THIRTY-NINE per cent of companies increased their use of short-term international assignments during 2003, while 47 per cent provided employees with free housing and 30 per cent paid for children to attend boarding school in home countries, according to a study of 220 multinationals.
THIRTY-NINE per cent of companies increased their use of short-term international assignments during 2003, while 47 per cent provided employees with free housing and 30 per cent paid for children to attend boarding school in home countries, according to a study of 220 multinationals. The study also found that companies:
Employers on morale moot
SEVENTY-FOUR per cent of executives believe that managing employee morale is a core business concern, while more than 90 per cent say it is important to improving business profitability, according to a study of 400 Australian businesses. It also found that 36 per cent of employers invested more time and resources into managing people problems over the past year, and about one-third had senior staff undergo leadership development training.
Source: D&B/Australian Psychological Society
Internet policies below email par
NINETY per cent of British organisations have written policies in place for dealing with employee use of the internet, but many policies fail to include good practice measures such as email business language training. Ninety per cent of policies forbid staff from accessing pornography, while 16 per cent stipulate that non-work-related emails should be labelled as such.
Source: IRS Employment Review
Long work hours decrease sex drive
NINETEEN per cent of British employees have decreased sex drives due to long working hours, while one-third spend less time with partners or children than they would like. The study of 3,500 workers also found that long working hours impact upon:
Flexible working’s popularity on the up
MORE THAN 70 per cent of employers are willing to consider employee requests for flexible work, according to a study of around 500 British employers. However 47 per cent of employees who are not entitled to flexible working arrangements resent those who are. The study also found that employees were taking advantage of flexible work across a variety of job roles, including:
Sixty-eight per cent of employers believe that flexible working opportunities impact positively on employee attitudes and morale.
Australian pay rises for 2004
AUSTRALIAN employees can expect to receive pay increases of 4.2 per cent against inflation of 2.5 per cent in 2004, according to a study of 63 countries. Australia’s projected pay above inflation of 1.7 per cent is in the range of a number of other countries, including the UK and the US, where pay rises are predicted to increase by 1.0 to 3.5 per cent above inflation. This contrasts with Bulgaria and Indonesia, where employees are likely to receive pay rises of around 5.1 per cent and 6.5 per cent above inflation.
Source: Mercer Human Resource Consulting
Email leaves staff worked-up
SIXTY-NINE per cent of Australian managers say that email contributes to higher stress levels at work. The survey of 1,000 senior-level staff also found that 80 per cent spend more than 20 per cent of their time dealing with emails, with an average of around 35 work-related emails per day. Concerns around misinterpretation of emails or inappropriate use of personal or sensitive material also contributed to stress levels.
Employers acting on aging workforce: UK
THIRTY-ONE per cent of British employers have policies in place to tackle issues around the aging workforce, while 68 per cent believe their executives are committed to eliminating ageism. The study also found that employers:
Outsourcing key to strategic value
EIGHTY-SIX per cent of companies outsource to provide greater control over business outcomes, rather than simply cutting costs, according to a survey of 800 executives across the US and Europe. 55 per cent said outsourcing was a means to faster and more controlled strategy implementation, while 80 per cent were committed to outsourcing at least one business function permanently.
Source: Accenture
Job strain takes health toll
TWENTY-THREE per cent of Australian workers suffer from high job strain, while almost a third feel their jobs are insecure, according to a study of 1,188 employees. It also found that job strain and insecurity were linked to depression, anxiety and poor physical health, which in turn contributed to sickness absence and adversely affected productivity.
Source: Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health
Australians high on variable pay
SENIOR managers within australia recieve 28 per cent of their total compenstaion in variable pay, according to a study of 991 companies across the Asia-Pacific. The oercentage, which ws the highest in the region, was seen by employers as an important means of attracting and engeging leaders. the study also found that Australia suffered from a high staff turnover rate of 14 per cent, compared to 17.7 per cent in malaysia nd 9.8 pper cent in Singapore.
Source: Accenture
Employers embrace online recruitment
sixty-seven per cent of Australian companies employ dedicated careers sections on their corporate websites, according to a study of Australia’s top 500 employers. The number of jobs advertised in these sections increased by 82 per cent in the last year, and recruitment systems made use of:
