At a glance: reward and benefits headlines this week

The headlines you might have missed between 21 August - 27 August 2015

House of Fraser grants 2% pay rise as wage increases remain steady
WSB: House of Fraser and Scottish Water staff received a 2% pay rise as employers continue to offer above inflation increases. Read story

Employees ignoring own health and wellbeing
WSB: UK employees are not doing enough to improve their health and wellbeing with many not exercising and drinking too much. Read story

Lumo Energy engages 92% of employees
Employee Benefits: Almost all, (92%) of Lumo Energy’s 500 employees feel engaged following its introduction of an employee engagement and recognition programme earlier this year. Read story

11% of over-60s have no plans to retire
Employee Benefits: More than one in ten (11%) respondents over the age of 60 who have not yet retired do not plan to ever do so, according to research by annuity provider Retirement Advantage. Read story

79% offer flexible working as a benefit
Employee Benefits: More than three-quarters (79%) of organisations offer flexible-working opportunities as an employee benefit, according to research by insurer Unum. Read story

Expenses exemption to replace dispensations from 6 April 2016
CIPP: From 6 April 2016 HMRC will introduce an exemption from paying tax and National Insurance contributions on qualifying paid or reimbursed expense payments. Read story

The new reward professional
HR Magazine: Reward is constantly changing. What is valued by one generation may differ wildly from the next, and reward professionals have to adapt to this. Read story

Deloitte reports 18% gender pay gap
Employee Benefits: Deloitte has revealed that its male staff are paid 18% more than their female counterparts. Read story

69% take entire pension pot as cash lump sum
Employee Benefits: More than two-thirds (69%) of respondents have chosen to take their entire pension pot as a cash lump sum since the pension freedoms came into effect in April, according to research by Royal London. Read story

How Royal Mail and trade union cooperation boosts staff engagement
WSB: Royal Mail is engaging employees and successfully implementing significant changes by working with its trade unions. Read story

Savers shift cash from pensions to bank accounts despite tax hit
WSB: Pension savers using the freedoms may not fully understand the implications of taking their pots as cash. Read story

'Pretty' cheerleaders hired to motivate IT programmer staff in China
HR Grapevine: According to Trending in China these “pretty, talented girls” are being hired to buy programmers breakfast, exchange chitchat and play ping-pong with them. Read story

New Barclays Chairman orders company car overhaul to improve Feng Shui
HR Grapevine: John McFarlane, the new Chairman of Barclays, has ditched the bank’s black limousines in favour of silver vehicles, indulging his passion for Feng Shui. Read story

Restaurant chain Côte under fire for pocketing staff tips
HR Grapevine: Côte came under fire after it was claimed that it pockets the entire 12.5% service charge added to bills and paid by customers, rather than giving it to the staff as tips. Read story

Network Rail staff use cars for work transport, trains not cost efficient
HR Grapevine: Network Rail executives have admitted that their staff use cars for transport, because it’s cheaper than taking the train. Read story

Former Standard and Widows pensions head joins Towers Watson
Corporate Adviser: Ann Flynn is joining Towers Watson as a senior consultant in its UK DC team to lead its business development activities. Read story

State pension reforms destined not to last say advisers
Corporate Adviser: Just one in 25 advisers believe the state pension will exist in its current form in 30 years time, with half expecting retirement age to be increased further and 41 per cent expecting it to be less generous. Read story

‘Black Monday’ triggers £30bn pension deficit increase in one day
Professional Pensions: The ‘Black Monday’ stock market crash drove the value of defined benefit (DB) pension scheme deficits up by as much as £30bn in a single day, according to analysis. Read story

Emerging market crisis will be ‘double edged sword’ for developed world
Professional Pensions: The emerging market (EM) crisis sparked by China’s economic slowdown will be much more damaging for developed markets than the 1997 Asian financial crisis, warn investors. Read story

Defined benefit pension transfer requests ‘double'
Professional Pensions: Pension transfer requests out of defined benefit (DB) schemes doubled after the relaxation of defined contribution (DC) retirement processes, according to research from one provider. Read story

DB transfer customers getting older
Corporate Adviser: The number of people looking to transfer from DB to DC has doubled since the pension reforms, with a greater proportion of older scheme members looking at transfers, according to data from Selectapension. Read story

Negotiating Caterpillar’s Better Health at Work initiative
WSB: Caterpillar’s Better Health at Work initiative has been launched to educate and inspire the 1,000 employees on the company’s Stockton site. Read story

Female managers earn 22% less than men
WSB: Women in managerial roles earn 22% less than men in equivalent positions – around £15,000 less per year. Read story

Tesco staff to take part in Cycle to Work Day
Employee Benefits: Tesco staff will be taking part in Cycle to Work Day on 3 September. Read story

Easements may assist re-enrolment process
Pay and Benefits: “Helpful easements” should assist employers beginning the three-year re-enrolment process for auto-enrolment (AE). Read story

Police to appeal against EAT decision on age discrimination
Employee Benefits: An appeal has been filed against the Employment Appeal Tribunal’s (EAT) ruling that a regulation enabling police forces to compulsorily retire officers after they become entitled to a pension worth at least two-thirds of pensionable pay (typically after 30 years’ service) is not age discriminatory. Read story

Tribunal rules on valuation of restricted shares
Employee Benefits: The First-Tier Tribunal has ruled that restrictions should be taken into account when shares issued to employees are valued for tax purposes. Read story

Beware the impact of IPT rises on medical insurance
HR Magazine: Employers must recognise and prepare for the significant impact November’s insurance premium tax (IPT) rise will have on the affordability of their healthcare schemes, health insurer Western Provident Association (WPA) has warned. Read story

Dixons Carphone reveals massive benefits programme for merged company
WSB: Dixons Carphone has unveiled a major benefits and reward programme to help bring the two brands together. Read story

Bonuses return to pre-recession peak
WSB: Cash bonuses have returned to nearly the same levels seen before the financial crisis, but not in the finance and insurance industry. Read story

National Museums Scotland staff strike over pay
Employee Benefits: Staff at National Museums Scotland are currently holding a seven-day strike in a dispute over weekend pay arrangements. Read story

Bonus payments increase by 2.7%
Employee Benefits: Total bonus payments reached £42.4 billion in the UK in the 2014-2015 financial year, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Read story

Did global stock market meltdown hurt UK pension schemes?
Professional Pensions: Natasha Browne examines how August's stock market turmoil affects UK pension schemes. Read story

Sainsbury’s to award staff 4% pay rise
Employee Benefits: The pay rise, which will come into effect from 30 August, will increase Sainsbury’s standard rate of pay to £7.36 per hour. Read story

Workplace should promote mental wellbeing
Employee Benefits: More than four-fifths (85%) of respondents believe they have a significant responsibility to provide staff with a working environment that promotes mental wellbeing, according to research by Buck Consultants at Xerox. Read story

Caledonian MacBrayne earns living wage accreditation
Employee Benefits: Ferry operator Caledonian MacBrayne’s parent company, David MacBrayne, has been accredited by the Poverty Alliance on behalf of the Living Wage Foundation. Read story

McDonald's UK CEO defends zero-hours contracts
HR Grapevine: McDonald’s UK CEO, Paul Pomroy, has said that its employees love zero-hours contracts. Read story