News | Page 34

At the spring general election the turnout was so large in some areas that polling stations were unable to cope with the number of voters. Among the areas affected was deputy prime minister and Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg’s constituency of Sheffield Hallam. Voters with unused polling cards went to Mr Clegg’s house to protest, claiming that up to 200 people at one polling station had been turned away.

Strikes over job cuts at the University of Leeds were suspended after union representatives and management moved close to a deal on avoiding redundancies. The Leeds branch of the University and College Union had scheduled a one-day strike, with two further one-day stoppages. However, discussions with management through the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) produced a deal, and the UCU branch voted to suspend action.

Job losses arising from the global slump have bitten the most in the north overall. Research has shown that some of the worst places hit nationally include cities such as Sheffield and Hull. In the North East, the Wear Valley’s jobseeker’s allowance (JSA) claimant rate doubled in 12 months: the closure of Woolworths stores in Jarrow and South Shields affected dozens of workers.

The national minimum wage is being raised this autumn. There are different grades depending upon age and employment status, and for younger people there will be a 7p increase for 16 and 17-year-olds – which will take effect on October 1, 2010. Almost all workers who work in the United Kingdom are entitled to the national minimum wage. But there are some exemptions, including children who are still of compulsory school age.

A northern veteran soldier has been dismissed by the Army after being on sick leave despite completing two tours of duty in Iraq as well as in Bosnia, Kosovo and Northern Ireland during a distinguished 17-year career. The soldier had been on sick leave and on full pay after a trial as he battled alcoholism and a marriage breakdown.

There is no more potent symbol of the horror story of the banking crisis than Northern Rock plc. Based at the Regent Centre in Newcastle upon Tyne, it is best known for becoming the first bank in 150 years to suffer a bank run after having had to approach the Bank of England for a loan facility during the credit catastrophe in 2007. Having failed to find a commercial buyer for the business, it was taken into public ownership in 2008.

Time and attendance software reduces the administrative work of managing paper clock cards or time slips and removes the associated clerical inaccuracies and errors.

Time and attendance systems are the modern-day equivalent of the paper time sheet or punch clock, automating day-to-day tasks such as tracking work hours and calculating accrued benefits. They make it simple and efficient for businesses to manage their employees providing valuable information of the running of your business.