At a glance: reward and benefits headlines this week 29 October - 4 November 2021
Here are the headlines you might have missed between 29 October - 4 November 2021.
Training and mentoring opportunities being used to attract recruits
HR Review: A new survey finds that businesses are increasingly opting to offer training and mentoring opportunities to attract candidates as opposed to wage increases. As the ongoing battle to fill roles continues, a new report by ManpowerGroup has revealed that almost half of UK businesses look to training and mentoring as a hiring incentive over increasing wages. Read Story.
HMRC overcharges savers accessing pension by £44m
Corporate Adviser: HMRC’s pension flexibility statistics reveals £44m was refunded to people over-taxed when accessing their pension. As part of its latest pension schemes newsletter, HMRC has revealed that between July 1 and September 30 2021 HMRC refunded £44,659,174. Read Story.
Net zero target will be missed by over half of organisations, claims report
Just 41 percent of UK organisations are on track to meet the Government’s target for net zero carbon emissions by 2050, according to new research released by Dr Chris Brauer, Goldsmiths, University of London in partnership with Microsoft. The findings suggest strong ambition and strategic vision on sustainability within UK organisations, but most leaders are struggling to translate that intent into action, with almost three quarters (74 percent) described as having “one foot in and one foot out” on sustainability. Read Story.
34% of firms contribute under 4% to staff pensions
Employee Benefits: More than a third of UK employers are only contributing the minimum amount towards staff pensions, while some are not contributing at all, according to new findings. The British pension report by Investing Reviews discovered that while 11.7% of organisations contribute 20% or more towards their employees’ pensions, 34% put in under 4%, A total of 13.4% invest between 15 and 20%, while almost 11% contribute between 12 and 15%. Read Story.
Office still valued by UK employees, providing space for productivity and collaboration
Workplace Insight: New research from Nespresso Professional claims that the office space is still highly valued by employees, with office workers naming seeing their colleagues (39 percent) as the thing they like most about being in the office. While a proper desk setup (31 percent) comes in second, office camaraderie (30 percent) took the third spot, showing the importance of the office environment for team building and relationships. Read Story.
Companies focusing on holistic organisational health outperform their peers
Workplace Insight: The Josh Bersin Company have released a global study on the factors involved in creating a holistically “healthy” organisation. The research emphasizes the importance of transitioning from the traditional focus on employee benefits to one that encompasses job and work design, management, rewards practices, a demonstrated commitment to psychological safety and fairness, and a culture of employee health and listening. Read Story.
Inflation to squeeze living standards of employees
HR Magazine: Inflation may rise as high as 5% next year, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has warned, putting a squeeze on living standards for many employees. A high rate of inflation, combined with tax increases and low average wage growth, means that workers will face a higher cost of living - and that middle earners may be worse off this year than last. Read Story.
Use of shared parental leave dropped 17 per cent during Covid, study finds
People Management: Use of shared parental leave (SPL) declined for the first time since its launch in 2016 during the pandemic, research has found, with experts saying it is more important than ever that firms support families. A study by EMW found that just 11,200 couples applied to use the scheme between 2020 and 2021: a 17 per cent fall on the previous year, when a record 13,100 couples applied. Read Story.
Half of employers are guilty of greenwashing, report staff
HR Review: As COP26 is underway, a new report finds that close to half of employees feel dubious towards their companies’ environmental, social and governance policies. Close to half of senior employees in the UK (43 per cent) believe that their company is guilty of greenwashing, according to a new report by Advanced. Read Story.
Covid-19 affected finances of almost half of British staff
Employee Benefits: New research has revealed that almost half of British employees’ finances have been significantly impacted by the Covid-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic, with those aged 50 and over affected the most. More than 1,000 Brits took part in the health service Cigna Europe’s Cigna 360 wellbeing survey, with the findings, which have been released during International Stress Awareness Week (1 – 5 November), revealing that 22% have sufficient money for retirement, with those aged 35-49 less prepared than any other age group, and 17% have enough savings for retirement plans. Read Story.
