Financial worries of retail employees is costing the sector £7bn a year June 21, 2016 Britain's retail workers are so stressed about their personal finances that the industry is paying £7bn for employees taking time off work. Research out today found that 1.7m hours are lost by retail employees taking time off due to financial stress. Nearly three quarters (74 per cent) of staff admitted to being burdened by money worries, a [...]
From the gender pay gap to the minimum wage, the politicisation of pay threatens the UK’s business-friendly reputation August 19, 2016 Economic logic suggests that free determination of employment contracts, like free trade, normally benefits both parties and leads to high levels of employment and economic growth. But this view has never been popular. Fifty years ago, it was the accepted belief that governments should determine pay increases, leading to the dead end of incomes policies [...]
Pay growth remains subdued across manufacturing, warns industry body EEF May 18, 2016 Average pay settlements across manufacturing have been subdued since the start of the year, stuck under two per cent. In the second major wage bargaining round of the year pay deals have averaged 1.7 per cent, according to EEF’s latest Pay Bulletin Survey. But it's not just manufacturing that's feeling the pinch. A separate report [...]
July Budget 2015: Will George Osborne’s new national living wage hit the number of people in work? July 8, 2015 Sam Bowman, deputy director of the Adam Smith Institute, says Yes. There is lots of research into what the minimum wage does to jobs. Of the 103 papers reviewed by economists David Neumark and William Wascher in a 2006 study, most of them showed that raising the minimum wage reduces long-term employment. Of the 33 [...]
Small business confidence fell to a four-year low before the EU referendum July 4, 2016 Small business confidence was at a four-year low before the EU referendum, according to data from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB). A survey from the FSB, conducted before the Brexit vote, also found smaller companies are planning to cut jobs for a second quarter in a row. Members said their profits are falling due to the increased [...]
Petition to block M&S’ pay cut plans draws over 20,000 signatures in three days July 29, 2016 Pressure is mounting on M&S' chief executive Steve Rowe to cancel a pay cut for his staff as an online petition to block the plan has received nearly 20,000 signatures in three days. The company is consulting its staff over cutting premium pay on Sundays, and cuts to pay for bank holidays and employees working at anti-social hours, which could [...]
The Bank of England’s agents’ summary on Brexit, housing and the living wage May 18, 2016 The economic slowdown is set to continue right up until the EU referendum, the Bank of England's latest agents' summary has revealed. The Bank's sprawling network of so-called agents are Threadneedle's streets eyes and ears on the ground of the real economy. They monitor local conditions, talk to businesses, and assess the general state of the nation, [...]
Pay row: M&S accused of threatening to sack staff who reject new contracts July 12, 2016 Marks & Spencer has become embroiled in a dispute over staff pay as it grapples with a sales slide in its clothing division. Chief executive Steve Rowe told shareholders at yesterday's AGM that the retailer faces "tough decisions" in the coming months. M&S is consulting staff over the axing of premium pay on Sundays, and cuts [...]
May’s big concessions to the Left risk returning the UK to the corporatist mess of the 70s October 5, 2016 Theresa May is an accidental Prime Minister. She is in Downing Street because David Cameron broke his word to the electorate and ducked out, while her rivals totally misjudged the situation. But she is certainly making the most of her position to attempt to reengineer the Conservative brand. Yesterday’s conference speech set out the stall. A [...]
Productivity might be up as hiring intentions down to lowest levels since 2014 May 9, 2016 A slump in firms' hiring intentions could indicate that the productivity puzzle is finally on the way to being solved, a report out today suggests. The study by professional services firm BDO discovered that, while companies' hiring intentions had dropped to their lowest levels since 2014, their levels of output and optimism are still strong, [...]