At a glance: reward and benefits headlines this week 4-10 October 2019
The headlines you might have missed between 4-10 October.
UK employees wish to add Monday or Friday to their weekend
HR Review: The majority of UK employees want a four-day working week with Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday being the days they would most like to work. Read story
PLSA: Majority of schemes have taken action to mitigate Brexit
Professional Pensions: Pension schemes have considerably stepped up their preparations for Brexit over the last year, despite the outcome still not being known, the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA) has found. Read story
Business raided for pensions cold calling in ICO's first move since ban
Professional Pensions: The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has searched an unnamed business premises in Chichester as part of an investigation of the firm suspected of making nuisance pensions calls. Read story
Buy-in pricing could improve in post-Brexit world
Pensions Expert: Brexit volatility could be a good thing for defined benefit pension schemes looking to insure liability risk, according to experts. Read story
GP manager was unfairly dismissed after allegedly awarding herself unauthorised pay rise, tribunal rules
People Management: ET says dismissal would have been fair if the employer had carried out a proper investigation. Read story
Drop in rail season tickets attributed to increase in flexible working
People Management: Experts call for greater recognition of modern working patterns in a system that ‘punishes’ part-time employees. Read story
High Court rules that equalising state pension age is non-discriminatory
Employee Benefits: The High Court has ruled that equalising the state pension age between men and women is not discriminatory on the grounds of age or sex, confirming that successive governments were within their jurisdiction to implement legislative changes through numerous Pensions Acts. Read story
Conservative party pledges to reduce age threshold for national living wage
Employee Benefits: During the 2019 Conservative Party Conference, held at Manchester Central between 29 September and 2 October 2019, chancellor of the exchequer Sajid Javid (pictured) committed the party to reducing the age threshold for the national living wage from 25 to 21, in recognition of younger employees’ workplace contributions. Read story
3 in 5 Millennials think 'work perks' are gimmicks
HR Grapevine: When trying to attract candidates, it’s not unusual to see employers and recruiters list the number of work perks and benefits available to successful job hopefuls. Read story
Wellbeing issues dog growing number of men unable to find work
Workplace Insight: A new IZA World of Labor report suggests that the number of prime-age males who exist outside the labour force is increasing worldwide. The report claims that this development goes hand in hand with a decrease in wellbeing for the men themselves driven by higher levels of stress and has a wide range of economic and social consequences. Read story
What industries are lagging the most when it comes to unlimited holidays?
Employer News: Despite the rise in popularity of unlimited holiday policy schemes across the UK and the increased conversation around work-life balance needing more attention, taking too many holidays is still frowned upon in 28% of UK workplaces. This was revealed in some new research launched today by Perkbox, Europe’s fastest growing employee experience platform. Read story
More than a fifth of engineers take time off because of mental health
Personnel Today: Almost one in five engineers has lost a colleague to suicide, while more than a fifth have had to take time off work because of their mental health. Read story
Women more likely not to be eligible for SSP
HR Review: It has been revealed that 1.4 million female employees earn less than £118 a week and therefore do not qualify for statutory Sick Pay (SSP). Read story
Call for ‘net pay’ AE issues to be addressed in Pensions Bill
Corporate Adviser: The Queen’s Speech should include a “comprehensive” pensions bill, to pave the way for pensions dashboard, collective defined contribution pensions, as well as better treatment of non-taxpayers in auto-enrolment schemes. Read story
Employer support for AE rise and DB simplification: ACA
Corporate Adviser: The Association of Consulting Actuaries (ACA) has renewed calls for the forthcoming pension bill to enable a rise to AE contributions, DB pensions to be simplified and for legislation to be included to allow CDCs and pension dashboards, saying there is widespread employer and industry support for such changes. Read story
Half of employees don’t ask about sustainable pension options
Corporate Adviser: While almost one in two people have changed their spending habits in the last year to be more “ethically aware”, only 12.6 per cent have asked where there pension is invested, according to new research. Read story
Allen and Overy reports a 17.1% mean gender pay gap for London staff
Employee Benefits: Law firm Allen and Overy has reported a 17.1% mean gender pay gap for its London-based employees’ fixed hourly pay, as at 5 April 2019; the organisation reported a 20% mean gender pay gap for April 2018. Read story
Three-quarters feel their employer could do more to help with childcare costs
Employee Benefits: Around three-quarters (76%) of employees feel that their organisation could do more to help with childcare costs, according to research by employee wellbeing organisation Catapillr. Read story
Cardano Group acquires Now: Pensions
Employee Benefits: Pensions risk and investment management business The Cardano Group has completed the acquisition of pension provider Now: Pensions from Danish pension fund Arbejdsmarkedets Tillaegspension (ATP). Read story
National Work Life Week: Is your company doing enough to ensure wellbeing?
