May Issue HR News

NEWSHRMAY 2013 | Issue 1 What’s got HR’s

ear for the rest of the year?2013 forcasts: see P4-5> Go

A global perspective on a global issue

> Kent NHS trusts overpay staff by £3m over five years > Acrede expands with Asian Office launch> Modern Migration Policy Act> HMRC Clarifies Scottish Income Tax Changes

> 457-visa changes will mean “more work for HR”> Corporates support new weekend in Oman> Talent management is vital: Study> Boost for business as red tape cut from 6th April

Inside this issue:

Implementation of Enhanced and New Leave SchemesSingapore law changes

For Further information call their Singapore office:

2MAY 2013

Patricia Chan 曾台清General Manager

Tel: +65 3158 4673 // Mobile: +65 9336 5233 // eMail: [email protected] //

Acrede 438 Alexandra Road #05-02Alexandra Point, Singapore 119958

Web: www.acrede.net //

As part of the Marriage & Parenthood Package 2013, the Government will implement the following changes to the Government-Paid Leave Schemes with effect from 1 May 2013:

• PaternityLeaveSchemeNEW! • SharedParentalLeaveSchemeNEW! • ExtendedChildCareLeaveScheme (forchildrenbetween7and12yearsold)ENHANCED! • MandatoryAdoptionLeaveSchemeforeligibleadoptive mothersENHANCED!

Employers who have voluntarily provided these leave between 1 January 2013 and 30 April 2013 can submit claims for Government reimbursement.

In addition, the following schemes will be extended to unwed single parents with Singapore Citizen children from 1 May 2013:

• CurrentChildCareLeaveScheme(6daysofpaidchildcare leaveforchildrenbelow7yearsold) • ExtendedChildCareLeaveScheme(forchildrenbetween7 and12yearsold) • UnpaidInfantCareLeaveScheme

All such leave are subject to employees meeting the relevant eligibility criteria. Please visit www.profamilyleave.gov.sg for information on the different leave schemes and submission of claims online. (Please take note of the timeline for claim submissions.)

Important changes to Singapore’s laws will affect HR responsibilities.

Readthefullstoryhere:www.profamilyleave.gov.sg

NewSingaporeleaveSchemes GO

AcredeOfficeLaunch GO

What’sgotHR’searfor therestoftheyear? GO

HMRCClarifiesScottish IncomeTaxChanges GO

KentNHStrustsoverpaystaff by£3moverfiveyears GO

Talentmanagementisvital:Study GO

Corporatessupport newweekendinOman GO

ModernMigrationPolicyAct GO

Poachingemployees? GO

457-visachangeswillmean “moreworkforHR” GO

HRwnsbigwithTechnology GO

EurozoneyouthUnemployment nightmare GO

ChinaSkillsShortagereport GO

Quick Contents

Acrede expands with Asian Office launchSingapore Office now open for business

For Further information call their Singapore office:

Patricia Chan 曾台清General Manager

Tel: +65 3158 4673 // Mobile: +65 9336 5233 // eMail: [email protected] //

Acrede 438 Alexandra Road #05-02Alexandra Point, Singapore 119958

Web: www.acrede.net //

Karen Paterson invented international payroll in 1996 and successfully grew a multi-million dollar business that traded worldwide. Many of the business processes and methodologies involved within global payroll came from her foundations. She has worked with many major BPO organizations, rolling out complex global payroll and HR projects.

As CEO of Acrede, Karen has created a best of breed global HR & payroll solution using the latest Cloud technology architecture, a product which is going to change the shape of Cloud mid-market software. Acrede has grown exponentially in so few years and the development of new offices provides the work space and support deserving of a thriving business.

Recently opening the UK office for Acrede, Karen and her team expand their global reach further by entering the APAC region. The Singapore office helps secure Acrede’s foothold in the Asian market and the integration of colleagues from the region really solidifies their dominance in the Payroll arena. As the team grows with a wealth of experience delivered by their developers based in Singapore, a secure and professional environment to work from allows them to do what they do best, succeed. Acrede now has offices in Jersey, the UK and Singapore.

Acrede’s global footprint facilitates the supporting of its employees and clients, and Singapore has a pool of skills that can be utilized to increase the support available for existing and new clients; Singapore is the Asia Pacific support hub.

Acrede is currently expanding rapidly in this high growth sector with many household names as clients, providing them with secure cloud HR & payroll technology that is feature rich, available on demand on a pay as you go basis.

