By John Walker on November 29, 2011
The Chancellor has today delivered his autumn statement to Parliament, alongside the publication of the Office for Budget Responsibility’s updated forecasts for growth and borrowing. He announced permanent reductions in spending to ensure that the UK meets its fiscal targets, using some of those savings in the short term to fund infrastructure investment to generate [...]
Posted in Accounts, Business Banking, Business Continuity Planning, Commercial Property Services, Cost Management, Critical Infrastructure, Distribution Channels, Down sizing / Retraction, E-commerce, Economic Cycles, Employment Levels, Financial Capital, Forecasts, Fundability, Grants and Funding Pronouncements, Industrial Relations, Inflation, Insurance, Lending and Borrowing, Loans and Finance, Monetary Policy, Morale, Organized Labour / Unions, Outsourcing, People and Players, Political and Economic Philosophies, Politics & Legislation, Procurement, Product Research and Development, Public Sector, Public Spending and State Aid, Recruitment, Regulation, Regulatory Compliance, Sales, Mergers & Acquisitions, Skills and Training, Staff, Startups, Taxation, Technology, Telecommunications, UK, UK Budget, Utilities | Tagged Air Passenger Duty (APD), Apprenticeship, Association of British Insurers, Autumn Statement, bank levy, Bank of England, Business Finance Partnership, Chancellor, Child Tax Credit, deficit reduction, enterprise, Enterprise Zones, free education, Free Schools, fuel duty increase, Infrastructure Investors Forum, infrastructure spending, Jobcentre Plus, Jobseeker’s allowance, Local Authorities, measures, mid-sized businesses, National Infrastructure Plan, National Loan Guarantee Scheme, OBR, Office for Budget Responsibility, Official Development Assistance, pension funds, Sector Based Work Academy, Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS), small firms, smaller businesses, Spending Review period, State Pension age, super-connected cities, tax relief, Work Experience, young apprentices, Youth Contract |
By John Walker on August 19, 2011
Michael Wilson and James Glover of Simply Health discuss why employers are still to be convinced of the business case for investing in health benefits and links between wellbeing and productivity.
Companies are struggling to show they care about their staff, according to a new report which reveals that employees believe employers now care less about [...]
Posted in Arts, Sports and Recreation, Business Culture, Employment Levels, Fashion, Trends and Memes, Health Services, Health and Social Care Services, Industrial Relations, Industry Reports, Insurance, Morale, Personal Services, Recruitment, Regulation, Regulatory Compliance, Skills and Training, Staff, Surveys, The Work Place, UK | Tagged audio podcast, Engaging Employees through Health and Wellbeing Report, James Glover, Michael Wilson, Simplyhealth |
By John Walker on November 22, 2010
Britain’s 1.4m freelance workers love life, are happier with their health, their financial situation, their prospects and their wife, husband or partners!
A ComRes survey published today (Nov 22nd) shows that nearly three-quarters (73%) of the 1,624 polled had actively chosen to become freelancers as a long-term career option in a survey to celebrate National Freelancers [...]
Posted in Employment Levels, Freelancers, Human Resources, Outsourcing, Procurement, Production, Recruitment, Surveys, UK | Tagged family friendly employers, PCG, statistics, trends |
By John Walker on October 22, 2010
Commenting on the recent Comprehensive Spending Review, Christine Blower, General Secretary of the National Union of Teachers, the largest teachers’ union, said;
“The cuts announced in the Government’s spending review are a retrograde step and will have a devastating impact on vital public services, including education.
“The Government may talk about protecting schools, but schools are not [...]
Posted in Construction, Critical Infrastructure, Education, Employment Levels, Human Resources, Industrial Relations, Organized Labour / Unions, Public Sector, Public Spending and State Aid, Recruitment, UK | Tagged Building Schools for the Future, Christine Blower, Comprehensive Spending Review, cuts, National Union of Teachers, NUT, public services, public spending cuts, Sure Start |
By John Walker on October 15, 2010
When the alarm goes off in the morning are you a sunshine, happy person or do you pull up the duvet in the hope of escaping the dark, cruel world outside?
As a freelancer do you know how your skills are valued? If you engage freelancers in your company or organisation, do you welcome a talented [...]
Posted in Employment Levels, Freelancers, Human Resources, Market Research, Project Management, Recruitment, Surveys, UK | Tagged National Freelancers Day, PCG |
By John Walker on December 6, 2009
British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) Economic Forecast - December 2009
Ahead of the Chancellor’s Pre-Budget Report, the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has today published its latest Economic Forecast. The business group, which calls itself “the National Voice of Local Business”, has made downward revisions to its GDP expectations for 2009 and 2010, but is more [...]
Posted in Economic Cycles, Employment Levels, England, Forecasts, Lending and Borrowing, Political and Economic Philosophies, Public Spending and State Aid, Scotland, Taxation, UK Budget, Wales | Tagged British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), capital investment, double-dip recession, GDP, international credit rating, labour market, public spending cuts |
By John Walker on December 4, 2009
An international consortium’s breaking of a binding contract has led Corus, Europe’s second largest steel producer, to partially implement the proposal announced in May 2009 of mothballing some of the facilities belonging to the Teesside Cast Products (TCP) business in northeast England.
TCP’s Redcar Blast Furnace, Lackenby steelmaking and the South Bank Coke Ovens will be [...]
Posted in Cleveland (& Redcar), Down sizing / Retraction, Employment Levels, Manufacturing, Metal and Metal Products Manufacturing, Skills and Training, Vehicle Manufacturing | Tagged Corus, Hartlepool, Lackenby steelmaking, Redcar Coke Ovens, Redcar Wharf, Skinningrove, South Bank Coke Ovens, Tata Steel, TCP’s Redcar Blast Furnace, Teesside, Teesside Beam Mill, Teesside Cast Products, Teesside Technology Centre |
By John Walker on October 29, 2009
Ministers gave further backing for British manufacturing excellence today with Business Minister Pat McFadden announcing an increase of Government funding to £40 million for a new manufacturing technology centre (MTC).
Since the Manufacturing Strategy was published in 2008, Government has set out a new activist approach to supporting the economy. The transition to low carbon and [...]
Posted in Employment Levels, IT and Telecommunications Services, Ideas and Innovation, Leicestershire, Manufacturing, Nottinghamshire, Product Research and Development, Skills and Training, Technology, West Midlands |
By John Walker on September 24, 2009
All 1,000 workers at a potash mine in the North York Moors National Park will be working hard this autumn, after Export Credits Guarantee Department (ECGD) and UK Trade &Investment (UKTI) joined forces to help their company secure a major export order.
Cleveland Potash Ltd (CPL) feared it may have to make some tough cost-cutting choices [...]
Posted in Brazil, Employment Levels, Expansion, Financial Services, Lending and Borrowing, Mining, Energy and Utilities, UK |
By John Walker on June 23, 2009
London workers spent an additional 1.3m hours getting to work on the morning of Wednesday 10th June alone due to travel disruptions caused by the Tube Strike, equivalent to 188,000 lost working days. A survey of 1,000 Londoners, commissioned by Citrix Online, found that 33% of London-based employees were disrupted by the strike by London [...]
Posted in Employment Levels, Industrial Relations, London, Organized Labour / Unions, Transport and Distribution |
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