The latest business Intelligence for HR professionals and people managers everywhere
Sign UpOnline Version
UK Edition
18th August 2021
Together with

THE HOT STORY
BME unemployment increase outpaces white worker rate
The unemployment rate for Black and minority ethnic (BME) workers in the UK has risen at three times the rate of that of white workers, Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures reveal. Over the last year, the percentage of people from these communities who are unemployed has risen from 6.1% to 8% while among white people the rate has gone from 3.6% to 4%. TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady said: “BME workers have borne the brunt of the pandemic. They’ve been more likely to be in low-paid, insecure work and have been put at greater risk from the virus. They’ve also been more likely to work in industries that have been hit hard by unemployment.” She has urged ministers to take “decisive action to hold down unemployment, create good new jobs and challenge the discrimination that holds BME workers back.” The ONS data also show that the number of people on zero-hours contracts fell from 1.08m in April-June 2020 to 917,000 in April-June 2021. The report flagged a disparity in the workers who are likely to be on such contracts, with BME women twice as likely to be on them as white men. Overall, job vacancies in the UK hit a record 953,000 in the three months to July, according to the ONS. Unemployment fell to 4.7% in the three months to June, down slightly on the previous quarter, while average pay rose 7.4%, the ONS said. ONS deputy statistician Jonathan Athow said the "world of work continues to rebound robustly" from the pandemic. Analysts had predicted that the jobless rate would stay flat. The ONS said payrolls grew by 182,000 between June and July, although at 28.9 million this is still 201,000 lower than before the pandemic.
REMUNERATION
Wages up 8.8% year-on-year
Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures show that wages including bonuses jumped by 8.8% in the three months to June against the same period last year, with earnings excluding bonuses up 7.4%. The ONS said the rise in earnings was driven in part by the fact people who had been receiving furlough payments during the same period last year were now receiving full pay. Tom Pugh at RSM said: “At first glance, the surge in headline pay growth to 8.8% is another reason for the Bank of England to start raising interest rates next year, but headline pay has been inflated by base and compositional effects.” Noting that payroll data suggests there were about 200,000 fewer people in employment in July than before the pandemic, he added: “As such, there is enough slack in the labour market to prevent wage growth concerning the Monetary Policy Committee.”
RE-SET TO RE-ENGAGE
Channel the Olympic Mindset to Recharge

Have you ever wondered what it takes to get to the Olympic Games? Or how athletes stay motivated through so much adversity?

When it comes to elite sport, understanding how to get the best out of yourself is crucial to your performance and your contribution to the team.  

The world of business is no different. 

Rooted in our own experience across 11 Olympic games, we’ve developed a coaching methodology that applies the Olympic mindset to business.

Our Fast Track Coaching and Resilience Tracking tools are developed and delivered by Olympians to empower individuals to unlock a greater level of motivation, resilience and performance.

Click here to find out more.

