As the Office for National Statistics releases its latest batch of unemployment figures, a new report published today reveals that far too many young people are ill informed about their career options. New joint research from the Financial Skills Partnership and Career Academies UK, based on a survey of...

Unemployment in the UK fell by 51,000 to 2.61 million in the three months to April, official figures have shown. The jobless rate fell to 8.2{6060b2de664e4eaa3e7b7e86961ce2c4bbd7a29b6c1097abf8257a4e5b07383e}, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said. But the claimant count – the number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance – increased by 8,100...

Is gender imbalance on company boards an EU issue, or should it be a matter for national governments? What is the case for gender diversity on boards? Does it bring economic benefits, does it benefit corporate culture, or is it simply the right thing to do? These questions and...

The latest Bank of Scotland Report on Jobs signalled a further improvement to the Scottish labour market in May. Both permanent and temporary placements rose strongly over the month, but at sharply reduced rates from the highs recorded in April. Recruitment firms generally attributed higher staff placements to greater...

Organisations reviewing their benefits packages are most likely to be scrutinising their health benefits provision, according to research from HR specialists XpertHR. Based on a survey of 356 organisations’ benefits packages, the research reveals that health benefits feature among the most popular benefits on offer. Private medical insurance is...

Recruiters voted unanimously to introduce a rigorous new compliance regime at the Annual General Meeting of the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) today. The new compliance regime which received formal approval at this morning’s AGM means that from 1st July 2012 all recruitment agencies wishing to obtain REC membership...

Although many governments around Europe took drastic action to control public spending in the midst of the last recession, austerity measures have eased considerably over the last year. In Latvia, for instance, where between 2008 and 2010 the government cut civil service jobs by 10{6060b2de664e4eaa3e7b7e86961ce2c4bbd7a29b6c1097abf8257a4e5b07383e} and slashed public sector...

A survey of UK businesses says short-term business prospects have improved, with the consensus on current trading levels at a 12-month high. However the eurozone crisis may harm longer-term growth, says the report on the survey by the Centre for Economic and Business Research for business services firm BDO...

There has been mixed news on the outlook for the eurozone’s biggest economies. The Bank of France expects the French economy to contract by 0.1{6060b2de664e4eaa3e7b7e86961ce2c4bbd7a29b6c1097abf8257a4e5b07383e} between April and June this year, having predicted that there would be zero growth less than a month ago. But the German central bank...

According to new data released by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, more than half of employers are making changes to their working practices during the Olympics to enable staff to work more flexibly or enable them to watch key events at work. Almost three in ten employers...

As part of FDM Group’s ongoing women in IT campaign, the international IT services provider held another successful “Women in IT Advantage Session” in their flagship London office. FDM’s Chief Operating Officer, Sheila Flavell, led the event, which offers an opportunity for women who are interested in pursuing a...

European Central Bank (ECB) president Mario Draghi has said risks to the eurozone economy have increased.   Earlier, official figures confirmed that the eurozone recorded zero growth in the first three months of the year.   The ECB also released its latest quarterly economic forecasts of growth and inflation. Its growth...

The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has slashed its forecast for economic growth this year, from 0.6{6060b2de664e4eaa3e7b7e86961ce2c4bbd7a29b6c1097abf8257a4e5b07383e} to 0.1{6060b2de664e4eaa3e7b7e86961ce2c4bbd7a29b6c1097abf8257a4e5b07383e}.  But the group, which represents more than 100,000 businesses, raised its forecast for 2013 from 1.8{6060b2de664e4eaa3e7b7e86961ce2c4bbd7a29b6c1097abf8257a4e5b07383e} to 1.9{6060b2de664e4eaa3e7b7e86961ce2c4bbd7a29b6c1097abf8257a4e5b07383e}.  The data, in the BCC’s latest Quarterly Economic Forecast, follow official figures...