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18 Sep 2015
by Rebecca Patton

At a glance: reward and benefits headlines this week

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 11-17 September.

Greenwich charts course to diversified alternatives
Pensions Expert: A radical change in investment strategy is underway at the Royal Borough of Greenwich Pension Fund, as it introduces new asset buckets for diversified alternatives and multi-asset strategies. Read story

How scrapping short-service refunds affects DC and employer costs
Pensions Expert: Trustees and sponsors of workplace defined contribution schemes need to review their scheme rules, administrative processes and member communications to reflect the abolition of short-service refunds on October 1. Read story

Business must help tackle the childcare dilemma
HR Magazine: Nearly a quarter (23%) of British mothers who are not in paid employment cite childcare costs as the main reason they are unable to enter the job market, a report by the Family and Childcare Trust and Parental Choice has found. Read story

Mind the gap: Gender pay reporting
HR Magazine: From 2016 companies will have to publish gender pay gap data. However, they do not all agree on how this should be done. Read story

Flexible working should be for the many, not the few
HR Magazine: Forget the misconception that flexible working is a benefit reserved only for the career mum. The working practice should be extended to all employees and discussed early on in the hiring process in order to attract and retain talent. Read story

Kraft Heinz pushes retirees to health exchanges to cut costs
Employee Benefit News: Kraft Heinz Co., which counts Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. as its largest shareholder, is pushing some of its retirees to health exchanges as the company cuts expenses. Read story

Marsh acquires Jelf for £258m
Cover Magazine: Marsh has reached an agreement to acquire Jelf, with the entire share capital of Jelf being bought at 215p per Jelf Share, for a total price of £258m for all shares. Read story

Lawyers highlight ‘serious burden’ of travel to work ruling
WSB: Employment lawyers are warning that businesses could see an "immediate" significant impact from the travel to work ruling. Read story

Longer work shifts linked to risk of burnout and job dissatisfaction
WSB: Working shifts of over 12 hours has been linked to a heightened risk of burnout, job dissatisfaction, and intention to leave among hospital nurses. Read story

Is Pension Wise about to come crashing down?
Money Marketing: Pension Wise could be at risk of unravelling as calls for the service to expand come in the same breath as consumer groups criticise its existing guidance sessions. Read story

Corbyn names work and pensions shadow
Corporate Adviser: Owen Smith MP has been named shadow secretary of state for work and pensions by Jeremy Corbyn in the Labour leader’s first cabinet, announced today. Read story

Heineken ‘breaks new ground’ with £2.4bn Aviva longevity swap
Professional Pensions
: Heineken’s Scottish and Newcastle Pension Plan has completed a £2.4bn longevity swap with Friends Life. Read story

Pension costs push down profits at John Lewis
WSB: The increasing cost of servicing its £1.2bn pension shortfall helped push pre-tax profits at John Lewis down over a quarter in the first half of the year. Read story

Employees ‘should be saving £10,000 a year into pensions’
CIPD: Firms warned over lack of financial education, as study predicts current deficits could knock 1 per cent off pay rises. Read story

Male breadwinners would swap a top salary for more time at home
CIPD:Most men would take a pay cut if it meant they could work less hours and spend more time with their loved ones, a study has found. Read story

What place does wearable technology have in workplace health strategies?
Employee Benefits
: Wearable technologies have gained increasing traction in recent years, particularly with the much hyped launch of the Apple Watch in April. Read story

Dixons Carphone boosts wellbeing with wearables
Employee Benefits: This is the second year that the electrical and telecommunications retailer has supported the event, known as the Dixons Carphone Race to the Stones, but it is the first year that it introduced wearable technology into the training mix. Read story

What the European Court travel ruling means for UK employers
CIPD: Time spent travelling to and from home may not count towards National Minimum Wage. Read story

Vast majority of scheme members in the dark over fees
Professional Pensions: A staggering 89% of scheme members do not know what charges they pay to their pension provider, while half do not even know they are paying fees, according to research. Read story

Pensions Awareness Day delivers message with double decker bus
Professional Pensions: Pensions Awareness Day, an annual campaign to bolster awareness about pensions run by Pensions Geeks has returned with a five-day tour of the UK. Read story

Inflation hits zero again
Professional Pensions: In welcome news for many defined benefit pension schemes, the 12-month Consumer Prices Index (CPI) slipped back to zero in August, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Read story

National Grid gains living wage accreditation
Employee Benefits: National Grid, which employs more than 12,000 staff in the UK, has been accredited as a living wage employer. Read story

