Surveys
HR careers survey 2011: qualifications versus business experience
Source: IRS Employment Review
Date: 31-10-2011
While the majority of the 668 respondents to our HR careers survey told us that they chose their career in the profession "by chance", most would opt for HR all over again. Our research also found that HR practitioners view professional qualifications as more important for advancing in HR than starting out in the profession.
2011 XpertHR dress codes survey: defining acceptable work wear
Source: IRS Employment Review
Date: 04-04-2011
We examine the content of formal, casual and relaxed dress codes and employer attitudes to religious headwear and accessories in this part of our report on the XpertHR dress codes survey. We also discover how employers are avoiding potential discrimination law pitfalls.
Gender pay gap: facts and figures
Source: IRS Employment Review
Date: 04-02-2011
The latest official statistics showed the gender pay gap narrowing during the recession to reach a historic low, leading some to argue that it should no longer be a matter of concern for employers. We explain why the headline figures do not tell the whole story.
Employer dress codes: the 2009 IRS survey
Source: IRS Employment Review
Date: 16-11-2009
IRS research looks at the benefits and drawbacks of setting dress and appearance standards at work, gets to the bottom of what smart casual actually is, and looks at the extent to which employers allow religious attire.
Monitoring equality and diversity in recruitment: the 2009 IRS survey
Source: IRS Employment Review
Date: 19-10-2009
The latest IRS survey explores the plans and procedures in place at 104 employers to maximise equality and diversity in the recruitment process. It also examines how organisations monitor equal opportunities in recruitment and captures employers' feedback on the benefits of employing a diverse workforce.
Equality and diversity in the workplace: 2009 IRS survey
Source: IRS Employment Review
Date: 22-06-2009
This research explores the resources, plans and procedures in place at 140 employers to address equality and diversity issues, and finds that two-thirds aim to put diversity and equality at the heart of what they do.
Women's earnings growth outstrips men's between 1997 and 2008
Source: IRS Employment Review
Date: 29-05-2009
Between 1997 and 2008, women saw a 55.3% increase in their gross full-time weekly earnings, compared with a 46% increase for men, according to an analysis of the Annual Survey of Hours Earnings (ASHE) in the March 2009 edition of Economic & Labour Market Review.
Finance sector gender pay gap is double that of whole economy
Source: IRS Employment Review
Date: 08-05-2009
Men working full-time in the finance sector are paid 55% more than their full-time female counterparts when the difference in average gross annual pay is examined, according to research published by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC).
Gender pay audits carried out by only 29% of firms
Source: Personnel Today
Date: 28-04-2009
Expected measures in the Equality Bill to make firms publish their gender pay gap figure will be much needed as a new study revealed just a third of organisations had audited salary differences between women and men.
Top HR women beat men in 2008 pay rise stakes
Source: Personnel Today
Date: 09-12-2008
The gender pay gap for HR directors shrank this year as female HR chiefs saw their earnings jump by almost three times as much as their male counterparts.
Marketing directors' pay rises are well ahead of their staff
Source: IRS Employment Review
Date: 05-12-2008
Marketing directors received higher pay rises than their staff over the year to June 2008, according to the 27th survey of the profession from Croner Reward, in association with the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM). They are also expected to receive the highest pay rises over the next year.
ASHE 2008: Pay rises outpace inflation; gender pay gap widens
Source: IRS Employment Review
Date: 05-12-2008
The Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE) reveals that the average UK worker received inflation-busting pay increases in the year to April 2008, while progress towards closing the gender pay gap went into reverse.
Young men bear the brunt of credit crunch job losses
Source: Personnel Today
Date: 21-10-2008
Experts have cautioned employers against ‘last-in, first-out’ policies as it has emerged that young male workers were bearing the brunt of the credit crunch redundancies.
Survey: Equal pay audits in the private sector
Source: IRS Employment Review
Date: 10-10-2008
Equal pay is a contentious subject - and it's set to become even more of an issue with the forthcoming single equality Bill; 103 private sector organisations tell us how they are approaching equal pay.
Future workforce profile is female
Source: Personnel Today
Date: 07-10-2008
An intriguing vision of the UK’s future workforce emerged from a raft of research published in the past few weeks.
'Sex and Power' report shows drop in number of women at top
Source: Personnel Today
Date: 09-09-2008
The so-called glass ceiling that prevents women progressing in the workplace is more like 'reinforced concrete', the chief executive of the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has warned.
