At a glance: reward and benefits headlines this week 15-21 November 2019

The headlines you might have missed between 15-21 November.

G30 Turner report urges 'early action' to fix looming pensions crisis
Professional Pensions: Individuals must work longer, save more or spend less in retirement to avoid a global pensions crisis, a report by a Group of Thirty (G30) working group says. Read story

North Ayrshire Council pays 6,500 employees new living wage rate early
Employee Benefits: North Ayrshire Council, located in the southwest of Scotland, has committed to paying its 6,500 employees the new living wage rate from November 2019, five months prior to its official introduction. Read story

Salary increases for UK employees in 2020 will be 0.1% lower than 2019
Employee Benefits: UK employees can expect to receive a 1.1% real salary increase in 2020, compared to the 1.2% increase seen in 2019, according to research by ECA International. Read story

Sodexo staff at London hospitals to receive £2.34 pay rise from November 2019
Employee Benefits: Porters, cleaners and support staff working for Sodexo at three London hospitals, and represented by trade union Unison, have been offered a pay deal that will see the 2020 London living wage implemented immediately and backdated to 1 November 2019. Read story

65% of UK firms provide added benefits to married employees
HR Grapevine: While all employees should be treated the same, regardless of their marital status, new research has shone a light on the cost of being single at work. Read story

Paul Lewis: The five cons of auto-enrolment
Money Marketing: Auto-enrolment is fully in place. All employers must provide a pension and contributions are now phased in. Compliance is high and opt-out rates low. Ten million more people are paying in to a work pension than in 2012. Read story

TPR updates DB to DC transfer trustee requirements
Pensions Age: The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has updated its trustee requirements when transferring a member's defined benefit pension pot to a defined contribution arrangement. Read story

New study reveals that 80% of British employees go to work when they’re sick
HR News: A new study conducted by Love Energy Savings has found that more than 80% of British employees still continue to work when they are ill. Read story

What is your sickness absence rate really telling you?
HR Magazine: If more employees are present in the workplace more often, employers need to ensure they’re as fit for purpose as possible. Read story

Staff cancelling doctor's appointments for work
HR Magazine: Access to digital healthcare services could help staff balance work and their wellbeing, but experts warn that ill health is often related to workplace stress and emphasise the importance of allowing people to attend in-person consultations. Read story

Holiday allowance not been taken by over half of employees for 2019 and cannot be carried over to 2020
HR Review: More than half of UK employees have holiday allowance remaining this year and are not allowed to carry it over to next year. Read story

Plumbers call for trustee chair to resign over pensions debacle
Pensions Expert: An action group is calling for the resignation of Alan Pickering CBE as chairman of the Plumbing and Mechanical Services Industry Pension Scheme. Read story

Frimley NHS staff protest transfer that could erode pay and conditions
Employee Benefits: Frimley Health NHS Trust staff who are members of trade unions Unite and GMB are taking industrial action today (18 November 2019) to protest their transfer to a Wholly Owned Subsidiary (WOS), which they claim will risk eroding their pay and employment conditions. Read story

Employers need to build financial resilience ‘across generations’
Corporate Adviser: Towergate Health & Protection is calling for employers to do more to help build financial resilience in the workplace, and support workers struggling with debt. Read story

Industry agrees DC master trusts have set a good example for other schemes
Professional Pensions: This week's 88 Pensions Buzz respondents agreed that defined contribution (DC) master trusts have set a good example for other types of DC schemes during the authorisation process. Read story

TPR updates DB transfer guidance for trustees
Professional Pensions: Defined benefit (DB) trustees are now required to contact financial advice firms to ensure staff providing advice to a members are compliant under new adviser rules before carrying out a transfer exercise. Read story

Nottingham College agrees to protect pay and annual leave
Employee Benefits: Employees at Nottingham College who are members of the University and College Union (UCU) have agreed to end a long-running dispute with their employer over new contracts affecting pay, sick pay and annual leave. Read story

PPF to conclude Mothercare pension assessment 'on or around' 11 December
Pensions Age: The Pension Protection Fund (PPF) will complete its assessment of the Mothercare pension schemes "on or around" 11 December as the firm aims to avoid entering the pension lifeboat. Read story

International Men’s Day: Male staff discouraged by bosses to take on parental duties if it affects their work
HR Review: In light of International Men’s Day, it has been discovered that over a fifth of employers actively discourages male staff from taking on parenting duties that may affect their work. Read story

Government plans to pay doctors’ pension tax criticised
Corporate Adviser: Insurers have criticised government plans to address the problems with the taxation of NHS pensions, as a temporary ‘Elastoplast’, which fails to tackle underlying complexities within the pension system. Read story

Pension savers ‘sleepwalking’ into poor retirement choices: report
Corporate Adviser: Today’s pension savers are in danger of ‘sleepwalking’ into retirement without proper advice or support according to a new industry report. Read story

Govt found guilty of maladministration over GMP state pension impact
Corporate Adviser: Pensioners barred from inflation protection worth more than £20,000 under the new state pension have won a victory over the Government after the Parliamentary Ombudsman found it guilty of maladministration. Read story

