At a glance: reward and benefits headlines this week 19-25 October 2018

The headlines you might have missed between 19-25 October. 

Positive, personal language is best for pension communications
Employee Benefits: A study by investment management organisation Invesco into the language of defined contribution (DC) pension schemes has identified four key language principles for communicating with employees about their pensions. Read story

Four-fifths of UK office workers are sedentary for an average of 67 days a year
Employee Benefits: Over four-fifths (81%) of UK office workers spend between four and nine hours each day sitting at their desks, equating to an average of 67 sedentary days per year, according to research commissioned by business product organisation Fellowes. Read story

FCA and TPR launch joint strategy to tackle ‘fundamental’ pensions challenges
Employee Benefits: The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and The Pensions Regulator (TPR) have launched a joint regulatory strategy, identifying issues contributing to inadequate saving for retirement and outlining priorities for addressing fundamental challenges in the pensions sector. Read story

70% note success in improving health and wellbeing of staff
Employee Benefits: Most employers (70%) feel they have been successful in improving the health and wellbeing of staff, according to research by Employee Benefits and Health Shield. Read story

Cisco US employees to be funded for egg and embryo harvesting
Employee Benefits: Technology organisation Cisco has announced the launch of a new range of health benefits for its US employees, including reimbursement for workers who want to harvest or store eggs, sperm and embryos. Read story

Final CMA decision likely by Christmas; remedies enforced from June 2019
Professional Pensions: Investment consultants and fiduciary managers should expect a final decision on the investigation into the market to be published by the end of the year, the competition watchdog says. Read story

TPR will not set firm ratio for dividends and DRCs
Professional Pensions: Employers whose dividend to deficit recovery contribution (DRCs) ratios fall outside the "normal range" should expect to see higher regulatory scrutiny, although no fixed ratio will be set. Read story

How Next Gen is 'changing the game' for pensions
Professional Pensions: The Next Generation Pensions Committee is on a mission to promote and encourage younger voices in the industry. Kim Kaveh looks at its key objectives. Read story

Court ruling sees pension savers hit with 40pc IHT bill
Corporate Adviser: Those in ill-health face unexpected inheritance tax bills, following a landmark ruling by the Court of Appeal. Read story

Pensions minister: Engaging savers is everyone’s responsibility
HR Magazine: Guy Opperman shared his vision for pensions including mid-life MOTs, the launch of the new Simpler Annual Statement, and responsible investments. Read story

Mercer rolls out healthcare benefits for trans people
HR Magazine: Mercer has announced that it now offers benefits for the treatment of gender dysphoria as part of its UK employee private medical scheme. Read story

Staff ditching pensions because employers don't explain them properly
People Management: Conference delegates told decisions made with ‘very little input from employers’. Read story

Barnet in TPR breach as Capita misses payments
Pensions Expert: The London Borough of Barnet Council has reported itself to the Pensions Regulator after failing to produce 447 pension benefit statements on time. Read story

Proposed requirement to publish family-friendly policies: implications for employers
Personnel Today: The government is exploring the possibility of a new law requiring employers with more than 250 employees to publish details of their family-friendly policies. What is the thinking behind the proposal and what impact could it have on large organisations? Read story

MPs recognise role of GIP in tackling mental ill-health
Health Insurance Daily: Government is looking at how to incentivise SMEs to buy cover. Read story

Almost half of employees think staff with caring duties face discrimination
People Management: Experts say organisations have ‘everything to gain’ by helping employees balance responsibilities. Read story

Tom Selby: New DB transfer rules under the microscope
Money Marketing: Despite pressure to come down on the market like a ton of bricks, the FCA has taken a measured approach to improving standards. Read story

TPR bans quartet behind £13.7m cold-calling scam from being trustees
Professional Pensions: Four people behind a £13.7m cold-calling scam which cost 245 people their savings have been banned from being pension scheme trustees by The Pensions Regulator (TPR). Read story