Karen Paterson commented, “At Acrede we see APJ and Southpac as a major growth area and are pleased to be investing in supporting this growth with our Singapore office. Acrede is the only true global HR and payroll solution that is available on the cloud, on demand, that covers multiple country payroll legislation.”

Acrede celebrate another year of achievement with the opening of their Asian Hub in Singapore.

Pro-family leave schemes

3MAY 2013

4MAY 2013

2013 outlookThe biggest concern for many employers this year:

finding, retaining and developing the right talent.

Over 50% of respondents said that was their top

business challenge, far outpacing regulatory changes

and compliance (33%) and revenue growth (32%).

Of note: Over 40% of companies surveyed said they

have no plans for talent management this year, an

astounding leap from a scant 5% last year.

What’s got HR’s ear for the rest of the year?














Quick Contents

Economic outlook briefingWhat’s got HR’s ear for the rest of the year?

Readthefullstoryhere:http://www.hrmorning.com/whats-got-hrs-ear/

Drug and alcohol testingNo surprise here: The majority of companies (78%) conduct drug and alcohol tests, with a majority of those (88%) coming before the first day on the job.

While there have been rumblings about more sophisticated drug and alcohol tests involving saliva, blood or hair becoming common, 95% of respondents still stick by the tried-and-true urine test and 42% still use a breath alcohol test.

And with marijuana use in the news, HireRight asked firms about their stance on medical marijuana. Nearly 80% of companies said they have no medical marijuana policy.

Of those that do, however, not all take adverse action against those who test positive — only 63% of job candidates and 56% of current employees are punished.

HiringNearly 70% of respondents said they expect hiring to increase in 2013. That’s on par with the 71% of people who answered in the affirmative last year, showing that the economy remains on the up-and-up, albeit slowly.

That’s tempered slightly, though, by the amount respondents think hiring will increase. The majority (30%) said they only expect to see a 1% to 4% uptick in hiring. Plus, 50% of those respondents said those positions will be filled with temp or part-time staff.

Social networkingSocial media continues to ebb its way into all aspects of the workplace, with nearly 55% of employers saying they use social media for recruiting. That’s up 4% from last year.

The number of firms using social media for background screening (14%) is significantly lower, however:

Given the regulatory and personal privacy concerns surrounding the use of social media for background checking, respondents who do so were asked if they have a company policy to govern the process. Fewer than one-fourth (24%) of respondents indicated they do.

You can probably guess the social media networks that respondents gravitated toward — Facebook (83%), LinkedIn (68%), Google+ (33%) and Twitter (24%).

Here’s what the rest of the year is going to look like for many HR pros, courtesy of the annual Employment Screening Benchmarking Report from HireRight.

5MAY 2013

What’s got HR’s ear for the rest of the year?

HMRC Clarifies Scottish Income Tax Changes

The Scotland Act 2012, which grants Scotland fiscal autonomy from the UK, is expected to enter into force from April 1, 2016. From this date, Scotland will be allowed to set its own rate of personal income tax, which will be charged on the non-savings income of those defined as Scottish taxpayers. The rate paid by Scottish taxpayers will be calculated by reducing the basic, higher and additional rates of income tax levied by the UK Government by 10% and adding a new Scottish rate set by the Scottish parliament.

Theoretically, this will allow Scotland to offer income tax rates as low as 10% (down from the UK’s 20% rate), 30% (down from 40%), and 35% (down from 45%). Pension income will be treated the same way as income from employment, but savings income and dividend income received by Scottish taxpayers will continue to be taxed at the appropriate UK rate. In anticipation of the change, all Scottish taxpayers in Pay as you Earn (PAYE) will get a tax code that begins with S. Tax codes for the 2016-17 tax year will be issued in January or February 2016, and employers across the UK will be required to upgrade their systems to cope with the new rules, HMRC has announced.

HMRC has clarified the proposed tests for determining Scottish tax residence. In order for an individual’s situation to be considered, the individual must be UK resident for tax purposes.

In general, individuals predominantly residing in Scotland will be deemed to be Scottish taxpayers after the change. In addition, if the person has one place of residence and this is in Scotland, the individual will be deemed to be a Scottish taxpayer.

Individuals who have more than one place of residence in the UK must determine which of these has been their main place of residence for the longest period in a tax year - if this is in Scotland, they are a Scottish taxpayer. Individuals who cannot identify a main place of residence will need to count the days they spend in Scotland and elsewhere in the UK to identify their main place of residence.

