All articles by Robert Crawford – Page 45
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Article
The Pensions Regulator publishes DC code
The code, which came into effect on 21 November 2013, sets out how pension trustees can meet the requirements of pensions legislation.It had been the subject of a consultation earlier in 2013.The guidance provides information, education and assistance on good-practice standards of governance and behaviours that relate to delivering good ...
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Analysis
Health cash plan market round-up
If you read nothing else, read this…Health cash plans remain an attractive, low-cost healthcare benefit for all employees.Choice of healthcare providers is growing to meet demand.Providers are expanding their plans to offer a wider choice of benefits.There are currently 26 providers offering health cash plans in the UK following the ...
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AnalysisWhat is the future shape of salary sacrifice car schemes?
If you read nothing else, read this…Fleet providers have begun to introduce electric cars under a salary sacrifice arrangement.Almost half (48%) of employers are considering introducing salary sacrifice.Policies can be put in place to prevent the salary sacrifice risks associated with maternity leave and long-term employee absence.In November 2013, fleet ...
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Article
BA switches DC pension investments
British Airways (BA) has switched the investment options available through its trust-based defined contribution (DC) pension scheme in order to lower pension scheme charges.Under its new arrangement, provided by BlackRock, the annual management charge (AMC) will reduce from 0.23% to 0.15%.Since its auto-enrolment staging date in January 2013, 13,500 of ...
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Article
Finmeccanica has low pensions opt-out post auto-enrolment
Finmeccanica Group has achieved 99.3% pension take up after auto-enrollling employees at its two main UK operations into its trust-based defined contribution (DC) pension scheme.The aerospace and defence manufacturer first automatically-enrolled staff at AgustaWestland, followed by employees at Selex ES.Finmeccanica introduced a bespoke website to guide employees through their auto-enrolment ...
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Article
31% of parents are not offered flexible working
Almost a third (31%) of respondents reported their employer does not offer flexible-working arrangements, according to research by charity Working Families.Its Time, health and the family research, which surveyed 1,037 male and female parents in full-time or part-time work and is sponsored by Bright Horizons, found that the education, retail ...
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ArticleBuyer's guide to total reward statements 2014
They can also help to engage employees in their benefits, and educate them about the value of particular perks they receive, such as a company car or pension.No benefit is too small to be included in a TRS, so enhanced maternity or paternity leave and employee assistance programmes could be ...
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Opinion
Ian Hodson: Financial education will be key in 2014
One thing that has become critical is the provision of financial education in the workplace and ensuring that the right offering is there to ensure that financial planning will underpin employees’ career and retirement planning. This is becoming even more important when looking at the pensions landscape, the demographic changes ...
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Article
Government to support employers in managing mental health
The government plans to support employers in managing mental health issues in the workplace, particularly in helping affected employees return to work.Its Closing the gap: priorities for essential change in mental health report outlines 25 areas for health and care services to take action to help tackle mental health conditions.For ...
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Article
John Lewis plans to cut final salary pension scheme
The John Lewis Partnership has proposed to cut its final salary pension scheme and restructure its pension arrangements in a bid to reduce costs.In March 2013, its defined benefit (DB) pension scheme recorded a pension deficit of £840 million. At the same time, John Lewis Partnership announced it would be ...
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Article
Employers have low confidence in government health scheme
More than four-fifths (86%) of respondents are not confident about the government’s health and work assessment and advisory service, according to research by PMI Health Group.The scheme, which was introduced in January 2013, aims to provide advice and support for employers dealing with long-term sickness absence.The research, which surveyed HR ...
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Article
Imperial College launches emergency child and eldercare
Imperial College London has introduced an emergency child and eldercare service.University staff can now access emergency childcare, school holiday cover and backup adult and eldercare.The scheme, which is provided by My Family Care, is designed to provide staff with greater flexibility to manage their work and family responsibilities.The university will ...
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Article
NHS trusts renew car schemes
CPC Drive, the NHS North of England Commercial Procurement Collaborative’s (NOE CPC) fleet management service, has re-appointed Tusker to provide lease cars, salary sacrifice car schemes and grey fleet management services to NHS trusts and other public sector bodies across the UK.Tusker, which was appointed to the framework agreement three ...
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Article
DC pensions members may not be getting best value
The value of the defined contribution (DC) pensions market is expected to grow to £1.7 trillion by 2030 from £276 billion assets under management pre-auto-enrolment in 2012, according to a report by the Pensions Institute.But its Assessing value for money in defined contribution default funds report found that members of ...
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Article
Ikea and Lufthansa awarded Pension Quality Mark
Ikea and Lufthansa have been awarded the Pension Quality Mark (PQM) for their defined contribution (DC) pension schemes.The PQM, which was launched in 2009 by the National Association of Pension Funds, is awarded to schemes that:Have total contributions of at least 10%, with a minimum employer contribution of 6%.Have governance ...
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Article
BP and Microsoft access wellbeing scheme
BP, EDF Energy and Microsoft are among the employers that have access to a new health and wellbeing programme.The Healthy for Life programme is provided by the employers’ food service and facilities management partner, Aramark.It combines food and nutrition with exercise, mental health and prevention of illness to promote health ...
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Article
76% of women fear they will not save enough for retirement
More than three-quarters (76%) of women do not believe they will have enough money to be financially comfortable in retirement, according to research by The Pensions Advisory Service (TPAS).Its third annual TPAS Women and pensions research, which surveyed 1,000 women, also found 71% of respondents do not feel confident about ...
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Article
Cisco cuts healthcare costs by 8.5%
EXCLUSIVE: Cisco has cut its healthcare costs by 8.5% since adding open-referral to its healthcare trust.The network equipment giant has offered its 2,800 employees a healthcare trust, provided by Bupa, for the past eight years.It introduced open-referral in April 2012 to help manage costs.The initiative is designed to help employees ...
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Article
Southeastern matches employees' charity fundraising
A team of employees from railway organisation Southeastern has raised nearly £11,000 for charity.The Group Walking Challenge included 14 employees who walked 50 miles and passed through 28 stations along the way. The group travelled from Denmark Hill to Sevenoaks and back to Bromley South.They raised more than £5,400 for ...
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Article
Employee benefits for Father Christmas and his staff
Something for the weekend…Christmas time is the busiest period of the year for Father Christmas and his little helpers, but what if there were employee benefits in place to help them gear up for the festive season?The busy elves could have access to an employee assistance programme to help reduce ...