HR Review: This week (7th-11th October) is National Work Life Week, which aims to give employers and workers alike the opportunity to focus on wellbeing at work, with individuals in HR and charities calling for more flexible working to be implemented to boost wellbeing. Read story
Employers support mandatory reporting of mental health stats
Corporate Adviser: Almost one in three employers want mandatory public reporting of workplace mental health statistics to help tackle this growing issue. Read story
TPR updates authorisation list
Corporate Adviser: The University of Oxford Pension Scheme is the latest master trust to gain authorisation from The Pensions Regulator. Read story
79% have benefits and strategies to support mental wellbeing
Employee Benefits: Despite a slight drop in 2018, mental health issues have seen a considerable overall increase in importance for employers over the past few years; 67% offered relevant support to their employees in 2017, which has risen to 79% this year, according to research by Employee Benefits. Read story
Punter Southall Aspire acquires employee benefits division at BDO
Employee Benefits: Financial planning and retirement savings organisation Punter Southall Aspire has acquired the employee benefits division of UK accountancy and business advisory firm BDO. Read story
FSB launches mental health support package for 209 staff
Employee Benefits: Business membership organisation The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has launched a package of mental health initiatives in order to increase the support available to its 209 full and part-time employees. Read story
Jaguar Land Rover and Aston Martin Lagonda support disability inclusion
Employee Benefits: Automotive organisations Jaguar Land Rover (pictured), Jardine Motors and Aston Martin Lagonda are the latest international businesses to sign global disability inclusion commitment, The Valuable 500, operated by business campaign group #valuable. Read story
Flexible working is good for business, study claims
Workplace Insight: The overwhelming majority of Scottish business leaders who already offer staff some form of flexible working say it has had a positive impact on their business. Read story
Studies show employees not talking about mental health
Cover: Ipsos MORI, XpertHR and MHFA studies reveal employee reluctance to talk to management. Read story
One in three workers don’t feel valued by their employer
HR News: One in three British employees (34%) don’t feel valued by their employer, according to new research from Moorepay, the leading payroll & HR software and services provider. Read story
Working Families' most family-friendly workplaces revealed
HR Magazine: Employers from across the public, private, and third sectors competed to gain a coveted place on the work/life balance charity’s list of the 30 most family-friendly workplaces. The Top Employers for Working Families list, for which HR magazine is media partner, was unveiled as part of Working Families’ National Work Life Week campaign. Read story
UK suffers from biggest productivity drop in five years
HR Review: Professionals within the HR industry have reacted to figures announcing that April – June 2019 saw UK productivity fall at its fastest rate in five years. Read story
Why pensions considerations are moving up the management agenda
Professionals Pensions: The collapse of Thomas Cook shows how company boards must give greater attention to how pay and dividends contrast to pension scheme contributions, says Stephen Richards . Read story
FTSE 100 risk settlement transactions hit £70bn
Professional Pensions: FTSE 100 risk settlement transactions have reached £70bn as a third of these firms remove longevity risk, according to Aon. Read story
Government must revise AE or ‘risk leaving a whole generation behind’
Pensions Expert: While automatic enrolment has added more than 10m employees to a workplace pension scheme since 2012, experts say it is still not enough to ensure adequate levels of saving towards retirement. Read story
Care pressures will push one in five employees out of the workforce early, data shows
People Management: Experts suggest flexible working and increased line manager training to support workers with caring responsibilities. Read story
Savills gains living wage accreditation
Employee Benefits: Property advice organisation Savills has been accredited as a living wage employer by the Living Wage Foundation. Read story
