At a glance: reward and benefits headlines this week
The headlines you might have missed between 15-21 January 2016
L&G sells Suffolk Life
Corporate Adviser: Legal & General Group is selling Suffolk Life, the Sipp provider and administrator, to Curtis Banks Group plc for £45 million. Read story
Employers 'not focused on organisational health’
HR Magazine: Bad health harms work, and bad work harms health – so why aren't businesses looking for meaningful change? Read story
Harrods, Jaguar Land Rover and AstraZeneca are named UK’s top employers
Employee Benefits: AstraZeneca, Harrods and Jaguar Land Rover are the best employers to work for in the UK, according to research by financial software, data, and media firm Bloomberg. Read story
High Court rules peripatetic staff are eligible for auto-enrolment
Employee Benefits: The High Court has ruled that peripatetic workers are eligible to be auto-enrolled into a workplace pension scheme. Read story
70% of those with depression do not feel supported by their employer
Employee Benefits: Almost three-quarters (70%) of respondents with depression do not feel supported by their employer, according to research by job vacancy website CV Library. Read story
New state pension leaves new retirees worse off in 2060
Professional Pensions: The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has calculated that people retiring under the new state pension will be worse off as time goes on. Read story
Transfer values fall close to near lowest level for a year
Professional Pensions: Transfer values have fallen to their lowest point for almost a year, according to Xafinity. Read story
21m now in compliant AE schemes – TPR figures
Corporate Adviser: Over 78,000 employers had fulfilled their auto-enrolment duties by the end of 2015, but more than 100,000 more will meet their staging dates in the first three months of 2016. Read story
Govt moves towards flat rate on pension tax relief
Money Marketing: The Treasury has moved away from a radical move that would see pensions taxed like Isas in favour of the industry’s favoured flat rate of relief. Read story
Fujifilm develops its DC default fund approach
Pensions Expert: Fujifilm is overhauling its defined contribution default fund to improve its performance and relevance to members, as schemes continue to rethink DC glide paths following the pension freedoms. Read story
Employees remain in the dark about their pension freedoms
Reward Guide: Half of UK employers admit that their employees, both in defined benefit and defined contribution schemes have a limited understanding of the pension freedoms. Read story
Maersk Group enhances maternity benefits for global employees
Employee Benefits: Danish transportation and energy organisation Maersk Group is to introduce improved maternity benefits for its employees globally. Read story
DB to vanish from FTSE 250 within one year
Professional Pensions: All open defined benefit schemes in the FTSE 250 are set to close within 12 months, according to JLT Employee Benefits (EB). Read story
DB trustees do not scrutinise consultants enough says SEI
Professional Pensions: Trustees of defined benefit (DB) schemes are failing to challenge their consultants on investment advice, according to research by SEI and IFF Research. Read story
Pay workers living wage or forego shareholder dividends, says Corbyn
CIPD: Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has suggested that under a Labour government, companies could be banned from distributing dividends to shareholders until they pay workers the living wage. Read story
Scots earn more than English for first time since records began
CIPD: Research reveals pay in Scotland has grown faster than in any other UK nation or region. Read story
Tax shutters down on March 16 – McPhail
Corporate Adviser: The government could bring down the shutters on the current tax relief system immediately on 16th March 2016 to avoid tax leakage that could rise into billions of pounds warns Hargreaves Lansdown. Read story
Kingfisher uses gaming app to engage staff with long-term saving
Employee Benefits: In November 2014, the Kingfisher Group launched an app, Bolt to the finish, to encourage its 36,000 employees to engage with retirement saving. Read story
Dr Penny Simpson: Consider key elements for effective gamification design
Employee Benefits: By drawing upon game design elements, mechanics and techniques, organisations hope to engender, in work, the type of experience that we find motivating, engaging and fun when we play games. Read story
DWP urged to take lead from FCA over retirement risk warnings
Professional Pensions: The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA) has called for proposed retirement risk warning regulations to be altered in a bid to bring them more in line with practice in the contract-based sector. Read story
Trustees warn DC governance changes have not benefited members
Professional Pensions: Changes to defined contribution scheme (DC) governance over the last five years have not improved member outcomes, according to 61% of pension managers and trustees in a survey. Read story
Govt unveils new pensions exit charge cap
Corporate Adviser: A new charge cap on pension exit penalties overseen by the FCA is to be introduced, Chancellor George Osborne said today. Read story
