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HR Zone Members Newswire Issue 94
12 April 2005
http://www.hrzone.co.uk
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SITE HIGHLIGHTS **** SITE HIGHLIGHTS **** SITE HIGHLIGHTS ****
1. Editor’s Comment: ‘Job-hopping’ – does HR care?
2. Opinion: Turning vision into a reality
3. The Couch!? team share their beauty DIY disasters
4. MG Rover hangs onto its ‘million to one’ chance
5. Any Answers: hospital leave
SITE HIGHLIGHTS **** SITE HIGHLIGHTS **** SITE HIGHLIGHTS ****
Editor’s note
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With another raft of employment legislation landing on the HR plate
and ‘I&C’ regulations shinning up the ranks of ‘latest burden’ it
looks to be another stressful chapter in the HR year book.
So we thought you deserved some relaxation. HRZone’s ‘The Couch?!’
has teamed up with The Spa at Chancery Court, London (winner of the
British Beauty Awards best day spa in 2002 and 2004) to offer a free,
luxury manicure to one of our most deserving members.
All you need to do is share your most amusing beauty DIY disaster
story with us and you’ll be entered into our prize draw (competition
closes Friday 22 April):
http://www.hrzone.co.uk/item/139447
Good luck!
Regards,
Annie Hayes
Editor
mailto:[email protected]
In Sickness and in Health, Wednesday 20th April 2005, London
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176 million days are lost a year due to absenteeism in the
workplace which costs the UK economy 12 billion pounds. If it is
your responsibility to reduce absenteeism and sickness levels in
your work place, then you can’t afford to miss this 1 day
conference. Keynote address is by Alan Johnson, Secretary of
State for Department of Work & Pensions, with contributions from
Brendan Barber, General Secretary, TUC, and case studies from
representatives of leading UK businesses. Click below to
download the Conference Programme and Booking Form.
http://www.hrzone.co.uk/redirects/accor4.html
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Welcome new members
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This week, HR Zone welcomes members from the following
organisations, among others, to the site:
BGC International; Pathfindercoaching; Digby Consultancy; FirstAssist
Services Ltd; Intelligent Finance; Coors Brewers Limited; Indigo
Business Services Ltd; ORC International; Hill & Knowlton; Norwich
Union; Uroplasty Ltd; Natures Way Foods; Darchem Engineering Limited;
Nicholas Graham Associates; Cloth Associates; Railex Systems Ltd;
IBM; Developing Minds; The Progressive Business Group; McLintock &
Partners; Driven Leasing & Finance Ltd; Bartfields (UK) Limited
Equal opportunities Review: Managing the older workforce
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Extending the average working life has become the subject of
government policy discussions.
Another concern for employers to consider is the introduction of
age discrimination legislation with the focus now on how
organisations manage their older workers.
Sarah Vickerstaff examines some of the issues employers face,
and how they could be addressed.
More……….
http://www.hrzone.co.uk/redirects/lexisnexis2.html
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Editor’s Choice
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Editor’s Comment: ‘Job-hopping’ – does HR care?
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There comes a time in every period of employment when you feel on top
of the game, you’ve matured into the role like a good Cheddar ripe
for the cracker and you could just about do the job in your sleep; so
what can bosses do to halt the steady creep to ‘serial job-hopping’
and should they care – Editor’s Comment finds out.
http://www.hrzone.co.uk/item/139484
Opinion: Turning vision into a reality
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If the Sunday Times 100 Best Companies to Work For survey and the
plethora of research that exists is anything to go by, one would say
there is now clear and convincing evidence that there is a strong
correlation between translation of visionary goals, good people
management and business results.
http://www.hrzone.co.uk/item/139475
Document: Does one-size really fit all?
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Every company is a melting pot of people, personalities and life
stages. Each individual will have their own unique aspirations
and needs, so why should their benefit requirements be any
different? At Towry Law we understand that no single benefits
package can ever satisfy everyone and therefore we offer a
Flexible Benefits solution. for more information:
http://www.hrzone.co.uk/redirects/towrylaw2.html
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Top news stories
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MG Rover hangs onto its ‘million to one’ chance
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Workers at ailing car manufacturer, MG Rover were sent home yesterday
on full pay as the chances of securing a deal to save the business
were said to be as little as a ‘million to one’.
http://www.hrzone.co.uk/item/139597
UK employment costs rocket
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The cost of employment in the UK is 40% more than in the US; analysts
say the findings could put off US investors.
http://www.hrzone.co.uk/item/139533
Childcare vouchers rolled out
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Supportive bosses are able to offer working parents a tax-free bonus
as of, 5 April, in the form of childcare vouchers.
http://www.hrzone.co.uk/item/139401
DWP ‘bury’ bad pension news
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Almost 100,000 fewer retirees each year benefit from a company
pension then when Labour took office.
http://www.hrzone.co.uk/item/139433
Bosses’ group calls for ‘education and skills’ focus
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The CBI is urging the three main political parties to put education,
skills and transport at the top of their election manifestos.
http://www.hrzone.co.uk/item/139528
Workers yearn for an afternoon nap
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Staff are least productive between 3pm and 4pm and believe a Spanish
style siesta would help them to recover from post-lunch sluggishness.
http://www.hrzone.co.uk/item/139399
The definitive guide to ECOs
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Is your organisation thinking of implementing an Employee Car
Ownership (ECO) scheme?
Want to know how to avoid costly errors and make ECOs work for
you?
Attend a Car Benefit Solutions workshop and our team of
specialists can help you explore your options.
http://www.hrzone.co.uk/redirects/cbs.html
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Featured Any Answers question: Hospital leave
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Q: A new employee, who has been here for just six months has recently
informed us that a medical operation will mean an absence of six
weeks.
As a small business, this presents us with some financial concerns.
Are we able to ask him to take some of this time as holiday? To
prevent this from happening in the future are we able to ask medical
related questions at the interview stage?
Anne Harvey
http://www.hrzone.co.uk/item/139380
Members’ responses
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(Edited comments appear – see the site for full details)
The first place to start will be your contract. In the absence of any
express term to continue to pay wages, he will only be entitled to
Statutory Sick Pay. However, even if there is no express term
regarding paying wages while sick you need to ensure that you have
not already set a precedent by paying other employees when they have
been off sick.
On the interview front your best option here is to get all potential
recruits to complete a medical assessment form as part of the
recruitment process.
Barry Rees
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Read the full responses to this question – and add your own – at
http://www.hrzone.co.uk/item/139380
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