Canadian Payroll Reporter

6 Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2014 News in Brief A look at news, facts and figures shaping the world of payroll professionals Study finds high-performing companies compensate executives differently › NEW YORK — High-performing companies design their executive compensation programs differently from many other organizations, says a recent study by professional services firm Towers Watson. The study looked at the executive compensation programs at 50 companies with the most sustained and consistent outperformance in total shareholder return versus the S&P 1500 (a Standard & Poor's stock market index representing almost the entire U.S. equity market) over the past 15 years. "We conducted this study to see if companies with truly sustained high performance follow practices that differ from other companies," said Todd Lippincott, North American executive compensation leader at Towers Watson, in a news release. "The short answer is they do. In fact, we found that many high performers take approaches and differentiate their pay programs in ways that many observers would view unfavourably." For example, the study found that these firms put a greater emphasis on stock options than other companies do. Among the high-performing companies, the study found that stock options make up about 50 per cent more of their long-term incentives mix than they do in companies in the wider market. The study also found that these firms place less emphasis on long-term performance plans (e.g., long-term incentive plans that have explicit performance measures such as relative total shareholder return). "This is one of the more surprising findings. Stock options, in particular, are often singled out as a symbol of short-term management thinking. It's interesting that companies that actually sustained performance over time have embraced them," Lippincott said. Other pay practices the study identified included targeting compensation levels at market media rates and having compensation plans that change as the company grows and matures. More information about the study is available at www.towerswatson.com. LinkedIn pays almost $6 million in unpaid overtime and damages › WASHINGTON — LinkedIn Corp. has paid close to $6 million (U.S.) in unpaid overtime wages and damages to 359 former and current employees af- ter a U.S. Department of Labor investigation found the company violated overtime and record-keeping requirements by failing to record, account and pay for all hours worked in a work week. When notified of the violations at its branches in California, Illinois, Nebraska and New York, the com- pany agreed to pay all overtime owing (about $3.3 million) and damages of about $2.5 million. It also agreed to take steps to prevent this from happening again, said a Labor Department news release. LinkedIn will provide compliance training and distribute its policy prohibiting off-the-clock work to all employees and managers covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act. It will remind managers that they must record and pay employees for overtime. It will also remind employees of the company's policy prohibiting re- taliation against workers who raise concerns about workplace issues. "Off the clock hours are all too common for the American worker," said Susana Blanco, district di- rector for the department's Wage and Hour Division in San Francisco. "We urge all employers, large and small, to review their pay practices to ensure employees know their basic workplace rights and that the commitment to compliance works through all levels of the organiza- tion," she said. Disabled people an 'overlooked talent pool': study › OTTAWA — People with disabilities are generally as well educated as people without disabilities, but are three times more likely to be unemployed or out of the labour market, says a recent Conference Board of Canada study. The report, called The Business Benefits of Acces- sible Workplaces, says people with disabilities make up 13.7 per cent of Canada's population, yet remain "an overlooked talent pool" in the workforce. It also says that as Canada's population ages, the number of people with disabilities will also increase. The report says there are clear business benefits to having accessible employment practices, includ- ing better job retention, higher attendance, lower turnover, enhanced job performance and work qual- ity and better safety records. "If Canadian businesses wish to thrive, they need to be able to recruit and retain the talent they need—this includes people with disabilities," says Ruth Wright, director of Human Resources Research at the board. "We need more inclusive and accessible work- places and practices that attract new employees with disabilities and at the same time allow existing employees with disabilities, and those that develop them, to remain in the workforce." More information on the report and on strategies and tools to make employment practices more ac- cessible for people with disabilities is available on the board's website at www.conferenceboard.ca. Average weekly earnings up by 0.6 per cent in May: StatsCan › OTTAWA — Average weekly earnings of non-farm payroll employees were $937 in May, up 0.6 per cent from $931.44 in April, Statistics Canada reports. Statistics Canada revised the March numbers from the previously reported $932. On a year- over-year basis, weekly earnings increased 2.6 per cent in May. The increase in weekly earnings during the 12 months to March reflected a number of factors, including wage growth, changes in the composi- tion of employment by industry, occupation and level of job experience, as well as average hours worked per week. Non-farm payroll employees worked an average of 33 hours a week in May, which is only slightly changed from the average of 32.9 hours 12 months earlier. Year-over-year earnings of non-farm payroll em- ployees increased in all provinces, with the biggest growth in Newfoundland and Labrador, Manitoba and Nova Scotia. The smallest growth occurred in Prince Edward Island. Unemployment rate at 7.0 per cent in July: StatsCan › OTTAWA — Canada's economy created only 200 jobs in July, Statistics Canada reports. The unem- ployment rate fell slightly from 7.1 per cent to 7.0 per cent from June to July due to fewer people searching for work. The number of part-time jobs increased by 60,000, but the number of full-time jobs fell by 59,700. Employment increased by 17,000 for youths aged 15 to 24 years, but fell by 33,000 for those aged 55 and older. Employment increased in educational services and in information, culture and recreation. It went down in construction, as well as in health care and social assistance and in business, building and other support services. On a provincial basis, Newfoundland and Lab- rador continued to have the highest unemploy- ment rate at 11.9 per cent, down from 12.5 per cent in June. Saskatchewan remained the province with the lowest unemployment rate, at 3.3 per cent, down from 3.9 the previous month. In the United States, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the American economy add- ed 209,000 jobs in July, but the unemployment rate rose from 6.1 per cent to 6.2 as more people en- tered the job market searching for work.

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