Weave launches life coaching benefit for 550 employees
Employee Benefits: Communications organisation Weave has launched a new employer-paid life coaching benefit for its 550 Utah-based employees. Read story
American Express and Pinsent Masons recognised as top family-friendly employers
Employee Benefits: Financial services organisation American Express (pictured), professional services business Deloitte, educational institution Imperial College, and law firm Pinsent Masons are among the UK organisations recognised in the Top employers for working families list, compiled by work-life balance charity Working Families. Read story
Understanding the root causes of absenteeism can help employers tackle mental health in the workplace
Employer News: In the run up to World Mental Health Day[i] on 10th October, Adrian Lewis, Director, at Activ Absence says there is a lot employers can do to help break the taboo of mental health, including having systems in place so they can uncover the reasons behind employee absence. Read story
Covenant advice body ‘potential solution’ to protect savers – Opperman
Pensions Age: An independent body to provide accreditation and quality assurance for covenant advice could be a “potential solution” for shortcomings in regulations to protect savers, Pensions Minister Guy Opperman has said. Read story
More than half of employees are not supported at work following a death
HR Review: More than half of bereaved employees have said that their company has no policy in place and thus are not being supported at work both immediately following a death or beforehand. Read story
Nine out of 10 employees work while sick: Canada Life
Corporate Adviser: Problems of presenteeism continue to rise with three times as money people working while ill than 'taking a sickie'. Read story
Third of pension schemes 'appointed or considering appointing an IFA'
Professional Pensions: More than a third of pension schemes have appointed or are considering appointing an IFA to support their members, XPS Pensions Group research has found. Read story
Two-fifths have a strategy in place to reduce sickness absence
Employee Benefits: Although the proportion of organisations that have an absence reduction strategy in place (39%) has not shifted since last year, employers do continue to rapidly adapt and change their approach to sickness absence, according to research by Employee Benefits. Read story
More than four-fifths of British employees find sleep is affected by work pressures
Employee Benefits: More than four-fifths of British employees report that their sleep has been affected by work pressures, while a 80% have struggled to focus on their home lives, according to research by Microsoft. Read story
Continuum Attractions trains mental health first aiders ahead of wellbeing month
Employee Benefits: Visitor attraction organisation Continuum Attractions has trained 16 mental health first aiders as part of its new mental health awareness strategy. Read story
Publicis Groupe gives 84,000 staff the day off for World Mental Health Day
Employee Benefits: Public relations organisation Publicis Groupe has given its 84,000 worldwide employees the day off today (Thursday 10 October 2019) in recognition of World Mental Health Day. Read story
77% of organisations do not have a strategy to address the menopause
Employee Benefits: More than three-quarters (77%) of Employee Benefits readers do not have a strategy in place at their organisations to address the menopause, or to support female staff who may be experiencing menopausal symptoms. Read story
HMRC estimates 2019/20 pension contribution tax relief at £21.2bn
Pensions Age: HMRC has estimated that the total income tax relief on pension contributions will be £21.2bn in 2019/20. Read story
On World Mental Health Day employers urged to consider the financial wellbeing of employees
HR News: To mark World Mental Health Day on 10th October, an awareness day organised by the World Health Organization (WHO), Punter Southall Aspire highlights that focusing on the financial wellbeing of employees is a key part of any effective employee health and wellbeing strategy. Read story
Kiren Vadher: We need evidence-based family-friendly policies at work
HR Magazine: Recording data around flexible working and family-friendly policies is crucial to tackling inequality in the workplace and reducing the gender pay gap. Read story