HMRC has said further guidance will be published prior to the introduction of the Scottish rate to assist taxpayers in identifying whether they will be subject to Scottish rates.

ForFurtherinformationviewatsource:byJasonGorringe,Tax-News.com,London

6MAY 2013

The UK tax authority, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has released new guidance on the implications of the Scotland Act 2012, which will allow the Scottish Government - for the first time in 300 years - to set its own rate of income tax.

Kent NHS trusts overpay staff by £3m over five yearsTime to do business another way?

AconsultantworkingfortheMedwayNHSFoundationTrustwasoverpaid£42,750

More than 2,000 doctors and nurses at all four NHS trusts in Kent have been overpaid by nearly £3m since 2007, documents have revealed. A BBC Radio Kent investigation found in one case a consultant was paid an extra £42,750, while another was overpaid by £33,800.

The trusts said all errors were pursued and debt collection agencies were used if not recovered through salaries. They added they had so far been able to retrieve about two-thirds of the money.

‘Diligent approach’The responses revealed that at least, 2,389 staff had received some form of overpayment from payroll departments between the financial years of 2007-08 and 2011-12, although it was not possible for every trust to give all the data for the periods requested.

Something isnt working in Kent as the BBC have discovered.

Readthefullstoryhere:www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-kent-22017171














Quick Contents

Corporates support new weekend in OmanHoliday changes in Oman

Muscat: The government’s move to standardise weekend holidays on Friday and Saturday from May 1st onwards is expected to greatly benefit the corporate sector, especially trading houses and treasury departments that deal with overseas clients.

7MAY 2013

The much-delayed decision to change the government weekend holidays to Friday and Saturday (from Thursday and Friday for the government sector and a large number of private companies) will help all companies to synchronise with the weekend holidays of all GCC states, except Saudi Arabia, and will eliminate the difference in weekend holidays with other countries by one day. Barring Saudi Arabia, all GCC countries follow a system of Friday-Saturday weekends, and Oman is the last to join the league.

Leading businessmen and top-level executives from a cross-section of the business community told Times of Oman that the move would greatly help the timely execution of treasury operations and trade between Oman-based firms and their counterparts or branch operations in overseas markets, which will keep them from incurring losses due to a lack of time. “It is a welcome decision. Since banks are open on Thursday (when the corporate sector is closed), we have to do everything on Wednesday. Now it will be well coordinated and synchronised,” said Suresh K. Virmani, managing director of Bahwan Engineering Group, which employs more than 12,000 people. “We will change our weekend holidays to Friday and Saturday.”

He added that Omani companies with branch operations in other GCC countries such as the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Bahrain will also benefit from the change. “Since these branch networks operate on Thursdays, employees of Omani companies have to liaise with their counterparts in other countries on their day off.” Since the United Arab Emirates is a major trading partner of Oman, the new weekend will help to improve the flow of foreign trade.

Those who transact with financial markets, including international banks, across the world will also enjoy a significant advantage. “Now, Omani companies will get one more day to deal with financial markets across the world,” added Virmani.

Fullstoryathttp://www.timesofoman.com/News/Article-12701.aspx

Talent management is vital: StudyTalent Management the most important of ALL functions study finds

According to a global Korn/Ferry International online survey, 45% of global executives say talent management is crucial, its weightage being more hefty than marketing (26%), financial management (21%) and capitalisation (seven percent). However, 35% of respondents say their companies do not have a talent management strategy in place.

This is due to the longstanding belief that a strong management team is critical to a company success, with 86% of respondents citing such a reason. However, 43% do not believe their company has the right management team for the company over the next 12 months and 56% do not believe they will have the right team five years from now. This is despite the fact that just 7% of respondents believe their company’s strategy will remain the same in five years.

To tackle this, companies need to recognise that business strategies are constantly changing. Companies need their leaders to be able to grow and learn from their experiences, as well as update their talent strategies in order to execute on more challenge business performance targets, Ana Dutra, Chief Executive Officer, Korn/Ferry Leadership and Talent Consulting, said.

Fullstoryathttp://www.hrmasia.com/news/latest-news/talent-management-is-vi-tal-study/174111/

To executives around the globe, the most important corporate strategy to implement in their company is talent management above all functions, a study reveals.