Ireland: Equality Tribunal receives record number of claims
Source: European Employment Review
Date: 02-09-2008
The number of employment equality complaints made to the Equality Tribunal increased sharply in 2007 and the first half of 2008, with claims of race discrimination at work rising particularly steeply.
Case studies
Pay harmony on single status at Newcastle City Council
Source: IRS Employment Review
Date: 17-12-2010
It has taken a decade for an equality-proofed pay and grading structure to be negotiated and implemented at Newcastle City Council, but both the employer and union are proud of it.
Germany: Deutsche Telekom builds HR policies to support women in senior management
Source: European Employment Review
Date: 22-07-2010
Deutsche Telekom, the German telecommunications company, has set a quota for 30% of its middle and upper management positions worldwide to be occupied by women by the end of 2015. Based on interviews with senior diversity staff at the company, we explore the reasons behind the quota and the HR policies the company will draw on to ensure that it is met.
International: UniCredit signs transnational equality agreement
Source: European Employment Review
Date: 17-09-2009
UniCredit, an Italy-based banking multinational, announced in August 2009 that it had signed a joint declaration on equal opportunities and non-discrimination with its European Works Council, setting out principles and commitments to apply across all its operations.
How British Gas is improving the diversity of its engineering workforce
Source: IRS Employment Review
Date: 04-06-2009
British Gas's initiatives to promote engineering as a suitable career for women and ethnic minorities are paying off, and the diversity of its workforce is gradually improving, particularly among its new apprentice recruits. We look at the steps it has been taking since launching the programmes in 2003.
Policing for diversity
Source: IRS Employment Review
Date: 17-11-2008
Kent Police has built an inclusive workforce to meet the diverse needs of the communities it polices.
Employability scheme in Leeds fills NHS jobs and improves diversity
Source: IRS Employment Review
Date: 17-11-2008
An employability training scheme to help marginalised groups in Leeds has seen 70% of participants find work in the NHS, helping to reduce recruitment difficulties and improve diversity, particularly of ethnic minorities.
How DWP-funded pensions education projects are working
Source: Occupational Pensions
Date: 01-08-2008
Following the DWP’s announcement of additional funding for a series of pensions education projects, we look at how some of the less well-known ones are operating - an evaluation for the DWP of progress made suggests that overcoming employer resistance to projects is a key problem.
Flexible working at law firm Addleshaw Goddard
Source: IRS Employment Review
Date: 11-07-2008
Law firm Addleshaw Goddard has set about creating a company culture that supports a wide range of flexible working options to attract and retain talented individuals.
All girls together: women in business networks
Source: Personnel Today
Date: 04-03-2008
In the ongoing struggle to reach the top in the male-centric workplace, women's networks are helping them break new ground, as Tara Craig reports.
Equal pay reviews in action
Source: Equal Opportunities Review
Date: 01-03-2008
Although the government has so far resisted calls to make equal pay reviews a legal requirement, some organisations are pre-empting any such development by voluntarily carrying out reviews. HBOS is one such organisation and Kate Godwin explains how they went about doing it.
Women in medicine: barriers to progression in professional roles
Source: Equal Opportunities Review
Date: 01-12-2007
Women in medicine still face considerable opportunity blocks, despite several high-profile NHS initiatives to tackle the barriers to career advancement. We consider how the obstacles faced by women in male-dominated sectors and professions can be overcome.
Metropolitan Police Service: the Working Families Employer of the Year
Source: Equal Opportunities Review
Date: 01-07-2007
Earlier this year, the Metropolitan Police Service was named Working Families Employer of the Year 2006, thereby demonstrating its success in challenging a traditionally male-oriented culture that had negative attitudes towards flexible working.
Equal pay at the University of Sunderland
Source: Equal Opportunities Review
Date: 01-06-2007
A programme of annual equal pay audits has resulted in the University of Sunderland having one of the smallest academic gender pay gaps in the UK and being included as an exemplar employer for its work in addressing gender, equal pay and opportunities for women.
Pay equality at Devon County Council
Source: IRS Employment Review
Date: 04-05-2007
With the equal pay deadline for local authorities now having passed, we look at the approach taken by Devon County Council, where a new job evaluation-based pay structure went live from 1 April 2007.
A diversity strategy to serve a diverse community
Source: Equal Opportunities Review
Date: 01-05-2007
London Probation, which is responsible for both punishment and rehabilitation, needs to have a diversity strategy that ensures that its members of staff deliver a service that is able to meet the needs of the whole community that it serves.