Your quick-read round up of the reward and benefits stories appearing in the press in the past seven days.The headlines you might have missed between 18-25 June 2015.Standard Life chief exec David Nish steps downMoney Marketing: Standard Life chief executive David Nish is stepping down from the role after six years at the helm. Read storyMattioli Woods completes £7m advice firm acquisitionMoney Marketing: Mattioli Woods has agreed a £7m deal to acquire Buckingham-based advice firm Boyd Coughlin. Read storyState pension age review confirmed Corporate Adviser: The government will review state pension age within the next two years, incoming pensions minister Dr Ros Altmann has told the House of Lords. Read storyVoluntary overtime closer to inclusion in holiday payWorkplace Savings & Benefits: Employers hoping to see voluntary overtime excluded from holiday pay calculations are likely to be disappointed after a ruling by the Northern Ireland Court of Appeal. Read storyTreasury clarifies IHT in pension drawdownWorkplace Savings & Benefits: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) will shortly issue guidance to clarify that drawdown funds will not be subject to inheritance tax (IHT) charges after lawyers raised concerns. Read storyCentrica adds new benefits to flex for 30,000 staffEmployee Benefits: It launched the new benefits in its flex enrolment window in May, with employees’ choices taking effect from June. Read storySpie UK introduces hybrid company carsEmployee Benefits: The new fleet comprises 1,000 ultra-low emission cars provided by ALD Automotive. Read story60% of fathers lack suitable working patternEmployee Benefits: Half (50%) of working fathers believe that flexible working is perceived as a sign of a lack of commitment to their role, according to research from My Family Care, published in June 2015. Read storyEmployers failing to correctly register share plans onlineEmployee Benefits: HMRC has made clear that it will enforce strict deadlines to save as you earn schemes (SAYE), share incentive plans (Sips) and enterprise management incentive schemes (EMI), which all have tax advantages. Read storyCentrica adds to flex benefits for 30,000 staffHR GRapevine: The move comes as part of the company’s summer roadshow, during which Centrica hopes to tackle the issue of employee engagement and retention levels. Read storyTata Steel improves DB pension plansEmployee Benefits: The dispute has centred around the closure of the British Steel Pension Scheme (BSPS), which has a deficit of £2 billion, and rules that could have see employees retiring at 65 instead of 60. Read storyNorwich City Football Club to pay living wage Employee Benefits: The club will phase in the national living wage of £7.85 during the 2015-2016 season. Read storyNext generation of retirees expect to be £3,000 a year worse off Employee Benefits: The next generation of retirees, those aged 45-to-55 years old, expect to be worse off in retirement by a fifth (18%) compared to those leaving the workplace in 2015, according to research by insurer Prudential. Read storyFirstGroup has largest DB pension liability among FTSE 250Employee Benefits: The FTSE 250 and their pension disclosures report found that the travel operator’s scheme is a risk to the business due to pension liabilities of £4.6 billion, as of 31 December 2014. This is almost four times more than the value of the business. Read storyLifestyle default funds fall 9% in four months Employee Benefits: Its study, which is based on the average rate of return for all Hargreaves Lansdown savers using a lifestyle fund, also estimates that 720,000 pension savers are currently invested in default funds. Read storySkilled nurses could be forced to leave UK under migrant salary rulesPeople Management: Up to 3,365 foreign nurses could be forced to return home in 2017 under changes to immigration rules, the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) union has warned. Read storyFit notes failing to get employees back to work, finds EEFPeople Management: In its survey of 345 companies, manufacturing body the EEF and Jelf Employee Benefits, found that rather than aiding economic growth and improving productivity by getting people back to work earlier, sickness-absence had not markedly improved. Read storyCarlsberg offers staff a refreshing approach to total rewardEmployee Benefits: Nick Court, reward manager at brewing firm Carlsberg, believes that actively meeting staff is what makes benefits professionals understand what employees want and need in terms of total reward. Read storyRisk benefit costs lower than 10 years agoPay & Benefits: The average cost of group life assurance (GLA), group income protection (GIP) and critical illness cover (CIC) is lower in real terms than it was 10 years ago, research from Punter Southall Health and Protecting Consulting (PSHPC) found. Read storyAE providers blame employer data for duplication errorsWorkplace Savings & Benefits: Some workers auto-enrolled into Now Pensions and the People’s Pension have been enrolled multiple times into different accounts. Read storyWellbeing a priority for only one in four employersWorkplace Savings & Benefits: A small minority of employers say investing in employee health and wellbeing is a priority, despite nearly all of them (97%) believing it is linked to performance in the workplace, according to Edenred research. Read storyFCA and PRA set out bankers’ bonus clawback rulesMoney Marketing: The FCA and the Prudential Regulation Authority have rolled back on plans to ban bonus “buyouts” as part of their latest rules on pay. Read storyHyde Group pilots workplace massagesEmployee Benefits: Housing association The Hyde Group (Hyde) is to pilot massages in the workplace across all its main offices as it puts an increased focus on employees’ health and wellbeing. Read storyITV tables improved 2016 pay dealEmployee Benefits: The broadcaster has offered staff pay increases above the 2% pay rise for 2015, which took effect from January. Read story97% believe in link between wellbeing and organisational performanceEmployee Benefits: Edenred’s annual 2015 Wellbeing barometer, which surveyed 422 HR decision makers, also found that just a quarter (26%) of employers see employee wellbeing as a priority for their organisation. Read story39% of employees do not have life insuranceEmployee Benefits: Canada Life Group study of 600 UK workers also found that 38% of respondents have not given any thought to life protection. Read storyAXA PPP healthcare wins European award for serviceCover: AXA PPP healthcare has won the prestigious accolade of European Large Contact Centre of the Year at the 2015 European Contact Centre & Customer Service Awards ceremony held in London. Read storyBiggest health insurers to get even bigger under ACAEmployee Benefits News: America’s biggest health insurers are about to get even bigger, driven into a wave of consolidation by the Affordable Care Act’s new regulations and markets. Read storySAB Miller to invest in staff motivationEmployee Benefits: Its Annual report 2015 highlighted that 64% of employees who participated in its engagement poll believe they receive appropriate recognition from the organisation. Read storyOne in five not saving for retirementEmployee Benefits: The 11th annual Scottish Widows Retirement report, based on responses from 5,191 UK adults, also found that retirement savings have reached a record high, with 56% of respondents now saving adequately. Read storyONS: Workplace schemes most attractive retirement savings vehicle for staffProfessional Pensions: Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed 40% of people agreed employer schemes were the safest way to build up a pension, compared to 35% in 2010. Read storyStandard Life launches marketing consultancyProfessional Pensions: The consultancy, called 56°, will offer a range of marketing support services, including concept development, creative design, campaign creation, copywriting and project management. Read storyUber for benefits: An idea that could transform America’s economyFusion: The Shared Security Account would be a little like Social Security, but for all of the non-retirement benefits that those of us with full-time jobs generally receive. Read storyHow to use wearable technology for health and wellbeingHR magazine: It’s hard to miss the wearable tech buzz – and that doesn’t mean the sound of it playing up. Hi-tech analysts Juniper Research predict a massive rise in global retail revenue from smart wearable devices, from around $5 billion (£3.17 billion) per annum today to $53.2 billion (£33.72 billion) by 2019. Read storyBarclays C&ES closes to new businessEmployee Benefits: Barclays will continue to honour existing employer client commitments within these areas and will support them if the client wishes to move services elsewhere. Read storyNetwork Rail agrees 2% pay deal with unionsEmployee Benefits: Network Rail has agreed a 2% pay increase deal with unions Unite, the Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association (TSSA) and the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT). Read storyPensions seen as safest way to save for retirementEmployee Benefits: Office for National Statistics’ Wealth and assets survey found that confidence has increased with 40% of individuals citing a workplace pension as the safest option to save in the period from July 2012 to June 2014. Read storyNICE guidance puts senior management at the heart of workplace wellbeingWorkplace Savings & Benefits: The body which develops clinical guidelines for the NHS has published guidance to support employers in creating healthy workplaces which will boost productivity. Read storyNetwork Rail bosses face slashed bonuses after poor performanceHR Grapevine: Underperforming bosses at Network Rail could be losing bonuses of up to £66,000 each, it has been reported. Read story'Mass exodus' of older workers prompts skills shortage warning People Management: According to analysis of the government’s Labour Force Surveys in 2014, 9.4 million workers in the UK today are over the age of 50. However, the employment rate for workers between the age of 53 and 67 years old has dropped by 64 per cent in the past few years. Read storySupreme Court upholds ACA subsidiesEmployee Benefits News: The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that subsidies used to purchase health insurance on the federally facilitated marketplace are legal. The 6-3 decision in King v. Burwell means that tax credits continue to be valid in the 34 FFM states. Read storyPublic confidence in workplace scheme safety growing - ONSCorporate Adviser: Employer based pension schemes are considered as the ‘safest’ way to save for retirement and confidence in them is increasing, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics. Read story