Modern Migration Policy ActModern Migration Policy Act enters into force on 1 June 2013

The Modern Migration Policy Act can enter into force now that INDiGO, the new information system of the IND, is functioning and can adequately support the implementation of the act.

Once the act has been introduced, most migrants will need to have a sponsor in the Netherlands. Sponsors and migrants have statutory obligations under the Modern Migration Policy Act. It concerns, among other things, the obligation to provide the government with correct information and to keep records. Apart from obligations, the act also provides that, from now on, sponsors can submit an application for a residence permit for migrants.

A major advantage of this act is that the application procedure in order to be allowed entry into the Netherlands (the regular provisional residence permit) and the application procedure for being allowed to stay in the Netherlands for a longer period of time (the residence permit) are combined into a single procedure. As a result, migrants or their sponsor only need to submit a single application.

With the introduction of the Modern Migration Policy Act, regular residence permits such as permits for work, study and family reunification can be granted for a longer period of time, so that migrants or their sponsors will have to renew these less frequently. With the introduction of the Modern Migration Policy Act, it is also possible to change employers or educational institutions more easily without a new permit being required for this.

The Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) will implement and enforce the Modern Migration Policy Act. The act offers the IND instruments for effective supervision and visible enforcement with respect to migrants and sponsors. For example, the IND can impose administrative penalties on migrants and sponsors who fail to abide by the rules, for example for providing incorrect information.

In the coming months, the IND will make the final preparations for the introduction of the act. Specific target groups such as chain partners and covenant holders will be kept informed of all new developments through the usual channels. Moreover, information about modern migration policy is placed on www.ind.nl.

ForFurtherinformationviewatsource:www.ind.nl

The Modern Migration Policy Act (Wet modern migratiebeleid) will be introduced on 1 June 2013. State Secretary Teeven stated this in his letter to the House of Representatives. The National Visa Act (Wet nationale visa, also referred to as the MVV Act) will be introduced simultaneously.

8MAY 2013














Quick Contents

457-visa changes will mean “more work for HR”Australian Act to change the goalposts

Imminent changes to the 457-visa system will create more work for HR in terms of establishing the “genuineness” of their need for overseas workers, according to employment lawyer Fiona Inverarity.

While the exact nature of what is required under many of the changes is yet to be clarified, employers should be putting more effort into their paperwork now in preparation for the 1 July start date, says Inverarity, a partner at Truman Hoyle.

“The perception [of the Government] is that there have been a number of people that have come in on 457 visas when there is local talent available to do the job. So they’re going to make you go through more hoops to justify that there is this need,” she told HR Daily.

Although the Department of Immigration has flagged that there will not be a return to labour market testing, “which was quite prescriptive and costly”, Inverarity recommends that employers prepare paperwork in a similar vein - demonstrating the lengths they have gone to recruit talent locally with the specific skills they require.

At the moment, she says, “you just can assert that ‘we need these people’ and it’s not really scrutinised... It’s not really known what the genuineness criteria will be, but I’m saying you need to prepare your background paperwork on ‘This is what we have done; we’ve looked on Seek’, or how you would normally recruit people with specialist skills”.

This is doubly important because under the new system, Fair Work inspectors will have “enhanced powers” to inspect records and ensure that employers are meeting the requirements of the 457-visa scheme, Inverarity notes.“Fair Work already has powers to do certain things, but the difficulty is for the Department of Immigration to enforce and do all of this. They obviously have a lot of access to inspectors and workplaces, and it’s again unknown what their enhanced powers are going to be.”

To be ready, she says, “You need to look at the paperwork you’ve got in place to make sure you can justify the people who are potentially coming in”. A further change is the increase in the market salary cap - from $180k to $250k, “which means for all employees you recruit under $250k in this space, you’ve got to justify what you’re doing”.

Overall, the changes are expected to create “more work for HR, in that you’re going to have to prepare the background papers and the reasons and the business case that you don’t currently have to”, Inverarity says. “[HR professionals] are going to have to be more involved in preparing the background case to get over the genuineness hurdle for potential 457 candidates - you’re going to have to be ready with the answer of ‘Why is this person necessary?’”

ReadmoreabouttheproposedchangesontheDIACwebsite.http://hrdaily.com.au/

The Modern Migration Policy Act (Wet modern migratiebeleid) will be introduced on 1 June 2013. State Secretary Teeven stated this in his letter to the House of Representatives. The National Visa Act (Wet nationale visa, also referred to as the MVV Act) will be introduced simultaneously..

