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18th May 2023
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THE HOT STORY
Office working should be 'default', Chancellor says
The Chancellor has said the "default" location for workers should be in the office, unless there is a good reason to work remotely or in a hybrid pattern. Jeremy Hunt said that while working remotely – which has become increasingly common since the pandemic - has produced "exciting opportunities," he is worried about a "loss of creativity" when it is permanent. A recent Deloitte survey found that 77% of Gen Z and 71% of millennials would consider looking for a new job if their employer asked them to go to their workplace full-time. Kate Sweeney, partner and human capital lead at Deloitte, said younger workers "expect to be able to flex their work to accommodate their personal life." She added: "Employers who recognise this desire for choice and support this are more likely to attract, retain and motivate the best talent from these two generations.” Ben Willmott, head of public policy at the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, said: “Office environments provide valuable opportunities for collaboration, learning and social interaction, but the pandemic has also demonstrated the value of remote working in fostering employee well-being, and work-life balance, without compromising on productivity.”
SUCCESSION PLANNING
Free guide: Succession planning – what you need to know

Succession planning has long been a part of HR and business leaders' strategic agenda, but they generally take little thought or action on it until it is too late – after vacancies in key positions arise. Costs of replacing key employees can average 150% to 200% of the employees’ salary and may take several months, so it's imperative a plan is put in place. Find out the benefits of succession planning and take our quick test to discover how much you know about the topic.