95% feel duty to inform staff of pension changes
Employee Benefits: Almost all (95%) of employer respondents believe it is their responsibility to inform their staff about any changes to pensions legislation, according to research by financial adviser firm Foster Denovo. Read story

50% underestimate likelihood of occupational disability
Employee Benefits: Half (50%) of respondents think they have a less than one in ten chance of being unable to work through disability, according to research by insurance firm Zurich. Read story

Employers and staff ignoring risks to health and wellbeing
WSB: Employers are failing to make health a priority while many of their staff are over-optimistic about the state of their health. Read story

Premier League clubs spend £123m a season on injury pay
WSB: Premier League football clubs pay £123m per season in wages to injured players, JLT Speciality has calculated, with Manchester United paying the most. Read story

QHotels embraces ‘earning while learning’ to boost retention
HR Magazine: Allowing employees to learn and gain specialist qualifications while they work is highly beneficial for businesses and staff, according to QHotels group resourcing manager Lisa Redding. Read story

Group IP: The numbers are on the up
Cover Magazine: As the number of people with group income protection rises, Thomas Smith looks at how the industry is faring. Read story

Concern ISA-pension merger would harm savings culture
WSB: Government plans to merge ISAs and pensions would harm retirement saving and mean more retirees run out of money, Axa Wealth head of retirement planning Andy Zanelli has warned. Read story

Treasury offloads Pension Wise to DWP
Money Marketing: Government-backed guidance service Pension Wise is to move from the Treasury to the Department for Work and Pensions. Read story

Aviva hit by pension payments blunder
Money Marketing: Hundreds of pensioners have been paid the wrong pension for years after calculation errors by Aviva. Read story

82% want benefits to reflect their priorities
Employee Benefits: More than four-fifths (82%) of respondents believe their benefits package should change as their personal circumstances and priorities do, according to research by Davidson Asset Management (DAM). Read story

Total pay grew 2.8% in May-July 2015
Employee Benefits: Total pay for employees in Great Britain increased by 2.8% in real terms in May-July 2015 compared to the corresponding period in 2014, according to research by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Read story

Annuity income falls 75% over 15 years
Money Marketing: Annual retirement income from annuities has dropped by three-quarters since 2000, according to Moneyfacts. Read story

23% favour Isa-style tax system for pensions
Employee Benefits
: Less than a quarter (23%) of respondents would opt for an individual savings account (Isa)-style system for pensions after gaining a full understanding of the tax implications, compared to an initial 41%, according to research by Aviva. Read story

One in 30 retirees facing exit charges above 5%
Professional Pensions: Some 147,000 over-55s would face charges of more than 5% if they transferred their pot to take advantage of retirement flexibilities introduced in April, according to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Read story

Treasury urges private sector to lead pensions dashboard development
Money Marketing: Treasury minister Harriet Baldwin has called on the private sector to take the lead in development of a ‘pensions dashboard’ for savers. Read story

How can employers offer more than the minimum level of support for working parents?
Employee Benefits: With flexible working requests and shared parental leave becoming commonplace, employers need to consider whether their support provision for working parents goes above and beyond the legal minimum. Read story

EY supports working families with multiple options
Employee Benefits
: Professional services firm EY takes a long-term approach to supporting working parents. Read story

Demand for tailored benefits info growing
Employee Benefit News: Workers value personalized benefits information yet few employers have implemented a tailored communications approach. Read story

End of the line for the Sipp cash gravy train
Money Marketing: Rapidly disappearing returns on cash could end up costing the Sipp industry hundreds of millions of pounds and see up to half of bespoke providers closing. Read story

Many still not set up to enable part-time working
HR Magazine: Many organisations still aren’t geared towards attracting working parents, according to Chris Underwood, managing director at recruitment consultancy Adastrum Consulting. Read story

Now: Pensions to add employer auto-enrol charge
Money Marketing: Automatic enrolment provider Now: Pensions is to introduce an employer charge of up to £40 a month from next year. Read story

Excessive workloads and financial worries to blame for employee presenteeism
WSB: The vast majority of employees have come into work while unwell fuelled by high workloads, financial concerns and a lack of job security. Read story

Majority of workers not motivated by cash bonuses
WSB
: Over three quarters (78%) of employees would not work significantly harder in exchange for a bonus equivalent to 10% of their annual salary. Read story

Eight in ten DB schemes adapt offering for pension freedoms
Professional Pensions: Eight out of ten defined benefit schemes have taken some action to respond to the extra retirement flexibilities for defined contribution retirees introduced in April, research finds. Read story

Now Pensions consults on improving support for small employers
Professional Pensions: Now Pensions is consulting smaller employers on their auto-enrolment needs as the master trust looks to revamp its proposition in the new year. Read story