Costs order sends a warning on ‘poaching’ employees

A major provider of HR services has been hit with a rare costs order, after hiring a competitor’s employee in contravention of his contractual restraints.

restraints, which prevented him from soliciting HRX clients, and from working for a competitor for 12 months.

When this occurred, Talent2’s group general manager of operations asked the BDM by email whether he had breached his restraints, to which he replied that he had not taken any HRX intellectual property. He also claimed his restraint period was only six months, but could not locate his contract.

The BDM informed Talent2 that he could not afford to defend the litigation, and Talent2 agreed to support him. Talent2 was initially informed that its costs of doing so would be in the vicinity of $2,500.

The BDM later told Talent2 that he had taken from HRX a USB stick that contained sales proposals and documents, and also that he had emailed some spreadsheets to his personal email address, but claimed that he had not used them, and had subsequently deleted them all.

It then emerged that the BDM had emailed HRX information to his new colleagues. Talent2’s lawyers subsequently informed the company that the information he had taken was most likely in breach of his employment contract, and that he had “acted imprudently” in sharing it.

Around this time, HRX sought an interlocutory injunction restraining the BDM from working for Talent2 and from soliciting its clients.

After receiving a new estimate of legal costs in excess of $70,000, Talent2 then held a meeting with the BDM, informing him that it would no longer support him in his defence, and he needed either to resign or have his employment terminated.

The BDM resigned that day and settled the case with HRX, agreeing to abide by his non-compete clause and not solicit HRX’s clients.

A major provider of HR services has been hit with a rare costs order, after hiring a competitor’s employee in contravention of his contractual restraints.

Chief Justice of the NSW Supreme Court’s Equity Division, Patricia Bergin, said the power to award costs against a non-party in proceedings “should be exercised sparingly”, but she was satisfied it was appropriate in this case.

The issue arose after a former employee of HR services provider HRX joined its competitor, Talent2. Upon becoming aware of the business development manager’s move, HRX sought to remind him of his post-employment

Fullstoryathttp://www.hrdaily.com.au/nl06_news_selected.php?act=2&nav=1&selkey=2592&utm_source=daily+email&utm_medium=e-mail&utm_campaign=Daily+Email+Article+Link

9MAY 2013

10MAY 2013

SHALINISHUKLA13May2013Readthefullstoryhere:http://www.hrmasia.com/news/features/hr-wins-big-with-technology/175271/

Case study:

Times SoftwareIPreviously, hotels such as The Ritz Carlton Singapore, Hilton Singapore, Mandarin Orchard Singapore, Capella Singapore and The Fullerton Hotel Singapore used to manually handle casual workers on its payroll.

“After the casual worker finished the job, he or she would come back at the scheduled time to the finance department to collect cash from the pay master through a window,” says Charles Liaw, managing director of Times Software.

Times Software’s ‘Times E-Casual Labour 8.0 module’ allows HR to leverage on the internet to plan, organise events such as wedding banquets and company dinner and dance parties, and book the right number of casual staff required.

“The whole process, from requesting casual workers to the approval stage, followed by assigning the casual staff to events and arranging payment for them is done online,” says Liaw. “Casual workers are also paid via Giro, instead of in cash.”

Technology for HR has transformed from administrative software to workforce wide applications that provide staff with information about the company, goals, performance, pay, benefits and even what they can do to advance in the organisation.

Businesses also already recognise the significance of how HR management systems (HRMS) can benefit their productivity, and more importantly, their profit margins.

“We foresee that many businesses will begin to outgrow plain HRMS solutions that solve HR administration tasks,” says Lim Say Ping, Co-founder and Director, iqDynamics.

“There will be a strong surge towards sophisticated talent management solutions, such as the HRiQ Human Capital Management Solution, which combines strong administrative solutions for core HR tasks, and advanced talent management tools for managing employee performance appraisals, learning and development and leadership and succession planning.”

Talent Management Systems will be much sought after, says Ho Chee Tiong, Sales and Operations Director, UNIT4 Prosoft HRMS. “This is due to several trends – the tightening of foreign labour supply, a low unemployment rate, and more Generation Y staff coming into the workforce.”

More companies will also be adopting HR solutions and technology hosted in the cloud, more commonly known as

Software-as-a-Service (SaaS).

Teams and departments do not sit together in a single room anymore. More often than not members of a team can span the globe, and HR managers and directors find themselves having to travel a lot more often to maintain that face-to-face contact with their talent.

