Allena Clarke Appointments - The Recruitment Agency for the North East

Allena Clarke Appointments keeps you up to date with the latest news and developments in the world of recruitment.

Use the scroll buttons to read through the news items or select a headline below to go straight to that item.

MANAGEMENT PRESSURE

Adecco research finds that senior staff struggle to cope with pressure
Managers in the UK work too much, put business ahead of family and are frustrated by a negative workplace culture, a new survey by recruitment giant Adecco and the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) has found.

More than 1,500 managers were questioned for the Business Energy Survey which discovered that businesses are failing to understand the pressures on their senior employees.

One in five respondents said they worked an extra 14 hours over and above their normal working week with 40 per cent admitting that they missed family commitments because of work. Around one-third (35 per cent) admitted to having no energy on weekday evenings, while 24 per cent admitted to using the weekend solely to recover from work.

Mary Chapman, chief executive of the Chartered Management Institute, commented: "It's easy to see why frustrations exist. The pace of change and a desire to reduce costs has had major implications on working patterns in many organisations. But all too often, these are not communicated effectively, and they take their toll through longer working hours and a drained workforce."

Richard Macmillan, managing director of Adecco in the UK and Ireland, added that employees were still happy to work at managerial level as long as their ideas were heard, they felt valued and empowered, and were allowed to work flexibly.

SMALL FIRMS. BIG CONFIDENCE

The latest Manpower Employment Outlook Survey that provides a forecast of employer hiring intentions for the quarter January to March 2004, shows that small to medium sized enterprises are much more optimistic than large businesses about hiring new staff for early 2004.

2,500 UK employers were surveyed. The survey extended to over 35,000 employers in 18 countries globally.

The Net Employment Outlook average for all companies in the UK in the months January – March 2004 is +9 per cent. In other words, there are 9 per cent more companies expecting to take on staff than release staff. Employers in small businesses rate at +17 per cent…medium sized businesses forecast +11 per cent while larger companies aren’t so optimistic at just +2 per cent.

Allena Clarke from Allena Clarke Appointments in Newcastle said; “It would be fair to say that the vast majority of UK employers are confident about the immediate future. This is especially so amongst the Small and Medium sized Enterprises (SME). These businesses, no matter how small, play a vitally important role in the UK economy. It’s good to see that they are in such confident mood.”

1 RECRUIT = £10,000

Recruiting and training new staff is costing UK businesses a fortune. The latest estimate is that UK plc firms spend a staggering £48bn a year finding new employees. This equates to an average of £9,766 per recruit.

The figures come from a poll by Momentum Financial Services. They have found that every year sees almost 18 per cent of the UK work force moving to a new job.

However, every cloud has a silver lining. This staff turnover has allowed the UK recruitment market make £24bn, according to the industry body Recruitment and Employment Confederation.

The research outlined one key area where companies could save money. It showed that 86 per cent of employers felt a good benefits package was a vital ingredient in attracting and holding on to staff. It was estimated that £2bn could be saved in turnover costs if companies explained those benefits more fully to their employees.

TEMPORARY OR PERMANENT?

The recruitment community continues to wait and see what will happen with the European Union’s Agency Workers Directive. The controversial proposal aims to give temporary workers the same pay and conditions as their permanent counterparts and many are worried that it will damage both the UK recruitment industry and the economy as a whole.

RULES AND REGULATIONS
December 2003. The DTI has issued a new draft of the Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations which will come into force in April 04.


	Management Pressure

	Small Firms, Big Confidence

	1 Recruit = £10,000

	Temporary or Permanent

	Rules and Regulations

Download a pdf version of our terms and conditions for permanent staff.