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28 Sep 2018
by Rebecca Patton

At a glance: reward and benefits headlines this week 21-27 September 2018

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 21-27 September. 

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84% of employees now saving into workplace pensions
Employee Benefits: Workplace pension saving rates continue to rise, with 84% of employees now contributing to an employer plan, compared with 77% last year, according to the latest figures from The Pensions Regulator (TPR). Read story

McDonald’s promotes non-traditional working with ‘Let’s talk about flex’ campaign
Employee Benefits: Fast-food restaurant chain McDonald’s has partnered with flexibility campaigner Anna Whitehouse, also known as Mother Pukka, the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), and online community Working Mums to promote flexible working. Read story

TPR: We want to build better relationships with schemes to protect savers
Professional Pensions: Lesley Titcomb says the watchdog wants closer interactions with pension funds to spot problems sooner and act before having to use its more stringent powers. Read story

DB deficit could be halved by adopting new 'end-game' solutions
Professional Pensions: The funding gap across FTSE 350 schemes could be slashed by as much as £275bn if schemes look beyond traditional ways of creating value. Victoria Ticha examines how. Read story

Morrisons pay case sparks chain reaction
HR Magazine: The recent announcement that proceedings have been initiated against Morrisons means equal pay claims are being brought against the UK's four largest supermarkets. Read story

Staff feel pressured to demonstrate they are working from home
Personnel Today: Almost half (46%) of employees feel under pressure to demonstrate they are actually working while working from home, research by remote working platform LogMeIn has found. Read story

SME bosses worry about benefits ‘protection gap’
Health Insurance Daily: Nearly two out of three SME bosses worry their staff face a benefits protection gap in comparison with workers at larger firms, according to research from MetLife UK. Read story

Dominic Chappell loses appeal against BHS conviction
Employee Benefits: Dominic Chappell, the majority shareholder of Retail Acquisitions, the organisation that bought BHS for £1, has lost his appeal against his conviction and sentence for failing to provide information to The Pensions Regulator (TPR) during the sale of BHS. Read story

35% of organisations have no strategy to reduce sickness absence
Employee Benefits: The percentage of organisations that do not have a strategy for reducing sickness absence has risen by 11%, from 24% in 2017 to 35% this year, according to research by Employee Benefits and Health Shield. Read story

Thames Valley Police launches voluntary benefits portal for 8,000 staff
Employee Benefits: Thames Valley Police, which has 8,000 employees covering 2,200 square miles and three counties, has introduced a voluntary benefits portal to help support staff both in and out of the workplace. Read story

Smaller DB schemes 15 points less well-funded with 'less robust' risk management
Professional Pensions: Smaller FTSE 350 defined benefit (DB) schemes were nearly 15 percentage points less well-funded than larger schemes in 2017, according to a Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM) analysis. Read story

Third of over-55s spend more time choosing a car than preparing for retirement
Professional Pensions: More than half of people over the age of 55 see financial security as a top priority in retirement, yet a third allocate more time to buying a new car, finds Legal & General (L&G) research. Read story

Government grants £500,000 to organisations helping returners
People Management: Funding aimed at tackling one of the key causes of gender pay gap. Read story

Record £15.6m underpayment identified for workers on the minimum wage
HR Grapevine: Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has identified £15.6million worth of underpayments for more than 200,000 workers who are receiving less than the minimum wage - Gov.uk reports. Read story

Labour plans compulsory employee share ownership
Personnel Today: A future Labour government would require all companies with 250 or more employees to give shares to their workers worth up to £500 a year each, shadow chancellor John McDonnell will confirm in a speech at the party’s conference today. Read story

TPR warnings on AE compliance double
Corporate Adviser: The Pension Regulator is getting tough with employers who don’t comply to auto-enrolment regulations. In its latest report the watchdog revealed that the number of compliance notices it has issued almost doubled over a 12-month period. Read story

Campaign for legal mental health parity launched
HR Magazine: Bauer Media UK has launched a campaign calling for mental health to be treated on a par with physical health at work. Read story

42% of employees claim physical illness to hide mental health issues
Employee Benefits: As many as 42% of employees call in sick claiming to be suffering from a physical illness when the real reason is a mental health issue, according to a report by health insurance provider BHSF. Read story

Anglia Ruskin University pilots gamified sustainability programme
Employee Benefits: Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) has launched a new sustainability and wellbeing behaviour change initiative, using gamification to drive engagement. Read story

Pensions minister: ESG rules will help demystify pensions for younger savers
Money Marketing: Auto-enrolment has transformed saving and new regulations will help the pensions industry keep up. Read story

Labour business proposals would be 'double whammy' for pension savings
Professional Pensions: Labour Party plans to renationalise core industries and require the largest listed companies to hand 10% of shares to employees would be a "double whammy" for pensions, business leaders have warned. Read story

