This week, we’ve reported on some of the rewards employers have given to staff to acknowledge their hard work throughout the year.
Toymaker Lego, for example, offered its 20,000 employees around the world three extra days of holiday on top of their annual allowance, as well as a bonus in April 2022, following a boom in sales. The decision was made by the senior leadership team, as they wanted to recognise, thank and reward the workforce.
Meanwhile, at retailer Pets at Home, 500-plus members of staff are to split a £11.7 million sharesave scheme payout. While the payout isn’t about the employer making the decision to show staff their appreciation, its chief people and culture officer expressed delight at its “dedicated” people being able to “share in the value that we create together”.
Clearly, when businesses are performing well it makes sense that employees are offered the chance to benefit from that success financially too – whether that’s through more wages, bonuses or share scheme payments. In many cases it can make a huge difference to their financial wellbeing.
When housing provider Anchor’s half-year results report showed strong financial performance, it also announced its decision to pay the Living Wage Foundation rates for all staff in National Living Wage hourly rate positions across its whole portfolio.
The organisation’s chief executive, Jane Ashcroft CBE, explained that it was committed to offering “competitive rates of pay, an excellent range of benefits and outstanding opportunities” to its workers. She also added that the organisation’s achievements wouldn’t have been possible without the hard work of its people as she thanked them for their efforts.
And while on the subject of recognition, I’d like to remind you all that entries for the Employee Benefits Awards 2022 are open until the end of this month (December). Please take the opportunity to highlight the achievements of you and your teams this year, with a chance of winning a prestigious award at the event next summer.
Finally, as this is my last blog as acting editor of Employee Benefits, I would like to wish the entire team all the very best for the future. I’m leaving the title in the capable hands of our current features editor, Tynan Barton, who I’m sure will do a fantastic job in keeping you updated with what’s happening in the reward, benefits and HR industry.
Kavitha Sivasubramaniam
Editor
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