UK's C+ pension system must undo freedoms and speed up state pension age rises, says Mercer
Professional Pensions: The UK must do more to address its ageing demographics, says Mercer, as its global pension index shows the country static in its rankings. Read story

Why this Japanese company is paying its employees to get a full night's sleep
HR Grapevine: Japanese wedding organisers, Crazy Inc, have implemented a new scheme that rewards employees for getting at least six hours sleep for five days a week – the Economic Times reports. Read story

Seven in 10 considering starting their own business due to dissatisfaction
Employee Benefits: More than seven in 10 (71%) UK employees are considering starting their own business because they are dissatisfied with their employers, according to research by freelance job website PeoplePerHour. Read story

Over half of office-based employees have no area to eat lunch in the workplace
Employee Benefits: Over half (56%) of UK office workers do not have a dedicated space to eat lunch in the workplace, according to research by interiors organisation Furniture123. Read story

Poll reveals pain points in dental health benefits strategies
Employee Benefits: A poll conducted by Unum among delegates at Employee Benefits Live 2018, which took place on 2 and 3 October 2018, has revealed that although 94% of respondents agreed oral health is an important component of a health and wellbeing strategy, only 44% of employers offer dental cover. Read story

Apple takes top spot in Indeed rankings of Britain’s best employers
Employee Benefits: Multinational technology organisation Apple has been ranked as the best employer to work for in Britain, according to data compiled by job website Indeed. Read story

Discrimination against older workers will remain ‘rife’ without intervention, experts warn
People Management: Government criticised for ‘disappointing’ response to parliamentary report on support for an ageing workforce. Read story

Adrian Boulding: State pension age equalisation is far from equal
Money Marketing: The Women Against State Pension Inequality campaign is bringing inherent unfairness in the treatment of the genders to light, Adrian Boulding writes. Read story

80% feel they should help employees with work-life balance
Employee Benefits: The majority (80%) of respondents believe they have a duty of care to encourage employees to achieve a sensible work-life balance. This is a 4% drop from last year, but is still consistently the number one obligation cited by employers over the past 13 years, according to research by Employee Benefits and Health Shield. Read story

Glasgow City Council workers strike over equal pay claims
Employee Benefits: More than 8,000 Glasgow City Council (GCC) employees are staging a 48-hour strike today (23 October 2018) over the lack of progress on equal pay claims. Read story

British American Tobacco to introduce 16 weeks’ fully paid maternity leave
Employee Benefits: British American Tobacco (BAT) has announced a range of benefits for new parents among its workforce worldwide, including a compulsory minimum of 16 weeks’ fully paid maternity leave. Read story

Why well-designed CDC is viable for UK employers
Professional Pensions: Simon Eagle of Willis Towers Watson says that, based on his work for Royal Mail, well-designed collective defined contribution (CDC) funds would be viable for some other UK employers too. Read story

UK pension system still lagging on adequacy and sustainability
Pensions Expert: The UK pensions system has major shortcomings in its adequacy and sustainability, and could be improved by rowing back some of freedom and choice, according to research comparing retirement provision around the globe. Read story

Public sector workers could face variable pay rises
Personnel Today: Public sector workers could have wage increases based on their performance or where in the country they work, the chancellor has hinted. Read story

Health insurers urge Chancellor against further IPT increases
Health Insurance Daily: The chief executives of Bupa, Vitality, AXA PPP healthcare and Aviva have written a letter to the Chancellor urging him against making further increases to insurance premium tax (IPT). Read story

Cash-strapped employees costing their bosses billions
HR Grapevine: Employees’ financial worries are costing their employers £1.6billion per year due to plummeting productivity and missed work days – City AM reports. Read story

TPR bans masterminds of £13.7m pension scam from being trustees
Employee Benefits: The individuals identified as the masterminds behind a £13.7 million pension scam have been banned from being trustees of pension schemes. Read story

