UK industrial production drops in July as exports struggle September 9, 2015 UK factory output fell by 0.5 per cent in July compared with June, according to figures released the Office for National Statistics this morning, as firms continue to battle against a strong pound weak economic growth in major export markets. Total industrial production, which includes mining and quarrying as well as manufacturing, dropped 0.4 per cent. [...]
Pizza Express forced to redivide the dough September 9, 2015 Pizza Express has bowed to customer pressure and given waiting staff a bigger slice of the tips they receive when customers pay by credit or debit card. Eight in 10 of us usually tip waiters, so it is no surprise campaigners had targeted the restaurant chain over its failure to grant 100 per cent [...]
John McFarlane to staff: Leaked memo says Barclays needs to make “tough calls” to push up shareholder returns September 8, 2015 It's been just a couple of days since the traditional back to work season kicked off and already Barclays' boss John McFarlane has ruffled a few feathers with a memo sent to staff hinting at a cull. In a welcome back note sent to all Barclays staff this morning, City A.M. understands that the man famously [...]
British Airways’ Gatwick pay cuts: Has BA’s restructuring appeared from thin air? September 8, 2015 It’s one of the oldest tricks in the book. Would you like to take a lower-paid role or face the exit? British Airways is waving the magic wand and a number of senior cabin crew are under its spell. Hundreds of senior cabin crew at Gatwick are faced with taking big pay cuts or being let go. BA [...]
Watch out Mike Ashley: Unite the union protesters to target Sports Direct AGM dressed as Dickensian workers over “Victorian” zero-hours contracts September 8, 2015 Sports Direct's AGM tomorrow is set to be an even more lively affair than usual. Unite the union has revealed plans for a protest outside the AGM with members dressed as Dickensian workers. They will be demanding "an end to ‘Victorian’ work practices at the retailer’s nearby Shirebrook warehouse and that the company pays [...]
City heavyweights including L&G’s Nigel Wilson, Sainsbury’s David Tyler and BNY Mellon’s Helena Morrissey join working group to overhaul executive pay September 8, 2015 A new panel of city executives is exploring whether to scrap long-term share awards as part of a radial overhaul of city boardroom culture. The Executive Remuneration Working Group was set up by the Investment Association, which represents the UK's £5.5 trillion asset-management industry, to examine how to simplify executive pay. Daniel Godfrey, chief executive [...]
Transport for London’s Night Tube is unlikely to launch until March 2016 as negotiations with unions stall September 8, 2015 The Night Tube dream is turning into a never-ending nightmare, it seems. London's much-vaunted 24-hour service is looking unlikely to launch this side of Christmas, with sources telling City A.M. it could be as late as March before it rolls into action. Transport for London had originally ear-marked this weekend (12 September) as [...]
Costa Coffee and Premier Inn parent Whitbread plans to raise prices to mitigate “substantial” National Living Wage costs September 8, 2015 Picked up a coffee on your way into work this morning? You might find it starts costing a little bit more in future. Costa Coffee and Premier Inn parent group Whitbread has warned that it will be forced to introduce "some selective price increases" across the business as part of measures to tackle rising [...]
Winners and losers of Living Wage campaign – The City View September 7, 2015 The problem with nuance and complexity is that they get in the way of simple government announcements. Take, as a prime example, the debate around the national minimum wage (NMW). The Low Pay Commission (LPC) was created in 1998 to offer independent advice on the NMW – precisely because politicians were deemed incapable of resisting [...]
How Britain’s booming startup scene can be supercharged by empowering smaller investors September 7, 2015 Many congratulations to City A.M. on its tenth birthday. It has been a remarkably successful decade for the adventurous upstart. But the anniversary reminds me of a rather less happy fact. By the time it is ten years old, there is only a one in 100 chance that a UK firm will have reached [...]