All Employee Benefits articles in Web Issue – Page 538
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Article
ABI sets out action plan for clearer pension charges
The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has set out an action plan for clearer pension charges and costs in a letter to The Pensions Regulator and the Financial Conduit Unit of the Financial Services Authority (FSA).Its plan is designed to improve transparency across the whole of the pensions industry and ...
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Article
New at Employee Benefits Live 2012
Drop-in clinicsEach day delegates can drop into our legal clinic for a short one-to-one session with experts including Jane Samsworth of Hogan Lovells, Alison Cribbs of Sackers and a lawyer from CMS Cameron McKenna. To book a legal session, visit http://www.employeebenefitslive.co.uk/en/visitor-zone/legalclinics.aspxThe tax clinic will be staffed by tax advisers Shawn ...
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Analysis
Employee Benefits Flexible Benefits Supplement 2012
Download a PDF of the Employee Benefits/Aon Hewitt Flexible benefits supplement 2012Cover story: Too spoilt for choice?Flex windows: Window shoppingEmployer profile: GE harmonises perksOpinion: Peter Reilly of the Institute for Employment StudiesTop 10 tax tips: Taming the taxmanProviders: Choosing a new flavourSponsor’s commentEditor’s commentIs it possible to offer too many ...
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Article
Masterclasses will put HR directors right
HR directors are specially catered for this year, with three HR director masterclasses taking place on day two of the conference, 26 September.Tim Taylor, head of group reward at TUI Travel, will lead a masterclass focusing on the impact of the abolition of the default retirement age. The session will ...
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Analysis
Flexible Benefits: Top 10 tax tips: Taming the taxman
If you read nothing else, read this… The tax treatment of benefits varies, so employers should ensure their flex scheme takes account of these differences. Employee communications about benefits tax should be clear, simple and targeted to enable employees to make informed decisions about benefits. Employers should review their flex ...
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Article
How to achieve a global role in reward
If you read nothing else, read this… Regional experience is essential for anyone aspiring to progress up the global reward and benefits ladder. Consider an organisation that has international operations. Once appointed to an international role, build a strong network of local teams and consultants to help ease the workload.A ...
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Article
Employees want to feel appreciated
Employers spend vast sums on workplace savings and employee benefits, but new evidence suggests reward is not all about monetary value.The 2012 Globoforce UK Workforce mood tracker survey found that 64% of employees would leave their job for an organisation where their contribution was clearly recognised.The survey also found that ...
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Case Studies
Cofunds calculates tax positions for flexible benefits
Cofunds, an independent platform for financial services, employs about 650 permanent staff at its London and Chelmsford offices.All employees are members of the company’s flexible benefits scheme and receive core benefits including private medical insurance (PMI), a 5% employer pension contribution and income protection.Flex options include childcare vouchers, a bikes-for-work ...
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Case Studies
Case study: SJ Berwin expands flexible benefits offering online
Law firm SJ Berwin launched a flexible benefits scheme in June 2011 to streamline its benefits offering, to communicate the perks staff already received contractually and to attract new talent to its 550-strong workforce.Peter Roberts, HR operations manager at SJ Berwin, says: “We have quite a range of employees. We ...
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Analysis
Using corporate platforms makes savings benefits easier to handle
If you read nothing else, read this… Corporate platforms can help employers show the breadth and value of their savings offer. Purists believe corporate platforms should feature a pension scheme, an individual savings account and a form of savings account. Employers must ensure their corporate platform products are relevant to ...
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Analysis
Flexible Benefits: Providers: Choosing a new flavour
If you reading nothing else, read this…Changing flexible benefits provider could take three to six months to complete.Employers should shortlist around six providers and invite them to pitch their flex products and services.Employers should choose a provider that can adapt to their needs cost-effectively over time.An employer considering switching flexible ...
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Case Studies
GE harmonises flexible benefits
GE introduced a flexible benefits scheme for its entire 19,000-strong UK workforce last November in an effort to harmonise the benefits it offers across its four main business divisions (see below).Before the arrival of the scheme, which is called FlexChoice and provided by Vebnet, each of the businesses operating within ...
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Analysis
How many flexible benefits windows should you have?
If you read nothing else, read this… Introducing multiple enrolment windows keeps a flexible benefits scheme fresh and engages the interest of employees in key benefits at specific times of the year. An emerging trend is towards ‘anytime benefits’, which are offered through flex ona monthly basis by some providers. ...
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Analysis
Flexible Benefits: Too spoilt for choice?
If you read nothing else, read this… A number of UK employers offer more than 10 perks through flexible benefits schemes. Employers should structure and communicate their flexible benefits schemes around their employee demographics to maximise engagement. There is no harm in removing benefits that have very low employee take-up.Case ...
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Case Studies
Flex focuses BNP Paribas employees' minds at Christmas
BNP Paribas uses its annual flexible benefits enrolment window in early December to keep employees engaged over the Christmas period, rather than creating a specific incentives package.Sarah Oxford, head of compensation, benefits and international mobility at the French-headquartered bank, says taking a more general approach to the festive season and ...
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Case Studies
Case study: Marks and Spencer buys into master trust
Marks and Spencer appointed Legal and General to run a master trust arrangement which was set up in August last year to help the retailer comply with auto-enrolment.Finding a default fund to work across a workforce of 75,000 was a challenge, but Julie Parker-Welch, reward manager, pensions at M&S, is ...
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Case Studies
Carlsberg increases flex take-up
Carlsberg has offered around 10 benefits through its flexible benefits scheme since it was launched five years ago. Julian Daley, reward manager, says: “We have added some benefits and taken some away, but we have always had about that number.”Certain perks, such as a healthcare top-up scheme, have been removed ...
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Case Studies
Case study: CSC switches on second opportunity for flex enrolment
The provision of additional enrolment periods in its flexible benefits scheme has played a key role in raising awareness about pensions and increasing employee engagement for CSC, a global provider of technology-enabled solutions and services.The scheme year of the organisation, which employs about 7,500 people in the UK, runs from ...
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Case Studies
Case study: Svitzer steers staff to investments
International towage and salvage company Svitzer implemented a corporate platform from Hargreaves Lansdown in July 2011 after closing its defined benefit (DB) pension scheme.Its primary aim was to replace the myriad trust and contract-based pension schemes it had inherited after a number of acquisitions with one defined contribution (DC) scheme ...
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Analysis
How to use Christmas incentives to engage staff
If you read nothing else, read this… Christmas is not a fun time for everyone. It can be a stressful period for employees who have health or money worries. Employers must be sensitive to employees’ individual circumstances around Christmas time, particularly those who have suffered some form of loss during ...