73% of workers want employers to do more to motivate them
Employee Benefits: More than seven in 10 (73%) UK workers want their employers to make more effort to motivate them, according to research commissioned by benefits provider Reward Gateway. Read story

Morrisons loses High Court appeal over breach of payroll data
Employee Benefits: Supermarket chain Morrisons has lost a challenge to a High Court ruling that found it partly liable for a data breach leading to payroll data of around 10,000 staff being posted online. Read story

Pensions tax relief fight could pit government against unions
Money Marketing: A reduction in pension tax relief could bring thousands more public sector workers into the taxman’s net, potentially setting up a showdown with unions, AJ Bell has warned. Read story

Master trust usage set to double as three quarters of DC schemes review delivery
Professional Pensions: The number of businesses expecting to have a master trust as their main defined contribution (DC) pension scheme is expected to double over the next three years to 26%, a LifeSight survey reveals. Read story

Seeing the benefits
Corporate Adviser: Optical and dental benefits achieve high levels of take-up from employees. So what should advisers look for when selecting them for employers? Sam Barrett reports. Read story

Employees on mental health first aid courses to double
HR Magazine: The number sent on mental health first aid courses is set to double as more bosses realise the scale of worker stress and depression, according to St John Ambulance. Read story

Trustees and employers must focus on financial wellbeing, experts say
Pensions Expert: Poor financial wellbeing is costing UK businesses £1.6bn each year, recent research has shown, as experts call on companies and trustees to do more to support employees. Read story

 Just 12% of UK SMEs prioritise employee engagement strategies
Employee Benefits: While 87% of UK small to medium enterprises (SMEs) claim they are taking active steps to improve employee engagement, only 12% list it as a business priority, according to research by marketing organisation Propellernet. Read story

Two-thirds of employees feel benefits package is not applicable to them
Employee Benefits: HR professionals in large UK organisations tend overestimate employee satisfaction with rewards and benefits programmes, according to a report by Hawk Incentives. Read story

87% cite reasonable cost as key influence when buying healthcare benefits
Employee Benefits: The majority of respondents (87%) state that reasonable cost is a key factor that influences their decision to buy or continue to offer healthcare benefits, a trend which continues from 2017, according to research by Employee Benefits and Health Shield. Read story

Enterprise Rent-A-Car announces new benefits for working parents
Employee Benefits: UK employees of Enterprise Rent-A-Car are to receive a new family support benefits package through a partnership with childcare search organisation Parental Choice. Read story

Ford set to offer partial transfer option to members
Professional Pensions: Motoring giant Ford has agreed to offer members of its UK defined benefit (DB) scheme the right to partially transfer their pension. Read story

Employers urge DWP to give TPR more targeted but proportionate powers
Professional Pensions: The Pensions Regulator (TPR) must be given more targeted powers but maintain flexibility around defined benefit (DB) scheme funding, concludes a survey by the Association of Consulting Actuaries (ACA). Read story

Tony Wickenden: Pensions and tax predictions for the Budget
Money Marketing: A round-up of the likely announcements to come from the chancellor next week. Read story

An employer's guide to postnatal depression
HR Magazine: One in six women experience postnatal depression after giving birth, but three-quarters of them suffer in silence. Read story

MPs press for action on BBC pay discrimination
Personnel Today: MPs have demanded that the BBC urgently removes “discriminatory” pay practices and puts in place transparent pay structures to ensure that men and women are paid equally for comparable work. Read story

Wage growth will slow down in 2019 as Brexit bites
Personnel Today: Private sector employers expect to see slower wage growth in 2019, according to analysis from XpertHR. Read story

UK gender pay gap shrinks to all-time low
Personnel Today: The UK’s gender pay gap has fallen to 8.6% for full-time employees – its lowest level yet, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Read story

The quick trick for instant motivation
Incentive and Motivation: According to new U of T Scarborough research, self-control may be less limited than we often believe. In fact, there may be no noticeable dip in our motivation and ability to do something as long as we switch up tasks throughout the day. Read story