All Employee Benefits articles in Web Issue – Page 389
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Towers Watson research: Value of enhanced annuity sales rises
The value of enhanced annuity sales in the UK rose to £2.47 billion last year, an increase of 38% on 2009, according to research by† Towers Watson.Sales of enhanced annuities in the second half of 2010 were £1.21 billion, down 4% on the first half of the year.According to the ...
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Harrods Corporate Service launches incentive gift card
Harrods Corporate Service has launched an incentive gift card, which can be used to reward employees or can be incorporated into a benefits package.With a minimum of £2,500 on the card, an employee or group of employees could host a private party for up to 16 guests at the newly ...
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Centre for Policy Studies report: Employees will face £10 billion public pension bill
By 2015-16, the taxpayer will have to contribute more than £10 billion per year to make up the difference between pension contributions and pensions in payment in the public sector.In a report for the Centre for Policy Studies, Self-sufficiency is the key: addressing the public sector pensions challenge, Michael Johnson ...
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CIPD/KPMG research: Pay increase expectations have fallen
Basic pay increase expectations by employers have fallen to 1.3% from 1.5% during the past three months, according to this quarter’s Labour Market Outlook from the†Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) and KPMG.The survey, which polled 750 employers, also found that average pay settlements in the public sector are ...
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National Employment Savings Trust starts procurement of retirement income panel
The National Employment Savings Trust (Nest) has started the procurement of its retirement income panel.The panel aims to simplify the process for members to get a good outcome when they take their money out of Nest. Retirement income providers will be able to apply to be a panel member and ...
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Eversheds research: Employers uncertain over removal of the default retirement age
One in seven employers may retire employees over 65 while they still can under the current regime, according to research from Eversheds.The research, conducted among 330 employers, found that nearly two thirds (63%) of respondents intend to abandon mandatory retirement after 1 October this year, while only 1% (three respondents) ...
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John Lewis Pensions Trust sells stake in Ocado Group
John Lewis Partnership Pensions Trust has announced the sale of its entire stake of 57,321,150 shares in online grocer Ocado Group.The sale of the stake is being undertaken by the Trust as part of its investment management activities.The scheme had already disposed of approximately half of its stake last year ...
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Government amends impact assessment for private sector pensions move to CPI
Annual pension accrual for members of private sector defined benefit (DB) schemes could drop by one third following the move to consumer prices index (CPI), according to a revised impact assessment published by the government late on Friday.The document states that for the 2.5 million active members of DB pension ...
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Shilling research: Majority of staff distrust financial institutions
Just one in 20 employees (5%) believe that financial institutions, including pensions companies, are always honest.According to Shilling Communication: Pension Snapshot, which was carried out by YouGov on behalf of Shilling Communication, levels of cynicism were lowest among young workers. For example, of those aged between 18 and 29, 16% ...
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HMRC launches pay-as-you-earn tool for employers
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has launched a basic pay-as-you-earn (PAYE) tool to help employers run their payroll systems.The online resource replaces HMRC’s employer CD-Rom and includes all the CD-Rom’s interactive features plus an automatic update facility, to ensure the tools are up-to-date with the latest information and figures.Employers which ...
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BP launches new communications strategy for DC pension
BP has introduced a new communications strategy for the 3,000 members of its defined contribution (DC) pension scheme.The project, which was run in conjunction with Capita Hartshead, centred on the rationalisation of investment options for the DC scheme. Despite the quantity and complexity of the information communicated to members, the ...
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Canada Life introduces communications programme to highlight 5 April deadline
Canada Life has introduced a communications programme to highlight the need for trustees of registered group life assurance schemes to review their schemes by 5 April 2011 to ensure they operate according to the Finance Act 2004.The Finance Act 2004, which came into effect on 6 April 2006, known as ...
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Barclays increased salaries but reduced bonuses for 2010
Banking giant Barclays has increased salaries for employees but reduced bonuses despite pre-tax profits rising by 32% to £6.1 billion in 2010.Its financial results for the 12 months to 31 December 2010 showed performance awards at a group level in 2010 were down 7% on 2009. Meanwhile such awards for ...
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Freshfields changes holiday year
Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has changed its holiday year as part of its efforts to ensure it has the highest numbers of employees working during its busiest periods.The law firm has changed the holiday year from July 1 to June 31 to February 1 to January 31 the following year, which ...
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Teachers’ Pension Scheme re-appoints Capita for administration
The Department for Education has appointed The Capita Group to administer the Teachers' Pension Scheme (TPS).The seven-year contract, worth £80 million, will start in October 2011 when the current contract, also with Capita, ends.The TPS has more than 1.6 million members and is the second largest public sector pension scheme ...
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Managers in the financial services sector expect bigger salaries
Nearly two-thirds of financial services managers expect salary offers to rise in 2011, while only a quarter predict higher bonus payouts.According to Morgan McKinley's survey of 200 HR and line managers working across financial services in London, 62% expect basic salary offers to increase in 2011, with 55% expecting the ...
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CIPP launches international payroll initiative
The Chartered Institute of Payroll Professionals (CIPP) has launched an international payroll initiative.Its CIPP Paying the World initiative, launched as a result of interest from members and students, will include a new specialist interest group on international payroll, and an international news section on the CIPP website.Lindsay Melvin, chief executive ...
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Mercer research: Cost of providing health benefits increases
The cost of providing healthcare and health-related benefits to employees in Europe rose by 3.3% in 2010, a sharper increase in many economies than was seen in salaries and general inflation.According to Mercer's 2010 pan-European survey on employer health benefits, which received responses from 556 employers, companies in the UK ...
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W and FC Bonham and Sons transfers pension to Financial Assistance Scheme
W and FC Bonham and Sons Retirement Fund is transferring its contracted-out pension scheme to the Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS).Pope Anderson assisted the trustees in winding up the scheme in the period before it was eligible for the FAS.The FAS. which is managed by the board of the Pension Protection ...
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Bonuses are most effective benefit for retaining staff
Almost two thirds (64%) of managers feel bonuses and reward based pay are the most effective benefit for retaining staff, according to a survey by CBSbutler.The survey also found just over a quarter (27%) of respondents believe pensions are the best benefit for holding on to employees.However, no respondent valued ...