All articles by Peta Hodge – Page 2
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Article
Buyer's guide to long-service awards
Key factsWhat are long-service awards?These are awards designed to recognise an employee's loyalty and commitment over anything from one to 40-plus years. Awards can be in the form of cash, but non-cash gifts receive more favourable tax treatment.Where can employers get more information?More information about the tax treatment of long-service ...
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Analysis
Health and wellbeing: Engaging sick employees with return to work objective
If your read nothing else, read this…When dealing with staff suffering from conditions that can potentially led to long-term illness, early intervention, which ideally makes use of occupational health services, is crucial.A good relationship between employee and line manager is key, with the focus on what can be done ‘with’ ...
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Case Studies
Case study: Royal Mail line managers key to support package for sick staff
At Royal Mail, line manager involvement is central to engaging staff in their early recovery and return to work.The firm’s chief medical adviser, Dr Steve Boorman, says: “We did a lot of work on how to manage attendance, and one issue we identified was there was a risk of little ...
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Analysis
Flexible benefits: Benefits take-up boosted by flex
If you read nothing else, read this . . .When a standalone benefit is subsequently incorporated into flex, take-up usually goes up.Even if the employer makes no real effort to improve participation, having all the benefits in one place and annual communication around renewal is enough to have a positive ...
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Case Studies
Case Study: Fidelity
Fidelity National Information Services achieved good results by using face-to-face methods to communicate its group personal pension (GPP) scheme.After a number of acquisitions, the company wanted to harmonise its pensions and provide a new, more competitive scheme. Julie Chell, HR director for EMEA, says: "We were concerned people did not ...
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Analysis
DC pensions need personal communication
If you read nothing else, read this...Increasing emphasis on face-to-face communication could be part of a wider trend among employers to be more actively involved in the governance of their contract-based defined contribution pension schemes.Employers may have overestimated the effectiveness of online communication; staff do not seem to rate it ...
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Analysis
Health cover for employees working in danger spots overseas
If you read nothing else, read this...Staff may be sent to work on short-term assignments in dangerous locations for many reasons.It is worth checking out what cover is available from an employer's private medical insurance (PMI) policies, but business travel insurance may be the best bet for most short-term assignments.International ...
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Analysis
Softening the blow of tax increases for high earners
Reward professionals are looking at ways to ease the impact of this month's tax increases for high earners, says Peta HodgeThis month's tax changes for high earners have been exercising the minds of many professionals involved in the recruitment, retention and reward of key staff. The headline change is the ...
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Analysis
Flexible benefits can boost employee engagement
Company-branded flexible benefits plans can promote engagement and reinforce corporate values, says Peta HodgeOne of the main business reasons for an employer to introduce a flexible benefits scheme is to help its employees engage with the organisation’s brand.Staff who are connected with the brand tend to be more productive and ...
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Analysis
Company share option plans can boost executive reward
Company share option plans can be a useful tax-efficient ingredient of executive reward, says Peta HodgeEver since last April’s Budget, when Chancellor Alistair Darling announced a new 50% tax band for those earning over £150,000 a year from 2010-11, there has been renewed interest in benefits with the potential to ...
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Analysis
Financial education: Be sure to hit your target audience among employees
Making financial education relevant to each employee that receives it is the key to maximising staff awareness and take-up of benefits, says Peta HodgeFinancial illiteracy fuelled the demand for sub-prime mortgage products, led to high personal debts and, ultimately, contributed to the collapse of financial institutions across the world.That was ...
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Analysis
Are career average revalued earnings (Care) pensions a better bet?
If you read nothing else, read this:Based on an employee's average salary, career average revalued earnings (Care) pension schemes are generally lower cost and lower risk than defined benefit plans, but the savings can be modest.Switching from a final salary to a Care scheme only reduces the salary risk as ...
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Case Studies
Case study: Blaenau Gwent County Council
Blaenau Gwent County Council saw the Financial Services Authority's 'Making the most of your money' seminars as a useful benefit to offer staff at a time when many were feeling the pinch financially.Julie Morgan, HR manager at the Welsh council, says: "We felt it was a good employee benefit and ...
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Case Studies
Case study: Axa
Axa's online 'My budget day' resource is at the core of the insurance company's financial education programme for employees.The emphasis is on continuous financial management, with all employees being allowed to take an hour of their working time each month to use the site, which offers a number of interactive ...
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Analysis
Communicating benefits globally
Communicating benefits across the world raises a number of issues that must be resolved, but the effort is worthwhile for international employers, says Peta HodgeAdopting an international strategy to communicate benefits across all the countries in which an organisation operates has many potential difficulties. A multinational company might be operating ...
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Article
Case Study: Childcare voucher provision at E.On
Power company E.On views the provision of childcare vouchers through its flexible benefits plan almost as a moral obligation.Ant Donaldson, senior specialist in employee benefits, says: “I think it would be remiss of us as a major employer not to help people access savings available under the childcare voucher scheme.”By ...
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Analysis
Childcare arrangements for working parents – what benefits employers can offer
Tax and NI relief changes to childcare vouchers are on the way, but employer-provided childcare benefits remain a vital employee benefit, says Peta HodgeThe childcare market suffered a significant blow last month when prime minister Gordon Brown announced the tax and national insurance (NI) breaks on childcare vouchers would be ...
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Case Studies
Case Study: Abbey banks on childcare vouchers
Feedback from staff at Abbey suggests they greatly value the childcare vouchers that are an integral part of the bank’s benefits package.Ian Cunningham, reward consultant at Abbey, says: “Employees are in favour of this benefit as it not only saves them income tax and NI contributions, but it also provides ...
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Article
Health & Wellbeing: Flexible working can reduce staff absence
Flexible working arrangements can help to reduce staff absence levels, but must be deployed in the right way to win employees’ confidence, says Peta HodgeThis was one of the findings of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development’s 2009 Absence management survey, published in July, which also found 56% of ...
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Article
Selecting the right perks for a flexible benefits plan
Flexible benefits plans can help both employers and employees in hard economic times, but any scheme must include the right elements, says Peta HodgeMost organisations find it hard to take radical, positive action in a recession. But if employers are brave enough, this could be the ideal time to restructure ...
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