“Cloud or SaaS solutions will provide the most elegant and efficient method of providing company and employee information ‘at the touch of a button’,” says Lim.

Companies locally and internationally will continue to source for HR Software vendors who offer established and secure cloud computing services as a convenient alternative to defray the conventional total cost of ownership.

“The trend is for companies to look for vendors that offer more configurable and scalable functionalities that actually suit their HR polices without hefty customisation costs,” says Charles Liaw, managing director of Times Software.

“Also, the need to integrate all systems – be it accounting, HR management, payroll and talent management – shall be the single driving force of IT evolution within every thriving company for 2013,” he adds. “Total integration will enhance better response and accuracy to questions from the C-suite.”

HR reaps benefits of advancements in technology, headed by Cloud and SaaS developments

HRwinsbigwithtechnology














Quick Contents

11MAY 2013

Driving productivityIncreasing productivity is one of the most critical goals in business, and for the HR function in particular.

An integrated HRMS solution with web-based features such as e-recruitment, e-claim, e-leave and e-HR will help to increase productivity as it provide the employees, managers and senior management with the ability to work and access HRIS data anywhere, anyplace and anytime, says Liaw.

In a rapidly moving business environment, HR is at risk of becoming swamped by needless paperwork created through leave applications or employee appraisals. “With the correct technology solution, repetitive administration tasks are easily automated and rendered within the shortest amount of time,” says Mahendra Bodduluri, Director, iqDynamics

A solution such as iqDynamics’ HRiQ allows the HR manager or executive to disseminate company announcements, payslips and even appraisal results immediately, be it across geographical locations, time zones or offices, thereby increasing productivity.

While the use of self-service technologies is not new, the prevalence of mobile devices has enabled employees to better manage business processes including those of HR metrics.

“One good example will be the use of eRecruitment system that allows filtering and sorting of résumés, saving HR many hours and manual effort,” says Ho. “At the same time, they are able to get better ROI out of the recruitment processes.”

Not losing the ‘personal touch’Ultimately, HR is a people profession. By implementing HR technology solutions, some might see the profession as risking the loss of that ‘personal touch’.

On the contrary, HR technology solutions are just tools that free up HR personnel to walk the ground more, says Ho. “If HR professionals are able to leverage on technology, they can achieve more.”

Indeed, with an integrated HR solution, many administrative and time-consuming HR tasks can be automated easily, thus freeing up HR to carry out their ultimate task, the management of ‘humans’.

“Instead of clearing stacks of paperwork or hundreds of emails a day, HR can better spend their time talking and communicating what matters most to any organisation, the talent,” says Asheed Kumar Velluva, Director of iqDynamics. “HR can also better understand the human needs, wants and requirements that often get lost in an environment which is too focused on technology.”

HR technology also enhances inter-colleague communications and synergy. With e-leave for instance, the applicant could simply trust that the leave request is notified without wondering if the approver needs further reminders.

“By sending well-wishes or messages of congratulations when responding to an approval for marriage leave, you can certainly add an element of care and concern for the employee,” says Liaw.

HR can channel this new-found convenience into more strategic decisions such as on succession planning and staff development. This allows leaders to better align employees with the culture and mission of the corporation.

“Such ‘human touch’ cannot be replicated by technology, hence it can never be the ‘Master’,” says Liaw. “Technology is a tool that will always enhance the work of HR, the real ‘Human Master’.”

Features of the new technology include:

• Casual labour requirement forecast

Times E-Casual Labour module will assist operations managers of the respective cost centres on the forecasting of the number of casual staff required. This is done by simply calling out the events. The actual number required may be requested for GM approval.

• Real time available status of casual workers

The operations managers will be given default login details of their respective cost centres. The available lists of casual workers can be called out for actual confirmation and easy selection. Double entry selections are eliminated.

• Email approvals of casual labour

HR can send requisitions via email and be truly paperless. The stand-in personnel can be set or copied in the emails for approvals. Emails will be automatically re-routed to the next concerned approval personnel if no action is taken by first approver.

• Casual labour costing with export features to Microsoft Excel

Labour costing is quickly and efficiently generated by employees of each cost centre. The reports are then printed to PDF or exported to Excel spreadsheets for further data manipulation or management analysis. The weekly payments to casual workers are done via interbank Giro based on the reports.Master’.”