99% of Bibby Financial Services employees engage with flexible benefits
Employee Benefits: Bibby Financial Services has achieved a 99% employee engagement rate with its flexible benefits programme. Read story
Rio Tinto freezes staff pay
Employee Benefits: Anglo-Australian metals and mining firm Rio Tinto is freezing staff pay across the business. Read story
23% pay a 5% contribution into employees’ pensions
Employee Benefits: Around a quarter (23%) of respondents are paying a 5% contribution into their employees’ pensions, according to research by Aegon. Read story
Dentons accuses Govt of pandering to tabloids on exit charges
Corporate Adviser: Sipp provider Dentons Pension Management has launched a stinging attack on the government for legislating for a cap on exit penalties, saying such fees are due under the terms of the contract. Read story
Pension exit charge cap extended to occupational schemes
Corporate Adviser: Occupational schemes will be subject to the same charge cap as contract-based schemes, pension minister Ros Altmann has confirmed. Read story
70% of retailers undecided about approach to national living wage
Employee Benefits: Almost three-quarters (70%) of retail chain respondents are undecided about their approach to implementing the national living wage, according to research by Willis Towers Watson. Read story
30% are in favour of changing pensions tax relief
Employee Benefits: Less than a third (30%) of employer respondents are in favour of changing the tax relief available on pensions, according to research by Hargreaves Lansdown. Read story
Transparency rules to hit EBCs, vertically integrated providers and boutiques – Widows
Corporate Adviser: FCA and DWP pressure on hidden pension charges will squeeze boutique managers out of the market, force vertically-integrated players to choose the link in the chain where they want to play and lead to a fresh round of rip-off pension accusations. Read story
Congratulation leave? Unusual types of leave from around the world
Personnel Today: Anyone thinking that the UK’s upcoming grandparental leave is unnecessary meddling by law-makers should look beyond these shores at the numerous statutory types of leave – paid and unpaid – that employees can opt to take. Read story
LGPS moves closer to adopting Dutch-style cost transparency code
Professional Pensions: Details are emerging of a cost transparency and disclosure code for asset managers that invest on behalf of the local government pension scheme (LGPS). Read story
Citizens Advice: pension exit fees cap good news for consumers
Professional Pensions: Citizens Advice has welcomed news that the Treasury will legislate to cap pension early exit charges levied on savers using pension freedoms. Read story
Savers to get extra £1bn in pension tax relief in 2016
Professional Pensions: Consumers will save an extra £1bn in pension tax relief this year as more join workplace schemes, according to research from Prudential and unbiased.co.uk. Read story
Industry hits out at ‘ill-informed’ exit fee cap
Money Marketing: Government plans to cap pension exit charges have been slammed by experts, who brand the plans “worrying” and “ill-informed”. Read story
April changes offer 'excuse' for DB schemes to shut up shop
Pensions Expert: The death knell for defined benefit is edging closer, consultants say, as the end of contracting-out, low yields and impending government revisions to pension tax could see all FTSE 250 companies completely close their DB schemes by the end of this year. Read story
Nest plans partial withdrawals and bulk transfer restrictions
Money Marketing: Nest is consulting on plans to allow members to take partial cash withdrawals from their pot as part of a raft of changes at the Government-backed pension scheme. Read story
Walmart US staff to receive pay increase
Employee Benefits: Around 1.2 million employees at Walmart US and at its warehouse chain, Sam’s Club, are to receive a pay increase. Read story
Blue Apple boosts stress resilience by 10% through wellness scheme
Employee Benefits: Catering firm Blue Apple has achieved a 10% improvement in stress resilience among its 330 employees following the completion of a four-month wellness programme. Read story
33% say their employer has a negative approach to mental health
Employee Benefits: A third (33%) of respondents believe that their employer has a negative approach to mental health issues, according to research by Canada Life Group Insurance. Read story
Employment rate highest since records began
HR Magazine: There were 31.39 million people in work in September to November 2015, the highest on record. Read story
Retirement planning: ten top tips
Reward Guide: With retirees able to make huge decisions around their pension pots, Helen Swire draws together some top tips on what they need to consider – and how employers can help. Read story
Salary sacrifice risk for new Living Wage
Corporate Adviser: Just 9 per cent of employers have reviewed salary sacrifice usage against the new National Living Wage requirements, according to new research. Read story
Bosses’ frustrations over employee absence revealed – report
Corporate Adviser: Bosses don’t want employees coming to work unwell but are frustrated by working time lost to doctors’ appointments, according to new research. Read story