5 July 2021
On 23 June, the UK business of German industrial manufacturing group Siemens announced that as part of efforts to increase the number of women working in the engineering sector it has set a target of gender parity in its ‘Early Careers recruitment’, whereby it will look to attract an equal number of male and female candidates for training, internships or apprenticeships. The push by Siemens to promote a more gender-balanced workforce comes at a time when 80% of its 8,700 UK employees are male.
2 July 2021
Professional services group PricewaterhouseCoopers has introduced paid fertility leave for its staff. Launched on 1 July, this paid leave allowance offers staff members, regardless of their gender, the right to take 8 days off work per year to attend appointments for fertility treatment. Furthermore the partner of an individual undergoing such treatment will also be eligible for two days of paid leave.
30 June 2021
Mathilde Le Coz is taking over as HR Director for France after more than 15 years with the international audit, taxation, consulting, accounting and legal services group. Her mission is to support the group as it transforms and in particular in terms of organizational change, with the main goal being reinventing the work relationship. In an interview with Planet Labor, Mathilde Le Coz explains the major projects she is working on, including the introduction of hybrid work, changes in managerial culture, improving...
25 June 2021
UK bank NatWest is granting its 59,000 employees access to subsidised fertility treatment, with reductions of between 5% and 20%. This financial support measure covers in vitro fertilisation (IVF), sperm freezing, insemination through egg or sperm donation, as well as specific support for homosexual couples wishing to start a family.
24 June 2021
In an announcement signed by HR head Mandell Crawley, investment bank Morgan Stanley has decided to ban any unvaccinated employee, subcontractor or client from its buildings in New York and the NY metropolitan area. Those involved have until 12 July to comply with the new regulations and employees who refuse will have to work remotely.
22 June 2021
Eight retail giants, including the John Lewis Partnership and Sainsbury’s supermarkets, have come together to found this landmark “Diversity in Retail” (DiR) network, which represents some nearly 400,000 employees, and which aims to create a group-based template in a bid to increase diversity and inclusion at all levels in the retail industry.
17 June 2021
Six months of parental leave for all staff at the John Lewis Partnership group, regardless of the gender of the parent or the conditions of the child’s arrival. On 10 June the employee-owned retailer became the first major UK retailer to announce equal parental leave that will be paid for 14 weeks at 100%, followed by 12 weeks at 50%, and will become effective from this autumn. To be eligible, staff must have been working at the company for a year. Chair of the John Lewis Partnership, Dame Sharon White said,...
15 June 2021
In an internal memo, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that from 15 June all staff will be able to work from home, if their job allows it and if their manager gives the green light. He added that he himself would probably spend half of his time at home in 2022. HR managers could potentially lower the remuneration level of those choosing to leave San Francisco for a lower cost of living elsewhere.
15 June 2021
“Had your vaccine and looking for an exciting new role? We are looking to add to our in-house maintenance team.” This is Pimlico Plumbers’ Twitter post from 09 June that is looking to hire six additional members of staff (plumbers, carpenters, electricians and painters), all of whom must have received the Covid-19 vaccine. Pimlico Plumbers is a London-based company employing about 450 people. Early in 2021 it announced it would soon be placing ‘no jab no job’ employment adverts, a practice deemed legal...
9 June 2021
On 07 June 2021 the French multinational pharmaceutical company announced the launch of Action 2021 – its new global employee share ownership plan, which is open to 92,000 employees in 73 countries where all necessary authorisations have been secured. “The record level of employee participation in last year’s share plan demonstrated our employee’s commitment to the company and our long-term strategy and growth. With the continued support of the Board of Directors, we want our employees to have these...