Government to back new five-year FTSE gender diversity review
Personnel Today: The government will back a new five-year review to monitor female representation in leadership positions at the UK’s largest companies, following on from the success of the Hampton-Alexander Review. The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy said a new chair would be appointed to lead the FTSE Women Leaders Review and introduce new targets for female representation at leadership level over the coming years. Read Story.
Pay rises and better in-work benefits needed to retain staff, report finds
Personnel Today: The labour shortage will worsen unless organisations offer staff desirable incentives to keep them, including pay rises and better working hours. Forty-one per cent of people in the three sectors hit the hardest by labour shortages – logistics and transport, hospitality, and social care – are considering leaving their job in the next year, according to a report by think-tank Autonomy and corporate governance consultancy Pensions & Investments Research Consultants. Read Story.
Half feel their recruitment processes don’t improve D&I
Personnel Today: Almost of half (45%) of organisations do not feel their recruitment processes make a positive contribution to their diversity and inclusion strategy. This is according to XpertHR, which found only 55% rate their recruitment and selection practices as effective or very effective at helping their organisation to become more inclusive. Read Story.
Only a third of people know that their pension is invested
Corporate Adviser: Only 35 per cent of people know that their pension is invested in the stock market, with a third of respondents stating their pension was not invested in shares according to new research. A further32 per cent said they didn’t know what happened to their money. Read Story.
36pc of UK businesses have no plans to offer fertility support
Corporate Adviser: More than a third of employers do not currently provide fertility support to their employees and have no plans to do so in the future, according to new research. Despite a growing number of UK businesses offering fertility support, 36 per cent of employers do not currently provide this support and have no plans to do so in the future, according to research from B2B digital health and wellness platform Peppy. Read Story.
Women are excluded in the fight against climate change says action group
Corporate Adviser: Women are significantly under-represented in climate policy, climate decision-making, and climate finance, according to a report by the Women in Climate Action Group which also draws on research conducted by CARE International UK. Read Story.
Frontline workers saw sharpest fall in engagement during Covid, study finds
People Management: Employee engagement has decreased for workers on the frontline over the last year, according to the 2021 State of Employee Engagement report, and has slightly increased for office-based workers. The report, conducted by WorkBuzz in association with HRZone, found that 49 per cent of organisations with mostly frontline or on-site workers have seen engagement decline over the past year. Read Story.
Female staff facing sexual harassment in online meetings, lawyers warn
HR Review: According to a law firm, female employees are facing increasing levels of sexual harassment in online meetings and in online messaging services daily. New research from law firm Royds Withy King warns that employers must update their policies in light of increasing levels of sexual harassment, caused by a shift to remote working. Read Story.
Google searches of 'signs of burnout' increase by over 200%
HR Magazine: There has been a 221% spike in searches for signs of burnout in the last three months, according to Google search data. With winter approaching, when metal health concerns typically surge, health and wellbeing company Westfield Health has urged HR to turn its attention to the issue. Read Story.
Younger workers feel empowered to make changes in their workplace
HR Magazine: More than half of employees feel more empowered to influence change in their workplace - especially younger workers. A study across six nations by communications company BCW, in partnership with Workplace from Facebook, found that the pandemic has shifted power dynamics at work, with employees emboldened to demand change. Read Story.
Increased workload does not dampen many people’s preference for remote work
Workplace Insight: According to a Kaspersky survey of 4,303 IT workers, 56 percent of employees have reported an increased workload since switching to remote working, with 19 percent describing the increase as significant. 40 percent did not notice a change in volume, and only 9 percent noted a decrease in the scope of work due to new working conditions. Read Story.
33% of employers to consider menopause policies
Employee Benefits: One-third (33%) of organisations are considering introducing menopause or pregnancy loss policies for their employees. According to Employee Benefits’ latest research, 29% of employers confirmed that they have recently launched initiatives relating to these issues, while 38% said they have not done this. Read Story.
40% of staff say money issues impacted mental health
Employee Benefits: Two-fifths (40%) of working Brits admitted that money worries have affected their mental health with stress and anxiety being the two most common symptoms, according to new research released on International Stress Awareness Day (3 November). Read Story.
Employers struggling to adapt employee experience to meet workforce needs
Workplace Insight: Despite their best intentions, most employers are facing difficulties responding to changing employee expectations around employee experience and wellbeing during the pandemic. 69 percent of HR leaders admit that their efforts to improve employee experience are being held back by a lack of a clear strategy, and 76 percent report that they are struggling to adapt their employee experience to meet the needs of a hybrid workforce. Read Story.
Recruitment drive sees majority of firms embed flexible working policies
Workplace Insight: New research by Totum Partners, claims that the majority of firms now have hybrid working policies in place, as worker preferences and economy-wide recruitment pressures drive increased demand for flexible working. This includes 50 percent of firms which have implemented a company-wide policy, while the remaining 50 percent have published guidelines that can be interpreted by location or individual team. Read Story.
Taste for flexible working to blame for choppy waters in the talent pool
HR Magazine: Nearly two thirds (63%) of HR leaders have seen an increase in staff churn in the past six months. The largest single reason for employees leaving an organisation (26% of all cases) was the inability to work flexibly, according to research from performance management software company StaffCircle. Read Story.
Business leaders fear workplace flexibility could encourage proximity bias
HR Review: Leaders are concerned that employees choosing to work from home may feel excluded from opportunities to progress, leading to proximity bias. New research carried out by LinkedIn shows a significant shift in work models with more companies now looking to offer hybrid (56 per cent) or fully remote working (10 per cent). Read Story.
Older workers ‘pushed out’ of the workforce after redundancy, study finds
People Management: Redundancy has pushed more than one in 10 older workers out of the workforce, a study has revealed, with 11 per cent of over-50s who have been made redundant in the last five years subsequently disappearing from the jobs market. Read Story.
UK employers to feel impact of care crisis
Corporate Adviser: UK employers will need to do more in future to help employees meet the challenges of caring for older relatives, according to Aon. The benefits and health solutions firm pointed out that government’s social care reforms, discussed in last week’s budget still fall short of covering the cost of social care. Read Story.
House of Lords rejects plan to scrap pension triple lock
Corporate Adviser: The House of Lords has rejected government plans to scrap the triple lock on state pension for this year. In a debate on this legislation, peers backed an amendment put down by former pensions minister Ros Altmann to restore the link with the state pension and earnings. A total of 220 votes were in favour of this amendment, and 178 against. As a result this legislation will now go back to the House of Commons for another vote. Read Story.
A quarter of employers do not provide financial assistance to long-term absent employees
Corporate Adviser: A quarter of employers do not provide financial assistance to long-term absent employees, according to new research from Grid. Grid’s research has found a quarter of employers do not financially support employees absent from work for an extended period. Read Story.
78pc of savers believe climate change is important but only 2pc have divested to address it
Corporate Adviser: Nearly three-quarters of savers believe climate change is important, but only 2 per cent have changed where their pensions are invested to address it, according to new research. B&CE, the provider of The People’s Pension, which conducted the research, says this shows why default funds are the way to deal with climate change. Read Story.
Movember: Prostate and testicular cancer claims dip in pandemic
Healthcare & Protection: The number of prostate and testicular cancer claims insurers are handling appear to have dipped during the pandemic with a worrying trend also appearing. As Movember, the annual event involving the growing of moustaches during the month of November to raise awareness of men’s health issues enters full swing, Health & Protection has discovered the number claims for these types of cancer appear to have dipped during the pandemic. Read Story.
19% of staff want workplace mental health support
Employee Benefits: New research has highlighted that one in five workers (19%) would be more likely to consider working for an organisation if it offers dedicated mental health support. An independent survey of 1,000 office-based workers, carried out on behalf of third workspace facilitator Reef App, explored which perks would be most appealing in terms of encouraging them to want to work for an organisation and found that flexible working (47%) and hybrid working (41%) were also considered a key benefit. Read Story.