All Employee Benefits articles in Web Issue – Page 378
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Article
Aberdeen City Council launches voluntary benefits
Aberdeen City Council will launch a voluntary benefits scheme and introduce salary sacrifice perks in 2011 after a year-long tendering process among 20 providers.James Fox, HR adviser at the council, said: “We did not have an overall provider of employee benefits, so the aim was to source a single provider ...
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Article
ITN to introduce flexible benefits scheme
ITN will offer flexible benefits to its 700 employees for the first time in April 2011.The news organisation is adopting an online system for staff to choose their own benefits, said Sue Utting, compensations and benefits manager at ITN.The company introduced a group personal pension plan on 1 April 2010 ...
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Article
Employers use new bikes product to ensure compliance
Associated British Ports, Avon and Somerset Probation Trust and Spire Healthcare are implementing a new Halfords bikes-for-work product.The plan, developed with HM Revenue and Customs and a tax adviser, ensures employers comply fully with the transfer-of-ownership regulations at the end of the hire period.It can be tailored either to extend ...
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Article
Group risk benefits gaining popularity in flex packages
Group risk benefits are growing in popularity, according to research from industry body Group Risk Development (Grid).The Group Risk Employer Research study of 500 UK businesses in October 2010 found 25% of employersprovide group life and group income protection (GIP) in their benefits, and 14% include group critical illness cover.Grid ...
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Article
Alliance Medical rewards staff who battled snow
Alliance Medical staff who battled in to work in December’s extreme weather conditions were among the first to be recognised under a new reward and recognition scheme.The medical firm revamped its reward and recognition scheme and launched voluntary benefits – provided by Asperity Employee Benefits – as part of efforts ...
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Article
Employers warned not to forget anti-forestalling rules
Employers have been warned that anti-forestalling rules, brought in ahead of now defunct regulations to restrict tax relief on pensions to the basic rate for staff earning £150,000, still apply.The rules were introduced by the Labour government in April 2009 to stop taxpayers making large pensioncontributions in advance of the ...
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Analysis
Employers adopt strategies to de-risk defined benefit pensions
If you read nothing else, read this... When reducing risks linked to final salary plans, employers are extending timeframes to up to 20 years. Organisations can pledge company assets, such as land and property, to under-funded pension schemes for aneventuality such as insolvency. Deficit recovery plans longer than 10 years ...
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Article
Computing benefit returns
National Grid, Airbus and Punch Taverns are among the employers offering staff access to a new version of the home computing initiative (HCI).The initiative, brought in by the government in 2004 and then closed in 2006, is growing again as an employee benefit, albeit with fewer tax breaks.Employers can offer ...
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Article
Confessions of a benefits manager: Team tactic talk
The new American head of HR sets out his ‘roadmap’ for the department, and Candid contemplates the delights of SwindonBig Bad Boss, poor man, has a new manager. Changes at that level don’t happen too often around here. While there is a steady churn of middle managers as they are ...
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Analysis
Green benefits rise in popularity
If you read nothing else, read this... Environmental benefits fit into two categories: stand-alone benefits and an alignment with the CSR profile. Green benefits include bikes-for-work schemes, low-emission company cars, telecommuting and online benefits communication. Other strategies include community volunteering, carbon offsetting and ethical pension investment.†Case study: Marriott staff create ...
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Case Studies
Case study: Toyota fine-tunes expatriates' benefits needs
In common with many other employers, Toyota GB is making expatriate arrangements fit in with its cost-conscious policies.Francesco Mereu, director of HR, corporate planning and CSR, says: “Due to the economic crisis, there has definitely been a decrease in expatriates. The benefit of such an assignment is analysed more rigorously ...
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Case Studies
Case study: Thomson Reuters uses multinational pooling for risk benefits
Thomson Reuters operates five multinational pooling arrangements for risk benefits such as life insurance, disability cover and, where viable, medical insurance. It has operated this arrangement, where possible, across the 90 countries in which it has a presence for at least nine years.Mohammed Valjy, international benefits manager at Thomson Reuters, ...
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Analysis
Build up emotional resilience to tackle workplace stress
If you read nothing else, read this… Emotional resilience is an individual’s ability to cope in times of stress. The workplace can have a big effect on employees’ resilience, particularly work overload, multiple goals, and relationships with managers. Resilience is a skillset, or set of behaviours that can ...
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Article
Buyer's guide to total reward statements
What is a total reward statement?It is a document that outlines the full benefits package an employee is entitled to receive, including salary, pension and shares. It can highlight less conventional perks, such as health and wellbeing, and training provisions.Where can employers get more information?Employers can contact their existing benefits ...
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Case Studies
Case study: Kent County Council keeps pay rates local
Kent County Council has an unusual approach to public sector pay. It introduced local pay rates in 1990 and, over the past five years, has allowed unions to engage in local pay bargaining.In April 2010, the council reformed its pay structure for about 13,000 staff, excluding schools, by removing annual ...
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Article
Interview with Chris Coyne, group head of reward at City and Guilds
Chris Coyne, group head of reward at City and Guilds, has drawn on his experience in the Royal Navy to develop a sense of purpose in a wide-ranging career in HR and rewardAfter leaving the Royal Navy in 1999, Chris Coyne, group head of reward at City and Guilds, found ...
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Analysis
Manchester City Football Club sets new goals for HR
When wealthy foreign owners took over Manchester City Football Club, an HR department was created to kick off a new era for its staff, says Nicola SullivanThe excitement is palpable at Manchester City’s Eastlands stadium before one of the most hotly anticipated games of the season - the Manchester derby ...
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Analysis
How to conduct a pay review
If you read nothing else, read this... Pay reviews vary. Some differentiate base salary according to performance measurement, while others provide an across-the-board increase. Pay strategies differ according to business models. For example, organisations with highly volatile business models will often have lower base salaries but bigger incentives. To build ...
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Analysis
Workplace litigation on the rise
If you read nothing else, read this... Employees’ appetite for industrial action has increased during the recession, and more claims are expected to be brought against employers when the default retirement age is abolished next year. Awards paid out for successful claims relating to age discrimination are uncapped, and can ...
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Analysis
International reward: Employers reconsider overseas assignments
If you read nothing else, read this…In the current economic climate, employers are seeking to control relocation costs.Typical relocation packages include benefits such as help in finding accommodation, a cost-of-living allowance, a housing allowance, moving costs, trips home and a relocation allowance.Healthcare cover will also be a priority for employees ...