Lidl the Latest Retailer to Pay Living Wage
German retail chain Lidl will become the first UK supermarket to pay the Living Wage. The pay hike will equate to an average wage increase of £1,200 per year for about 9,000 Lidl employees, or just over half of the supermarket’s UK workforce. The increase is due this October, and means that Lidl employees across […]
Employees Afraid to Blow the Whistle
A third of employees have admitted to being afraid to blow the whistle on illegal or dangerous activities taking place in their workplace. Over half of employees (53%) said that fear of losing their job would cause them to turn a blind eye, whilst 23% stated that they were worried about the impact upon their […]
The Mid-Afternoon Slump Explained
The typical mid-afternoon slump has been explained… And the cause isn’t what you might think. Research by the NHS has identified that 2.16 PM is the least productive time of the working day. However rather than being due to the post-lunch ‘food coma’, the mid-afternoon slump is actually caused by rising CO2 levels in the […]
UK Workers Not Taking Full Holiday Allowance
More than half of workers in the UK are not taking their full holiday allowance, according to research by Reed. 54% of employees are leaving an average of three days of holiday a year unused. Nearly half of the respondents (45%) said that they had previously cancelled a holiday for work reasons, whilst 24% said […]
The Living Wage Budget
This week Chancellor George Osborne unveiled the first completely Conservative budget since 1996, which he used to propose drastic rises to the minimum wage. The new national living wage budget initiative, originally proposed by the Labour Party in the run up to the election, will see the minimum wage increase to £7.20 in April 2016 for over-25s. […]
Employees Seeking a ‘Family Feel’ in Business
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Research by the CIPD has revealed that over 50% of employees would prefer to work in an organisation with a ‘family feel’. The CIPD published the findings of their Employee Outlook 2015 survey this June. More than 2,200 respondents from across a wide range of organisations and industries took part in the survey, which […]
The 10 Year Rise of Flexible Working
The last decade has seen an increase in the number of employees working from home with 4.2 million people now taking advantage of flexible working regulations. The TUC found that whilst the number of people in employment has increased over the last ten years, that growth has been exceeded by the number of people working […]
Record Number of People in Employment
The new Conservative government has received a post-election boost as figures show the number of people in employment is at a record high. Figures published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) have revealed that the number of people categorised as employed hit a high of 73.5% in March, the highest comparable rate to the […]
Flexible Working Arrangements a Benefit to Business
More than half of UK HR directors surveyed believe that remote and flexible working arrangements have resulted in increased productivity in their organisation. A study conducted by Robert Half has found that nearly two-thirds of HR directors (63%) believe that a flexible working environment has a positive impact on their business. Over half of the respondents (51%) […]
Anti-Avoidance Measures & Zero Hours Contracts
The Government last week published new legislation to protect employees from exclusivity clauses in zero hours contracts. These exclusivity clauses prevent employees from taking on secondary jobs to supplement their income. The proposals outline the consequences for any employer found to be enforcing exclusivity clauses, which include the right for the affected employee to seek […]
Reduced National Insurance Contributions for Employees Under 21
This April sees the abolition of employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs) for employees under the age of 21. Chancellor George Osborne announced the changes as part of a Government initiative to reduce unemployment levels amongst young people. The scheme looks set to reduce employee contributions for as many as 340,000 employers across the country, and […]
Unlimited Holiday in the UK?
Sir Richard Branson created a stir earlier this month by announcing that the Virgin Group will be piloting unlimited holiday schemes. The entrepreneur has termed the unlimited allowance a ‘non-policy’, as Virgin Group employees will have complete flexibility with how and when they take their time off as long as they do so responsibly. Branson […]
Changes to Flexible Working Rules
We recently saw the announcement of new changes to flexible working rules, providing the opportunity for all UK employees to request different working patterns. This could have a dramatic effect on how we design our working lives, as well as affect our work/life balance. Many employers already offer flexible working for all staff as part […]
Government to Tackle Zero Hours Contracts
Tougher action will be taken against businesses who abuse zero hours contracts thanks to new legislation introduced during this year’s Queen’s Speech. Just last month the business secretary Vince Cable outlined the government’s plans to tackle zero hours contracts due to alarming figures from the Office for National Statistics, which revealed that there are approximately 1.4m […]
Zero Hours Contracts Bill 2014
The Zero Hours Contracts Bill will prohibit the use of zero hours employment contracts, particularly those requiring workers to be available for work but where there is no guarantee of work available. The Office of National Statistics estimates at least 200,000 people are employed on zero hours contracts in the UK, of which 75,000 are […]
Employment Tribunals – Who Pays?
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has recently published a study on the ‘Payment of Tribunal Awards’ (Making the Labour Market more Flexible, Efficient and Fair). The report summarises the findings of a study of people who made successful claims to an Employment Tribunal and were awarded a sum of money by the […]