London mayor Boris Johnson backs paid internships in London at national minimum wage, “if not the London Living Wage” March 5, 2015 London mayor Boris Johnson has backed calls to take action on the scourge of unpaid internships blighting the prospects of young people in the capital. It's understood to be the first time the mayor has outlined his position on the issue, saying he supported paid internships and encouraged businesses employing interns to pay at least [...]
StanChart chops exec bonuses as profits tumble March 4, 2015 OUTGOING Standard Chartered chief Peter Sands is not taking a bonus for 2014, yesterday announcing all board-level execs who served for the full year are losing the payout. Pre-tax profits dived 30 per cent to $4.2bn (£2.8bn) on falling revenues, rising costs and the soaring bills from regulations and taxes. The UK-headquartered bank’s income fell [...]
Standard Chartered bonus bungle shows investors need to speak up March 4, 2015 Falling profits, boardroom turmoil and a declining return on equity: by any measure, Standard Chartered’s 2014 was a year to forget. So the decision of Peter Sands (whose resignation last week was met with a surge in the bank’s share price) to forgo a variable pay award for the year was necessary to avoid a [...]
European Banking Authority cracks down on British banker’s bonus cap “allowance” loophole March 4, 2015 The European Union is ramping up pressure on the UK to comply with new laws on capping bonuses which could see London based banks reducing remuneration. Europe’s banking watchdog has issued long-awaited draft guidelines on remuneration which address a grey area allowing banks to circumvent the rules which cap bonuses at two times that of [...]
Standard Chartered share price rises as boss Peter Sands gives up bonus March 4, 2015 Shares in troubled bank Standard Chartered were up six per cent this morning, despite reporting a sharp drop in pre-tax profits. Investor optimism was clearly high, as outgoing boss Peter Sands, who, it was revealed last week, will be replaced by Bill Winters, announced he and the rest of the board will forego their bonuses. [...]
Professional salaries boom on rocketing demand for workers March 1, 2015 Strong demand for workers is putting upward pressure on pay, new figures show. In the professional sector – which includes accountants, programmers, engineers, or anything that generally requires a degree – recruiters have 26 per cent more permanent vacancies on their books than they did at the same time last year, according to the Association [...]
As RBS reports a £3.5bn loss, is George Osborne right that senior executives should not get bonuses? February 26, 2015 Steve Davies, education director at the Institute of Economic Affairs, says Yes The question is not whether bonuses are the correct way to remunerate people. It is whether RBS should be making such payments when the bank is incurring serious losses. Clearly, the answer should be no. When a business is in financial straits, the [...]
George Osborne misses minimum wage target for 2015 February 23, 2015 The Low Pay Commission (LPC) announced yesterday that the minimum wage for workers over 21 years old should be raised by 20p to £6.70 an hour, a three per cent rise. George Osborne has previously indicated he would like it to be higher. In January last year the chancellor said in an interview: “If the [...]
General Election 2015: Will the government raise the minimum wage? February 23, 2015 Minimum wage in the UK should rise by 20p to £6.70 an hour, according to the Low Pay Commission. The rise, the commission says, should take place in October, and would mean a pay rise for 1.2m workers. If the government decides to implement the rise, which it may do in next month’s budget, it [...]
Businesses don’t hate plans by the Low Pay Commission to raise the minimum wage by three per cent February 23, 2015 The CBI has welcomed a recommendation by the Low Pay Commission, the body which advises the government on the minimum wage, to raise it by three per cent. Katja Hall, the body's deputy director-general, called the plans a "careful balance". In a letter to the Secretary of State today, the Commission suggested raising the national [...]