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Human Times helps you stay ahead of the latest news and trends that impact the HR industry. Every weekday, our unique blend of AI and team of expert HR and employment editors and researchers monitor 100,000s of articles, and social posts to create summaries of the most relevant and useful content to help you lead, innovate and grow. The award winning Human Times newsletter has four geographical editions with news tailored to your region.
From HR leadership to diversity and inclusion, hybrid working, organisational data, performance management, and retention strategies, Human Times is the only trusted free online news source dedicated to covering the most up to date headlines, articles, reports and interviews to make sure you’re abreast of changes in the HR industry.
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Recent Editions
Human Times
North America
The unemployment rate for U.S. IT workers decreased slightly to 2.8% in April from 3% in March, reflecting targeted hiring by companies to bolster their artificial intelligence initiatives. According to CompTIA, technology firms like Microsoft and Salesforce hired approximately 4,280 workers in April, primarily in technology services and software development roles, as well as in cloud infrastructure and data processing. This hiring trend is partly in preparation for future growth, particularly in areas that support generative AI technologies. Despite this, the broader U.S. job market saw a slowdown, with only 175,000 jobs added in April compared to over 300,000 in March, and the overall unemployment rate increased slightly to 3.9%. Tech companies are also contemplating AI as a cost-effective alternative to hiring, which could impact entry-level IT roles traditionally filled by humans.
Full Issue
Human Times
UK
P&O Ferries CEO Peter Hebblethwaite accepted a six-figure bonus in 2023 just over a year after the company sacked hundreds of UK-based crew and replaced them with foreign agency workers, MPs heard on Tuesday. Hebblethwaite previously appeared in front of a joint transport and business committee in March 2022, at which time he said the lowest-paid agency worker would receive £5.15 an hour. However, an investigation by ITV News and the Guardian this March revealed some P&O seafarers were receiving an hourly rate as low as £4.87. The UK minimum wage is £11.44 an hour – but the rates do not apply to maritime workers employed by an overseas agency who work on foreign-registered ships in international waters. During his appearance in parliament, Hebblethwaite was asked by Liam Byrne MP: “Are you basically a modern-day pirate?...You seem to be robbing your staff blind.” Regarding his remuneration, Hebblethwaite said he earned a £325,000 basic salary and received an £183,000 bonus in April 2023. “I reflected on accepting that payment. But ultimately I did decide to accept it,” he said. “I do recognise it is not a decision that everybody would have made.”
Full Issue
Human Times
Europe
Wage talks between Norwegian oil firms and three labour unions have ended in a deal, averting the risk of strike action. Unions Lederne, Safe, and IE&FLT reached an agreement with companies, covering 7,300 workers at more than a dozen oil companies and suppliers. The wage agreements include Equinor, ConocoPhillips, Aker BP, and Vaar Energi. Norway, Europe's largest gas supplier, produces around 4 million barrels of oil equivalent per day. The deal ensures a stable supply in the industry. "The wage talks have successfully concluded, ensuring the stability of the oil sector," said an industry official.
Full Issue
Human Times
Middle East
The Oversight and Anti-Corruption Authority (Nazaha) in Saudi Arabia has launched several criminal cases against individuals exploiting public office for personal gain or harming public interest. The cases include bank employees arrested for receiving money in exchange for depositing cash into commercial entities' bank accounts, an employee colluding to provide a false medical report for insurance compensation, and a resident sub-awarding government contracts without proper classification. The Authority, in collaboration with various government departments, has arrested individuals involved in bribery, fraud, and other corrupt practices. The Authority emphasizes its commitment to combat corruption and hold individuals accountable, with no statute of limitations for such crimes.
Full Issue
Read the latest HR highlights
How HR is Tackling Long Covid?
Fingers remain tightly crossed around the world that the rampant hospitalization and fatality stage of the Covid-19 pandemic has generally peaked. Vaccination programmes are accelerating, and restrictions are gradually being lifted...
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ESG Is Not Just Another Name For CSR
Back in the distant 1980s if you wanted to demonstrate your environmental and ethical credentials it was sufficient to shop at or purchase shares in retailer The Body Shop. The charismatic Anita Roddick, founder of the “hippy” tinged retail chain, heralded a new age of environmental concern, caring capitalism and corporate awareness that evolved into what became known as Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). CSR was much talked about and lauded, but in reality often ended up being a lot of a hot air (excuse the pun) and often never progressed much beyond a footnote in the annual report.
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Have Older Workers Paid The Highest COVID-19 Price?
Across the world the pandemic is slowly but surely moving into its next phase. Recovery beckons. As furlough schemes across the U.S. and U.K. are being wound down, restrictions eased or lifted, and workforces moving back up the gears, early signs indicate that older employees are more likely to be casualties of the pandemic aftermath than their younger colleagues. Here at the we have witnessed an increasing number of stories supporting the growing belief that older workers are disproportionately paying the highest Covid-19 price.
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Bosses. What's not to like? Plenty, say employees
“You’ll never have another boss like me, someone who’s basically a chilled-out entertainer”
So said, David Brent, the fictional manager of Slough-based paper merchant Wernham Hogg in the seminal TV comedy The Office. Ricky Gervais’s portrayal of Brent as a flawed, narcissistic, incompetent, and deluded manager was so well observed that many (including me) believed it was a genuine fly-on-the-wall documentary when they alighted accidentally on the first ever episode.
Rolling with the Payroll
To mark National Payroll Week the team at the Human Times has provided some insight into the industry that we hope you’ll find useful.
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