ORC Sightlines

March 2004

UK Grapples with Disability Discrimination

Following the European Year of Disabled People 2003, disability remains a key area of action for employers across Europe, and 2004 brings a packed agenda for UK employers. Maria Eagle, MP, Minister for Disabled People, recently joined members of ORC’s Breakthrough Equal Employment Opportunity network to discuss the latest developments.

The frank exchange covered concerns from employers about how the UK’s proposed Single Equality and Human Rights Commission would manage efforts to fight the various kinds of discrimination equally, without a hierarchy of discrimination developing that might leave disability issues underserved. The Minister assured members that intensive consultation is currently underway with a wide range of stakeholders, including employers, to ensure the proposed new commission meets the needs of the various constituencies.

Later this year, the UK will implement amendments to the Disability Discrimination Act 1995, which will bring British legislation into line with the requirements of the EU employment directive. The amendments, which remove exemptions for small employers and broaden coverage to include police and prison officers, barristers, and partners in business partnerships, will have little direct impact on large private companies. However, new regulations going into effect this year will likely require the attention of all employers. The Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (Pensions) Regulations 2003 will require trustees and managers of occupational pension schemes to ensure that practices, provisions, and criteria do not adversely impact disabled people.

The government is also actively supporting a bill, currently going through the parliamentary process, that will extend the definition of disability to include people with HIV, cancer, and multiple sclerosis from the point of diagnosis and will bring transport workers under the legislation. The bill would also place a statutory duty on all public sector organizations to promote disability equality, with the hopes of creating a more effective and energetic approach to efforts to end disability discrimination. Currently, the onus for enforcing equal employment rights falls on individual disabled people pursuing their cases.

On the broader European front, following the success of the European Year of Disabled People, the European Commission is proposing a seven-year action plan for people with disabilities. Public consultation will start later in the spring. ORC will continue to monitor and report on developments of these initiatives.

For further information on ORC’s equality networks in the UK, please contact Deirdre Golden, +44 (0) 20 7591 5600, deirdre.golden@orcww.com.

Protecting the Company’s Investment in Expatriates

Companies spend millions each year to post employees in expatriate assignments, and they lose a significant portion of that investment to premature termination of assignments and unsuccessful repatriations.  Employees who have been inadequately prepared for life in a new country and culture (or whose family has) are more likely to fail in their assignment or to request an early return home.  And expats whose repatriation has not been carefully managed all too often resign shortly thereafter, depriving the company of the benefit of their expertise and, often, transferring that skill and knowledge to the competition instead.  Even repatriated employees who stay with the company often lose significant productivity as they and their families struggle to readjust to their home countries.  In short, return on investment in expatriate assignments is severely eroded in many companies.

Avoiding this erosion was the topic of recent discussions in ORC’s Canadian Roundtable, and some clear best practices emerged.  One of the most often mentioned was keeping expatriates well-informed at all stages of the assignment.  Before they even accept an offer for a posting abroad, the employees and their families should have a pretty good idea of what they’re in for. Some companies go so far as to allow the employee and his or her spouse to visit the location before deciding on the offer. Providing expatriates with a home- or HQ-based mentor can help to keep absent employees visible and tied in to corporate developments. 

The biggest problems reported by employees repatriated from foreign assignments are insecurity about their next assignments, disappointment with returning home to jobs that don’t utilize their experience and skills, loss of autonomy and status in the new position and in standard of living on return home, and a sense that their expat experiences are not really valued by the organization.

Best practices for combating these tendencies include

The principle underlying all of this advice is to have clear goals, policies, and processes and to communicate them clearly throughout the assignment life cycle.

For more information about issues pertaining to international assignment management or about the Canadian Roundtable or other ORC international HR networks, contact Lynne Molnar, 212-852-0364, lynne.molnar@orcww.com.

Using Technology to Jump Start New Hires

How long does it take your new hires to become fully functioning employees? To navigate benefits enrollment, get their computer logins, be included in the employee directory, understand the company’s values and culture? HR leaders in some companies are turning to technology to cut the ramp-up time for new employees and to ensure that they feel wanted and valued from the minute they step through the door on their first day, or even before.

At the March meetings of ORC’s Human Resources Information Technology (HRIT) and Innovative Technology in Human Resources (ITHR) Networks, member companies discussed their latest processes for “on-boarding” new employees. In the most highly developed system presented, every function that touches a new hire—security, facilities, benefits, absence control, accounting, IT, purchasing—is automatically notified when the hiring manager enters an accepted offer into the HRIS. 

Hires are assigned unique IDs that follows them throughout their careers (even over breaks in service) and in every location with the company. The system generates email to the hiring managers with reminders of what needs to be done to prepare for the new hires, and all the other functions are prompted regarding their responsibilities.  When the new hires walk through the door, their computers are waiting, their user Ids are recognized, their names and numbers are in the phone directory, and all they have to worry about is getting to orientation on time.

Another large organization emphasizes timed communications with new hires. At stages throughout the first six months of employment, the automated system sends new employees kits with new-hire information, benefits enrollment materials, career development information and so forth, and links to online supports. After 90 days, new employees are sent a survey regarding their experiences so far. 

How Expensive Are the New EU Member States?

The European Union will be larger by ten countries as of May 1st. The chart below illustrates the relative cost of living among the countries of the enlarged EU. Scandinavian countries are the most expensive, while most of the new member states cluster at the bottom. 

Host Country Host City Index
Denmark Copenhagen 160.4943
Finland Helsinki 155.8985
Sweden Stockholm 146.5296
Italy Milan 143.6121
Belgium Brussels 138.2858
Netherlands Amsterdam 137.9779
France Paris 136.7643
Ireland Dublin 133.4472
Austria Vienna 132.0824
Cyprus Nicosia 130.0149
Germany Frankfurt 127.8752
Portugal Lisbon 126.8887
Luxembourg Luxembourg 123.3794
Lithuania Vilnius 117.1834
Greece Athens 116.2676
Spain Madrid 114.8967
Hungary Budapest 103.8477
Slovenia Ljubljana 103.4537
Czech Republic Prague 103.0650
Poland Warsaw 98.4819
Estonia Tallinn 95.5249
Latvia Riga 91.0986
Slovakia Bratislava 84.2476
Malta (data not available)  

New member states are highlighted in yellow and marked with the strong tag. These comparisons are based on a UK home base and full expatriate index. More detailed information is available with a subscription to ORC's expatriate cost-of-living data services.

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