Financial issues affect the mental wellbeing of 51% of millennial employees
Employee Benefits: Employers are concerned that over half (51%) of millennial employees have a high rate of stress and anxiety when it comes to finances and debt, according to new research by Group Risk Development (Grid). Read story

Kingston Council accredited as living wage employer
Employee Benefits: Kingston Council has been accredited as a living wage employer, by the Living Wage Foundation, enabling it to pay all of its 4,069 employees the living wage or London living wage rate. Read story

Lincolnshire health visitors stage month-long strike over unfair pay
Employee Benefits: Lincolnshire health visitors, who are members of trade union Unite, began a month-long strike yesterday, 18 November, until 13 December 2019, to protest a lower pay grade since being transferred from the NHS to new Lincolnshire County Council contracts in October 2017. Read story

NHS Scotland to allow staff to receive pension contributions as pay
Pensions Age: The Scottish government has introduced an interim policy that will give highly-paid NHS staff the option to get their employer pension contributions paid to them as part of their basic pay. Read story

Staff would consider looking for another job if there is a gender pay gap at their company
HR Review: More than two-thirds of employees would consider looking for another job if there was an unfair gender pay gap at their company. Read story

More support needed for employers to implement flexible working
HR Review: As an increasing amount of people are calling out for flexible working, companies are requesting more support to help implement this form of employment. Read story

Lack of engagement drives pension gender gap
Corporate Adviser: Twice as many women don’t know how much they have in pension savings when compared to men, according to new research. Read story

Employers should no longer see 65 as ‘old’, says official report
People Management: ONS data shows people are living longer and healthier lives – but experts say age discrimination is still widespread. Read story

12 million working days lost to work-related mental health conditions last year
People Management: Experts warn businesses must tackle causes of stress, anxiety and depression or risk workers ‘burning out left, right and centre’. Read story

Public sector pay increases needed to boost recruitment and retention, says think tank
People Management: Gap between public and private sector wages is the lowest since early 2000s. Read story

Nine in 10 fathers feel uncomfortable taking leave for family emergencies
Employee Benefits: Nearly nine in 10 (89%) working fathers do not think their employers are comfortable with them taking unexpected leave for family emergencies such as a sick child, according to research by Utopia and The Hobbs Consultancy. Read story

BBVA Spain puts cap on working hours to encourage employee wellbeing
Employee Benefits: Spanish banking group BBVA has implemented a number of new work-life policies, including telling all of its employees in Spain to disconnect from work devices and avoid answering emails between the hours of 7pm and 8am, whenever possible. Read story

Cushman and Wakefield triples paternity leave for around 1,160 UK employees
Employee Benefits: Commercial real estate organisation Cushman and Wakefield, which has 51,000 employees globally and 2,000 in the UK, has announced it will be trebling paternity leave for UK staff, from two to six weeks. Read story

Pension schemes falling behind on GMP equalisation timescales
Pensions Age: Pension schemes are falling behind on GMP equalisation timescales and a lack of clarity from HMRC is no excuse for stalling implementation, according to Aon. Read story

United Utilities DB pension surplus rises to £700m
Pensions Age: United Utilities has revealed that its defined benefit pension surplus rose by £215m in the six months prior to 30 September 2019 to reach £699m. Read story

Companies reject Labour’s idea to implement four-day working week
HR Review: During the ITV election debate (19/11/2019), Jeremy Corbyn reaffirmed his plans to implement a four-day working week under a Labour government which was met with laughter from the audience and scepticism from businesses. Read story

Don’t demonise staff for taking ‘sickies’, employers warned
People Management: Survey finds workers call in ill when they need a break – but presenteeism may be a bigger problem. Read story

Carers should be given a week’s paid leave, says charity
People Management: Report reveals two-thirds of people have looked after an elderly, ill or disabled relative. Read story

Seven in 10 employees would forego Christmas parties for more regular rewards
Employee Benefits: Seven in 10 (70%) employees would forego the traditional Christmas party in favour of more frequent rewards throughout the year, according to research from Reward Gateway. Read story

Employee Benefits/Wealth at Work pensions research 2019
Employee Benefits: The Employee Benefits/Wealth at Work pensions research 2019 was conducted in October 2019 among readers of https://employeebenefits.co.uk. It received 135 responses. Read story

Ikea, Tesla and Booking.com among top employers for diversity in Europe
Employee Benefits: Furniture retailer Ikea, automotive and energy business Tesla and travel website Booking.com are among the top 10 employers listed on the Diversity Leaders 2020 rankings, published by the Financial Times. Read story

A third of women do not know how much they have saved in pensions
Employee Benefits: Just over a third (34%) of women are not aware of how much they have saved in pensions, compared to only 16% of men, according to research by Aegon. Read story

Lib Dem manifesto omits pension tax relief reform
Pensions Age: The Liberal Democrat manifesto for the upcoming General Election does not include reform to the pension tax relief system, including scrapping the tapered annual allowance, despite being included in its 2017 manifesto. Read story

Five strategies for building strong employee engagement into your company culture
Incentive and Motivation: With employers being squeezed for innovation to retain their workforce, employee engagement strategies have become the need of the hour – especially when lack of engagement often leads to a reduction in productivity and a rise in attrition. Read story