 
CULTURE
Attempt at culture change leads to conflict at Twitter
The New York Times reports on how Dantley Davis, installed as Twitter's new vice president of design in 2019, has sought to remake the company’s culture over the past two years. He told staff that Twitter was too nice at a time when the firm's collaborative environment had become sclerotic and workers were reluctant to criticise one another. Mr. Davis clashed with staff because of his blunt style and his treatment of workers was the focus of several probes by Twitter's employee relations department. Nevertheless, company officials are of the opinion that employee dissatisfaction is sometimes the cost of shaking things up, notes the Times, and “This is actually a Twitter culture change that we've been trying to drive,” according to Jennifer Christie, Twitter's head of human resources.
STRATEGY
Logistics plans could bring 9k jobs to Swindon
Real estate developer Pannattoni has said that creating new logistics, warehousing and industrial facilities at the closed Honda manufacturing facility in Swindon could create a total of 16,000 jobs across the UK, including 9,000 in Swindon. Development director James Watson says the "£700m speculative investment we are making in the site is the largest in the company's history" and represents a "huge vote of confidence in both the workforce of Swindon and its location." Swindon Borough Council leader David Renard noted that while Panattoni themselves would not be using the site, "I imagine a company like Panattoni would not be investing such a huge sum of money without being confident it has clients lined up to take places on the site."
KPMG launches new tax practice in London for US expats
KPMG has announced plans to launch a new tax practice in London to support US expatriates in the UK and across Europe as the “potential” for US tax reform accelerates. The new practice, which KPMG plans to “scale up rapidly” in the next year, will focus on advising high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth individuals and families with US tax obligations. The KPMG team will be led by Linus Ostberg, who joins as director of the US tax practice of KPMG UK’s family office and private client team. Before joining KPMG, Mr. Ostberg was a director at Moore Global US Tax Services, following several years as a senior tax manager at Deloitte US working in both the UK and the US.
LEGAL
Tesco worker wins sex discrimination case
A 6ft tall Tesco worker is in line for compensation after an employment tribunal heard how his bosses dismissed his complaints that he was physically intimidated by his 5ft 4in and pregnant female manager. Toby King accused his manager, Jo Francis, of "false imprisonment" and physically preventing him from leaving a room during a discussion about him working extra hours over Christmas. Mr King also said that the incident had caused a relapse of his PTSD, which his bosses knew he suffered from. He was later sacked for failing to show up for work after his PTSD made it difficult for him to leave the house. The tribunal ruled that Mr King was a victim of sex discrimination after managers failed to reasonably investigate the complaint as they thought "a big man" could not be frightened by a "little pregnant woman."
TAX
UK is Europe’s eighth-lowest tax country for workers
Analysis by Income Tax UK suggests that the UK is the eighth-lowest taxing country in Europe, with British people taking home £2,058 from a £2,580 wage. The study looked at how much income people in the UK and the EU would receive after tax, based on a monthly salary of €3,000, or £2,580. Bulgaria came out on top, with the lowest-taxed workers in Europe thanks to a 10% tax rate. Poland came in second, allowing taxpayers to keep 86.3% of an average £2,580 monthly wage. Ireland ranked third, while Norway, Luxembourg, Ukraine, Netherlands, Greece and France made up the remainder of the top ten low tax havens for workers. At the opposite end of the rankings, Lithuania has the highest taxes on workers, with rates in Romania found to be similarly high. A spokesperson for Income Tax UK said: “It’s very interesting to see the tax differences across Europe for an average monthly salary,” adding “As we shift to a more remote working culture, those with the ability to work from anywhere also have the opportunity to maximise their income.”
REGULATION
UK regulators to meet steelworkers over mis-sold pensions scandal
The Financial Conduct Authority, Financial Ombudsman Service and Financial Services Compensation Scheme will meet former British Steel Pension Scheme members suspected of being given bad pension advice and eligible for compensation.
WORKFORCE
Nando's closes restaurants amid supply issues
Nando's has had to close a number of branches because of supply issues, and some other sites have had to reduce opening hours. The restaurant chain said the problem stems from shortages of staff at its suppliers and advised it will be lending 70 members of staff to suppliers' factories to "get things moving again."
REMOTE WORKING
Spanish villages want remote workers
Thirty towns and villages in Spain spread throughout the regions of Castilla y León, Castilla-La Mancha, La Rioja, Aragón, Andalusia, Navarra and the Basque Country, have launched the association of Red Nacional de Pueblos Acogedores, or the National Network of Welcoming Villages. The association aims to attract remote workers and co-called ‘digital nomads.’
INTERNATIONAL
Bank executive committees continue to wrestle with Covid policies
Reuters reports that big Wall Street banks are enforcing stricter mask and vaccine requirements for employees in a bid to combat rising coronavirus infections, driven largely by the Delta variant, while avoiding an explosive national debate about individual rights. Bank executive committees have been weighing policies and how to communicate them for weeks, and although most of Wall Street's workforce has been vaccinated, sources say a vocal group of employees does not want to get shots for health or religious reasons, and some others contend that a mandate infringes their personal rights. Jacqueline Voronov, a labour and employment attorney at Hall Booth Smith, observes that outside the financial services sector there have been some attempts to sue employers over requirements, but judges have been siding with bosses. "The courtroom doors are always open," she said. "Can you bring a claim? Yes. Will it be successful? Most likely, no."
Opposition seeks to corner Ghana's president with anti-LGBT law
Opposition lawmakers in Ghana are seeking to gain political advantage by pushing President Nana Akufo-Addo into a tight spot by promoting an anti-LGBT law that has been widely condemned by the international community and activists but which has widespread support among the West African country’s citizens. Activists have condemned the "promotion of proper human sexual rights and Ghanaian family values bill" that has been drafted by eight lawmakers, mostly from the opposition party. "Adopting the legislation in its current or any partial form would be tantamount to a violation of a number of human rights standards, including the absolute prohibition of torture," a group of UN experts said, adding "It will not only criminalise LGBTI people, but anyone who supports their human rights, shows sympathy to them or is even remotely associated with them." Human Rights Watch (HRW) researcher Wendy Isaack says the opposition party is aware of how popular the law would be, and "is using this [as] a major political tactic to get the current government to take a position one way or the other for political reasons."
OTHER
Ofsted chief says children settled into nursery better in the pandemic
Ofsted chief inspector Amanda Spielman has said feedback from nurseries indicates that children settled into nursery better during the pandemic when parents were not allowed inside due to Covid rules. Ms Spielman was speaking as she visited Bright Stars Day Nursery in Peterborough. Kirsty Wislawski, nursery manager at Bright Stars Day Nursery, said: “We had a lovely chat about the differences the pandemic has made and one very big difference we have noticed is the children settle in better because the parents are not allowed inside the nursery. Before the pandemic it was far harder to get the children settled on the first day as parents did not want to leave and would hesitate. Amanda told us she had the same feedback from lots of other nurseries.”

The Human Times team is delighted to announce an exciting new referral program that enables our readers to earn access to in-depth HR-related analysis reports and a free annual subscription to the World of Work database - a 5 year searchable archive of all Human Times content categorized by topic, sector, region and geography, usually costing $250. 

To find out more see our latest Referral Program page for details...

Twitter
Facebook
LinkedIn
Email
WhatsApp

or, simply copy your own referral link to share with others

https://industryslice.com/subscribers/02242718-7868-4cf8-b6cb-ed1526b97a03?rh_ref=[[data:sl_referralcode]]

PS: You have referred [[data:sl_referralscount:"0"]] people so far

The Human Times is designed to help you stay ahead, spark ideas and support innovation, learning and development in your organisation. The links under articles indicate original news sources. Some links lead directly to the source material. Others lead to paywalls where you may need a subscription. A third category are restricted by copyright rules. For reaction and insights on any stories covered in the Human Times, join the discussion by becoming a member of our LinkedIn Group or Business Page, or follow us on Twitter.

Follow us on FacebookFollow us on TwitterFollow us on Linkedin

This e-mail has been sent to [[EMAIL_TO]]

Click here to unsubscribe