus point in 2022
Reward professionals have been busy responding to an increasingly tight labour market in the latter half of 2021. While skill and labour shortages have been felt across the board, they have been most acute in hospitality, haulage, health and social care, with bonuses and pay increases being used to counter ...
-
OpinionKirsty Pake: How to solve a problem like pension scams
To quote the Department of Work and Pensions: “pension scams are a menace”. Until now, trustees’ hands were tied where a member had a statutory right to transfer their benefits and, even in cases where the receiving arrangement appeared to be a scam, they were obliged to make the transfer.Regulations ...
-
OpinionTim Tyndall: FCA employees facing pay and benefits changes
Following a flurry of interest in the proposed changes to pay and benefits at the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), most notably from unions keen to look after members and to attract new ones, the FCA chose to publish its consultation document aimed at its employees to a wider audience.In opening, ...
-
OpinionKate Brown: How to avoid reduced pay and benefits impacting staff engagement
At the beginning of October, British Airways announced plans to rehire some 3,000 employees after cutting around 10,000 jobs in the peak of the Covid-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic last year. The airline has been heavily criticised in the press for re-engaging staff on less favourable terms, including reduced pay and benefits.This ...
-
OpinionProfessor Alex Bryson: Has the pandemic changed how to motivate employees?
Debate on how to motivate employees goes way back. Employers have two sets of tools in their toolbox. The first are pecuniary rewards, so beloved by economists, for extrinsic motivation: more money, and linking pay to performance can deliver greater worker effort if designed properly. The second are the non-pecuniary ...
-
OpinionJeff Fox: The future of total reward and what businesses need to do today
Over the past 18 months the world of work has changed immensely. The Covid-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic has altered not only our patterns of working, but also the expectations employees have of their organisations.The workforce has adapted to become more agile and flexible, but in order for employees to stay engaged, ...
-
OpinionCharles Cotton: Total reward can help attract and motivate staff in a turbulent job market
Under a total reward approach, all aspects of the employee experience are recognised, with focus given to non-financial rewards alongside pay and those perks with a monetary value. Examples of the non-financial elements making up total reward include access to career development training, freedom and autonomy, supportive line managers, recognition ...
-
OpinionStephen Perkins: Can an agile reward strategy deliver an employer’s philosophy?
My answer about whether an agile reward strategy can deliver an employer’s philosophy is yes, provided there is honesty and openness among all concerned about what holding fast to the corporate reward philosophy means. The offer may be to recognise predictably what workforce members contribute over the longer term.Alternatively, offer ...
-
OpinionJulie Morris and Michelle Last: Should fertility support be a statutory right?
The number of people undergoing fertility treatment in the UK increases steadily each year. In 2019, more than 53,000 patients underwent around 69,000 fertility treatments. While we await the latest data, this upward trend means it is increasingly likely that employers will be faced with requests for work absences from ...
-
OpinionCrystal Hoole: Motivating employees requires a holistic reward approach
Many organisations talk about total reward strategies, but in reality, they focus purely on extrinsic motivational factors such as financial rewards to motivate and compensate their staff. While this may be effective to attract talent initially, it may not be adequate to retain key talent or motivate employees in difficult ...
-
OpinionSusan Kelly: Don’t discount changes to Tupe just yet
We’re barely a couple of months into our post-EU lives, and already there has been strong speculation about how workers’ future protections might change.Just a few weeks ago came the news that business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng was reviewing job protections; a move much criticised as signalling the start of the ...
-
OpinionKsenia Zheltoukhova: 2021 could bring an opportunity to reset benefits strategies
This is the year to carefully consider the psychology of employee benefits: having experienced fundamental shocks to their lives, people will be re-evaluating what matters to them, and how work fits in. This is an opportunity for employers to listen to their staff to understand what is of value to ...
-
OpinionColin Barnes: Employee benefits: Adapting to the future of work, today
There is no doubt 2020 will be a year to remember. It was fraught with difficulties and challenges, and for many bereavement. But, at the same time, the Covid-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic has also brought about a seismic shift in how we operate and function as a society.It has accelerated technology ...
-
OpinionLovewell's logic: Farewell for now!
It feels a little strange to say during the second week of January, but I’ve officially reached the end of my working year. This blog will be my last (for a while) as, from next week, I’ll be heading off on maternity leave.Pregnancy during a pandemic has certainly been a ...
-
OpinionStephen Morrall and Hannah Solel: Improved benefits for gig workers may become the new norm
The big players in the gig economy, such as Uber, Addison Lee, Citisprint and Pimlico Plumbers, provide a system of working for thousands of people that some think is flexible and forward-looking, but others regard as insecure and exploitative.Certainly, organisations such as these have tried their level best to argue ...