Pensions industry heavyweights lead 'mid-life MOT' development
Professional Pensions: A handful of industry heavyweights have begun trialling a so-called 'mid-life MOT', with positive initial results reported by all those involved. Read story

Generation Z want to work in a ‘fun’ environment
Personnel Today: Two-thirds (65%) of Generation Z employees – those aged 18-24 – look for a “fun” working environment when assessing whether an organisation’s culture is right for them. Read story

Top CEO salary rises far outstripping their employees
HR Grapevine: Employee morale could be damaged by the ever-growing paychecks of top bosses, as bosses’ salaries continue to grow at a much faster rate than their employees’ pay. Read story

Health Secretary backs ‘second pension’ to fund old age care
Health Insurance Daily: Proposals for adults in England to pay into a second pension that funds their old age care have been backed by the Health Secretary Matt Hancock. Read story

Contractor’s £4,000 holiday pay claim is the ‘tip of the iceberg’
People Management: Freelancers deemed ‘workers’ may bring action, experts warn, after consultant’s landmark settlement. Read story

Workers calling in physically sick to mask mental ill-health
People Management: Researchers say ‘colossal’ problem will ‘spiral out of control’ without employer intervention. Read story

Workplace flexibility ‘very important’ for 77% of UK workers
Employee Benefits: Workplace flexibility is one of the most prevalent trends among UK workers, with over three-quarters (77%) stating that it is very important to them, according to a report from employee benefits provider Unum and independent researcher the Future Laboratory. Read story

88% of employees attend work despite suffering from minor illness
Employee Benefits: Nine in ten (88%) employees have admitted to attending the workplace when suffering from a minor illness, according to a study on absence and presenteeismby Canada Life Group Insurance. Read story

Communisis workers call off strikes after accepting 9% pay offer
Employee Benefits: Employees at Crewe-based printing organisation Communisis have called off planned strike action after an offer of a 9% pay increase was accepted by members of the Unite union. Read story

Pension bosses barred for 34 years for abusing members’ savings
Money Marketing: Four heads of companies that formed part of a group involved in the transfer of millions of pounds of pensions have been banned for a total of 34 years by the Insolvency Service. Read story

CIPD and Mind launch mental health guide for managers
HR Magazine: The CIPD and Mind have published a revised mental health guide for managers to improve support for those experiencing stress and mental health issues at work. Read story

Corbyn vows to “rebalance power” in the workplace
Personnel Today: Labour will “rebalance power in the workplace” if the party wins power, Jeremy Corbyn said in his speech closing the party’s conference today. Read story 

Work-life balance management causes stress for 75% of working parents
Employee Benefits: Three-quarters (75%) of working parents suffer stress and anxiety as a result of their work-life balance management, according to a study by HR software provider CIPHR. Read story

Sharp Business Systems UK trains employees in mental health first aid
Employee Benefits: Fifteen employees of Sharp Business Systems UK (SBSUK) have completed a two-day adult mental health first aid training course, delivered by Mental Health First Aid England. Read story

PHMG adds paid wedding leave and ‘proud parent’ leave to staff benefits
Employee Benefits: Audio branding organisation PHMG has added wedding leave and ‘proud parent’ leave to its benefits package to help mark this year’s National Work Life Week on 1 to 5 October. Read story

Equiniti buys Cabinet Office stake in MyCSP for £8m; Wins extension to Civil Service pensions admin deal
Professional Pensions: Equiniti has bought the Cabinet Office's 24% stake in MyCSP and extended its contract to administer the Civil Service pension schemes until the end of 2021. Read story

Treasury confirms Budget date; Radical tax relief reform 'more likely’
Professional Pensions: Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond has confirmed he will deliver the government's annual budget on 29 October. Read story

Businesses to publish parental pay and leave policies
HR Magazine: Ten major firms have agreed to publish their parental leave and pay policies online in a move to become more transparent to working parents. Read story

How HR can support employees’ mental health
HR Magazine: Despite greater openness about mental health, the topic still remains a taboo in many workplaces. Read story

Consumers demand ‘interactive’ pensions dashboard
Corporate Adviser: Savers want the ability to top-up contributions, transfer pots and target performance according to new survey. Read story

Restrictive tech holding back shift to flexible working environments
Personnel Today: An inability to quickly introduce new IT services to their workforce is restricting organisations’ competitiveness and ability to offer staff the flexible workspaces they desire. Read story

Morrisons wage dispute shines light on gender pay differences
HR Grapevine: Morrisons are currently at the centre of an equal pay row with eight of their shop floor employees seeking compensation over the belief they are paid less than warehouse-based colleagues. Read story 

Teenagers may be misjudging future pay by £11,000, finds ONS
People Management: Teenagers with aspirations to go to university may be overestimating their future salaries by more than £11,000, analysis published today by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed. Read story