Access your free guide here

 
WORKFORCE
Bailey: Resilient economy makes outlook brighter
The governor of the Bank of England has described the UK's outlook as "a bit brighter" due to falling energy prices and "greater resilience in the economy than expected." Speaking at the British Chambers of Commerce's annual conference, Andrew Bailey also said there are signs that labour market tightness is loosening, although he warned that it “remains very tight." Pointing to a recovery in labour market participation, especially amongst younger workers, he noted that the number of vacancies has come down from “very high levels.” He added: "The ratio of the number of vacancies to the number of unemployed, a key measure of labour market tightness, has fallen as a result."
STRATEGY
Carmakers urge officials to renegotiate Brexit deal
Global carmakers have called on the UK government to renegotiate the Brexit deal, saying rules on where parts are sourced from threaten the future of the British automotive industry. Ford and Jaguar Land Rover have joined Stellantis, which owns the Vauxhall, Peugeot and Citroën brands, in voicing concern over stricter “rules of origin,” due to come into force next year, which could add tariffs on car exports. Stellantis has said that without a rethink, it could be forced to shut some of its UK operations. Ford said tariffs “will hit both UK- and EU-based manufacturers, so it is vital that the UK and EU come to the table to agree a solution,” while Jaguar Land Rover has called on the UK and EU to “quickly agree a better implementation solution to avoid destabilising the industry’s transition to clean mobility.”
HIRING
Barclays to hire 200 traders in Paris
Barclays plans to hire 200 new traders in Paris. The British lender expects to increase its headcount in the French capital by about two-thirds over the next two to three years as it increasingly becomes Europe’s main trading hub. Francesco Ceccato, chief executive of Barclays Europe, said: “The need to keep hiring traders on the continent is obvious. Europe needs to develop its capital markets to reduce reliance on banks, so we have an opportunity to grow.”
WORKPLACE
Deutsche Bank to cut office space by 40%
Deutsche Bank plans to reduce office space by 40% at its Frankfurt and neighbouring Eschborn locations by the end of 2024. The bank's largest expense is its 3,500 leases, which accounted for the majority of its €1.4bn in real estate costs last year. The move is part of the bank's expense savings strategy and is expected to be achieved as a result of a growing number of employees working from home. Almost two-thirds of Deutsche Bank's employees have registered for a hybrid work model that allows up to three days of home office per week. The bank aims to move staff currently sitting in various offices into just a few buildings, which will be fitted with a higher standard and designed to facilitate collaborative work.
LEGAL
Former LCF chief sentenced over hidden assets
Michael Thomson, the former CEO of now collapsed minibond company London Capital & Finance, has been handed a suspended sentence after he was found to have breached an asset freezing order. The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) froze his assets as part of its ongoing investigation into suspected fraud and money laundering linked to the collapse of the firm in 2019. Officials found that Mr Thomson hid £95,000 after the order was imposed. As a consequence, he has been handed a 10-month sentence, suspended for two years. SFO director Lisa Osofsky says the ruling shows that company executives “are not above the law.” She also noted that the SFO has “traced and seized every asset we have gone after” over the past two years, recovering over £140m for taxpayers. The collapse of London Capital & Finance saw 11,000 investors lose £237m in a mini bond-scheme.
Hedge fund trader ordered to pay $1bn over tax fraud
A Dubai court has ordered Sanjay Shah, a British hedge fund trader convicted of massive fraud, to pay Denmark's tax authority more than $1.bn. He was arrested in June amid accusations that he ran a scheme in which foreign firms pretended to own shares in Danish companies and claimed tax refunds. Danish tax authorities are estimated to have lost €1.7bn as a result of this activity. OGH Legal, the firm representing the Danish authorities, said: “This conclusive ruling after a nearly five-year pursuit of justice underscores the serious and uncompromising stance of the UAE authorities against financial misconduct.”
Convicted trader in $100m tax scheme spared jail
Vijaya Sankar, a former employee at asset manager Duet Group, has received a two-year suspended sentence for his role in a cum-ex tax scheme that cost Germany €92m after confessing and apologising to the Bonn Regional Court. Bloomberg says the sentence was “relatively mild” because Sankar, a Briton, at the beginning of his trial in March confessed and said he was “very sorry ” for getting involved in the controversial strategy.  “The contributions made by the defendant, who worked in the company's back office, were beneficial but not of central importance to the success of the actions,” the court said in a release after the verdict.
TECHNOLOGY
AI could help reduce women's cognitive load at home
Entrepreneur Avni Patel Thompson is working on a subscription service called Milo that uses a mix of GPT-4 and human intervention to keep track of family schedules, grocery lists, and other daily admin. The service could be especially helpful to mothers, who tend to carry the mental load of organising, planning, and scheduling for their families. Research has found that men and women tend to share responsibility for research and decision-making, while women do more noticing and monitoring, and have more household responsibilities overall. Using technology to automate some household tasks could reduce the time spent negotiating over who does what and help women with their careers if it frees up time for paid work and mental space for new ideas.
INTERNATIONAL
Four in 10 LGBT+ Italians face discrimination at work
Four out of 10 LGBT+ people in Italy believe discrimination has damaged them at work, according to a survey by national statistics bureau ISTAT and state anti-discrimination office UNAR. Among those surveyed, 41.4% said that being homosexual or bisexual had been a disadvantage for their career, professional recognition or salary, especially among payroll workers in the private sector. More than six out of 10 preferred not to speak about their private lives at work in order to avoid revealing their sexual orientation. The poll was carried out in 2022 and surveyed 1,200 people. LGBT+ rights and gender equality in Italy have been a particularly sensitive issue since right-wing Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni came to power seven months ago. Her government has told mayors to stop registering the children of same-sex parents and the ruling majority has submitted a bill to parliament aimed at prosecuting couples who go abroad to have a baby via a surrogate, mainly targeting gay couples.
Namibia's Supreme Court recognizes same-sex unions
Namibia's Supreme Court has ruled that the government must recognize the unions of same-sex couples who married in countries where it was legal for them to do so, even though same-sex marriage remains illegal in Namibia itself. The ruling stemmed from the residency applications of a German woman who married a Namibian woman in Germany, and of a South African man who married a Namibian man in South Africa, the only country on the continent that allows same-sex marriage. The government refused to give the non-Namibian spouses residency rights in the country, on the grounds that their marriages could not be recognized in Namibia, which prompted them to take legal action. Gay rights activist Linda Baumann welcomed the ruling as a step in the right direction. "Today's verdict and outcome clearly indicates that Namibia is moving towards recognizing diversity in this country irrespective of people's political or social positioning," she said.
Former Apple engineer charged with stealing autonomous systems technology
The US Justice Department has charged former Apple engineer Weibao Wang with attempting to steal the company's technology related to autonomous systems, including self-driving cars, and then fleeing to China. The case was among five announced on Tuesday aimed at countering efforts to illicitly acquire American technology by nations including Russia and China. Wang accepted a US-based job with a Chinese company working to develop self-driving cars before resigning from Apple. The actions were the first announced by a "strike force" formed in February in part to keep sensitive technologies away from foreign adversaries. Four arrests were made in connection with the cases, which were brought in New York, California and Arizona. The charges include export violations, smuggling and trade secrets.
Man cheats on job entrance exam by sending twin brother
South Korea's Bank of Korea (BOK) and Financial Supervisory Service are investigating an employee who allegedly got his twin brother to take a job entrance exam under his name. The man landed a job at the Bank of Korea and began working there this year. The central bank is now investigating him for the alleged cheating. In South Korea, recent college graduates face stiff competition to land a job at prestigious employers. To block future cheating, the BOK is considering measures against proxy tests and cooperating with relevant organisations that take written exams on the same day.
OTHER
Super-hero council workers
Unison has launched a limited edition range of action figures based on real-life council workers. The four figurines, created using advanced 3D printing, are modelled after a lollipop lady, a community care worker, a librarian, and a refuse worker. Each figure comes with its own uniquely designed box and props and is featured in a comic strip designed by Marvel artist Will Sliney. Unison hopes the figures will encourage the public to appreciate the vital role council workers play in their local communities. Unison general secretary Christina McAnea said: "Turning them into action heroes is a great way to put the focus on their superhuman efforts."
 


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