Why HR technology?Using technology, HR administrations are more structured as policies are implemented with timeliness and effectiveness. “HR technology solutions such as HRiQ allow better and quicker report generation of HR information, leading companies to become more agile in their decision-making processes,” says Teo Teong Ho, also co-founder and director of iqDynamics.

“Customers utilising HRiQ Leave and HRiQ Payroll have reported cuts in losses with employee leave, overtime and expenses being accurately tracked and paid out.”

Using HR Technology solutions will almost certainly help companies to save cost, time and reduce manpower. “It also provides the greater employee satisfaction,” says Liaw.

All processes are done online with just a few clicks rather than via the tedious administrative way of requiring the employee to fill a leave application form. The form would have to be submitted to the supervisor for approval after which it would need to be passed back to the HR department to be manually updated into the leave system.

“By implementing a total HRMS such as e-Leave, a job that requires two or more persons could be performed simply by one person and more effectively, resulting in huge savings for the company,” says Liaw

Eurozone youth unemployment hits 3.6 millionAlmost a quarter of 16 to 25 years olds in the Eurozone are unemployed, the individual standings are announced:

Greece was the worst affected country, with 59.1% of under-25s unemployed. This is followed by Spain at 55.9% and Italy at 38.4%.

Eurostat figures revealed unemployment in the 17 countries hit 12.1% in March, up from 12% in February - equivalent to 19.2 million jobseekers.

Greece and Spain recorded the highest overall unemployment rates in the eurozone, at 27.2% and 26.7% respectively, while Austria, at 4.7%, and Germany, at 5.4%, had the lowest rates.The EU’s employment and social affairs commissioner Laszlo Andor warned EU institutions and governments, business and social partners at all levels need to do all they can to avoid a “lost generation”.

There was better news in the UK, as the latest job index from recruitment site Reed revealed the jobs market grew slightly in April, with year-on-year growth remaining strong.The April figures follow a strong first quarter for the UK jobs market, with 9% more job opportunities on offer during the first three months of the year, compared with the final quarter of 2012.

This rise echoes the recently announced GDP figures, which showed the UK economy grew by 0.3% in the first three months of the year.

A significant majority of sectors (85%) are now stronger than they were this time last year, with particularly strong gains in social care (64%), construction (60%), education (51%) and health and medicine (51%).

Chairman of Reed James Reed said: “We’re now seeing people apply for new jobs in unprecedented numbers, as many who have been sitting tight during the tough economic conditions of the last few years gain the confidence to look at furthering their careers with a new employer.

“Salaries have remained static for over three years against a rising cost of living, so now is the time for many people to look for something new.”

ForFurtherinformationviewatsource:http://www.hrmagazine.co.uk/hro/news/1077100/eurozone-youth-un-employment-hits-36-million

Almost a quarter of 16 to 25 years olds in the eurozone are unemployed, according to official figures published by statistics agency Eurostat.

12MAY 2013














Quick Contents

Skills shortage to continue

A continuing shortage of quality talent causes employers in China to re-assess their recruitment strategy

The majority of surveyed employers (68%) believe this skills shortage will lead to salary levels increasing above the rate of inflation; an increase of 6% compared to the 2012 survey. Aligned with this sentiment, most of the employers surveyed (36%) indicated they were likely to award average salary increases in the range of 8-10%. This finding was consistent with the previous year’s survey, where 34% chose 8-10% as the range for average salary increases.

“The limited availability of exceptional professionals is likely to be exacerbated by an increase in staff loyalty and the on-going shift for employees to stay with an employer for longer in a role and take advantage of training and development opportunities,” says Richard King, Managing Director of PageGroup in North and Eastern China.

With a continued shortage of quality talent likely in China’s professional recruitment market during 2013, many employers will look to develop more targeted attraction strategies to secure the skills they need.

Almost half of all employers surveyed in the 2013 Michael Page Salary & Employment Forecast, China, (48%) expect their business will experience some staff turnover during the year, and 51% believed there would be a professional skills shortage.

Fullstoryathttp://www.hrmasia.com/site-search/skills-shortage-to-continue/174611/

13MAY 2013

48% expect their business will experience some staff turnover

(68%) believe this skills shortage will lead to salary levels increasing above the rate of inflation

51% believed there would be a professional skills shortage.

6% increase on 2012

2013MICHAELPAGESALARY&EMPLOYMENTFORECAST,CHINA

BELIEVESKILLSSHORTAGEWILLLEADTOABOVEINFLATIONSALARY

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Documents

May Issue HR News