The number of major illnesses and sickness absence has been shown to increase with age which will result in a rise in cost for providing risk and health care benefits. This fear has increased due to the government’s recent proposal to scrap the default retirement age.
Mercer a global leader for trusted HR and related financial [...]

Providing a good standard of workplace training is crucial for all companies regardless of their size, but is not without its potential pitfalls, according to a small business expert.
Former IBA start-up business adviser of the year Sylvia Constantine claimed training is as important to owners and managers as it is to lower-level staff and added [...]

Employees want their bosses to provide stress counselling, according to a new report.
Over half of all workers questioned told the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy’s 2010 Attitudes to Counselling and Psychotherapy survey that they would like a confidential service to help them deal with the worries caused by their job.
The study also found that [...]

Flexible working has numerous benefits for a business and should be encouraged, according to one expert.
Director of corporate marketing at mobile phone company Orange Max Taylor said employers should be prepared to “embrace the practice”.
“Allowing employees to work flexibly actually presents a significant opportunity for businesses to save money and improve employee morale,” he explained.
Bosses [...]

The Government has announced plans for a substantial overhaul of the benefits system. These changes should address a number of practical barriers – for example, complexities in the current benefits system that preclude job-seekers from using  temporary assignments as a route back into work.
Responding to the Government’s plans, REC’s Director of External Relations, Tom Hadley, said;
“The [...]

Employers could encourage their staff to cycle to work, as one expert has suggested it will make them more productive.
The UK’s biggest sustainable transport charity Sustrans is supporting the government’s Cycle to Work Alliance, which is intended to raise awareness of the benefits of cycling.
Health director Philip Insall said "active commuting" has a range of [...]

Employers could encourage their staff to cycle to work, as one expert has suggested it will make them more productive.
The UK’s biggest sustainable transport charity Sustrans is supporting the government’s Cycle to Work Alliance, which is intended to raise awareness of the benefits of cycling.
Health director Philip Insall said “active commuting” has a range of [...]

A manufacturing association has criticised the government’s plan to scrap the default retirement age (DRA), saying it does not give employers enough time to implement new policies.
EEF has also complained older workers could demand more tribunals if they think they have been unfairly asked to leave.
The Coalition’s Programme for Government is committed to phasing out [...]

Research has revealed that while the vast majority of both IT and HR professionals recognise the value that HR technology can add to the business, this is not reflected by a drive to improve the integration and functionality of HR technology systems.
The Taleo HR Systems Survey examines the relationship between IT and HR departments and [...]

Discussions surrounding welfare reforms need to take into account the issues regarding mental health illnesses, one specialist has claimed.
Chief executive of charity Mind Paul Farmer said it is “excellent news” that the government has decided to review the work capacity assessment scheme, adding those with psychological problems face a number of challenges with benefits systems.
Yesterday [...]