Boardroom Diversity Boosts Performance
New research has found that company boards with women on them deliver a 36% better return on equity than those without. Stock market index company MSCI looked at over 1,600 companies for the report. Their research found that companies with ‘strong female leadership’, defined as a female CEO and at least one other woman on […]
Apprenticeship Levy Details Announced
Chancellor George Osbourne used last week’s Autumn Budget to go into greater detail about the apprenticeship levy, which is due to come into effect in April 2017. The levy, which will be an additional payroll tax, will be set at 0.5% of UK payroll and will affect all employers with an annual wage bill of […]
Legal Update: Changes to UK Company Information
This Saturday (10th October) the Companies House Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act will come into force. The Act amends the information that a business is legally required to give to Companies House, as well as the amount of time it takes to close defunct businesses. The amendments will affect every UK company. The Act is […]
Employment Law Update: October 2015
It’s almost October, which means that the annual employment law update is just around the corner. We’re taking a look at some of the more significant upcoming legislative changes and highlighting how these may have a direct impact upon your business. National Minimum Wage Increase The National Living Wage is due to come into effect next […]
Employees Still Fear Mental Health Stigma
Employees are more likely to lie about the reason for an absence if the cause is related to mental health, according to new research. Research by healthcare provider AXA has revealed that 77% of employees would tell their employer the truth if their absence was due to their physical health. However less than two in […]
Recruitment on the Rise
Increasing confidence in the economy is leading to a planned rise in recruitment for the rest of the year, according to a new survey. The 2015 Hiring Intentions Survey by recruitment firm Robert Walters found that over three quarters (76%) of hiring managers are planning to recruit by the end of the year. This is a […]
Employees Seeking a ‘Family Feel’ in Business
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Research by the CIPD has revealed that over 50% of employees would prefer to work in an organisation with a ‘family feel’. The CIPD published the findings of their Employee Outlook 2015 survey this June. More than 2,200 respondents from across a wide range of organisations and industries took part in the survey, which […]
Flexible Working Arrangements a Benefit to Business
More than half of UK HR directors surveyed believe that remote and flexible working arrangements have resulted in increased productivity in their organisation. A study conducted by Robert Half has found that nearly two-thirds of HR directors (63%) believe that a flexible working environment has a positive impact on their business. Over half of the respondents (51%) […]
‘Middle-Aged’ Employees Feeling the Pressure
Recent research by AXA PPP healthcare has shown that employees in the 30-49 age bracket struggle more with the demands of work than employees from any other age group. One of the headline findings from the research relates to the amount of sickness absence taken, with employees between the ages of 30-49 averaging 2.3 sick […]
Gender Equality and the EU
A House of Lords committee has called on the Government to block the introduction of a 40 percent quota for women on company boards by 2020. The House of Lords European Union sub-committee found the proposed requirements from the EU to be “misguided”, and advised the government to maintain its approach of self-regulation and talent […]
Stricter Visa Rules for UK Employers
The number of highly skilled migrant workers coming in to the UK has been steadily falling following the implementation of tighter visa rules in 2011 according to a new study by the Migration Observatory. UK employers are suffering from the effects of tighter visa restrictions shrinking the pool of available talent, according to a new study […]
Employment Tribunal Costs Unlawful?
Was the introduction of fees for Claimants to bring a claim to an Employment Tribunal unlawful? Not according to the High Court. Under new rules introduced in July 2013, workers in the UK are now charged a fee to bring a claim to an employment tribunal, a further fee if the claim is heard and […]
Who Owns the LinkedIn Contacts?
When an individual makes contacts on LinkedIn during the course of their work, is it reasonable for their company to ask for those contacts when they leave? This is a relatively new area of law but there has now been an interesting case (Whitmar Publications Ltd v Gamage and others) where the High Court has […]
Employment Tribunals – Who Pays?
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has recently published a study on the ‘Payment of Tribunal Awards’ (Making the Labour Market more Flexible, Efficient and Fair). The report summarises the findings of a study of people who made successful claims to an Employment Tribunal and were awarded a sum of money by the […]
Fit Notes Failing to Get Employees Back to Work
A survey has found that the majority of employers believe that the ‘fit note’ scheme has not resulted in earlier returns to work for their employees. A survey by the Engineering Employers’ Federation (EEF) and Jelf Employee Benefits has found that only 22% of employers believe that fit notes encourage employees to return to […]
The 10 Year Rise of Flexible Working
The last decade has seen an increase in the number of employees working from home with 4.2 million people now taking advantage of flexible working regulations. The TUC found that whilst the number of people in employment has increased over the last ten years, that growth has been exceeded by the number of people working […]
Young & Skint: ‘Generation Rent’ Suffers Wages Drop
Since the 2010 General Election earnings for those under 30 have fallen by roughly 10%, according to the House of Commons library, leading to the rise of ‘Generation Rent’. So what about earnings for the rest of the population? In the period since the Coalition Government came to power earnings for 18-21 year olds have […]
On the Up: Minimum Wage to Rise in October
October will see the minimum wage rising by 19p to £6.50 for workers aged 21 or older, the highest proportionate rise since 2008. Following a recommendation from the Low Pay Commission the 3% increase will make the minimum wage higher than the rate of inflation for the first time in six years. For workers aged […]
Managing Expectations: CMI Future Forecast for 2015
The Chartered Management Institute (CMI) published its annual Future Forecast report in December 2014, offering insight into what managers across the UK are hoping to focus on over the coming year. The report surveys managers from businesses across the UK, giving them the opportunity to reflect on the previous year and to also make […]
A-Level Results Down, University Admissions Up
August 14th marked A-level results day, and the commencement of the annual rush to confirm university places and make contingency plans. For a large number of students however the results haven’t affected their choices, or their chances, at all. Results day always yields headline statistics but this year has seen the most significant change for […]