Revision Of Rules
THE Minister for Employment and Learning, Stephen Farry has announced the consolidation of the Working Time Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016. The regulations have now been consolidated from 11 pieces of legislation to one making them more accessible to employers. The regulations are a positive contribution to the Northern Ireland employment relations framework; laying down...
New Appointments
THE Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce and Industry has made two new appointments. Kirsty McManus has been appointed head of business development while Paul Fox has been named as business development executive. Kirsty is the former director of the centre for SME development at Ulster University Business School which focuses on helping SMEs achieve...
Qpani’s HR Support
THE organisation representing Northern Ireland’s £620m quarry industry has joined forces with social enterprise Chain HR to offer Human Resource support, unique to the sector. The Quarry Products Association NI (QPANI) represents approximately 95% of companies involved in the supply of quarry products to the construction industry. The Quarry Products Sector now employs over...
Snack Trade Event
JOHN Hood, Invest Northern Ireland’s Director of Food and Tourism, has encouraged over 40 producers from Northern Ireland’s bakery and snacks sector to explore innovation to support business growth. Speaking at a seminar jointly hosted by Invest NI and CAFRE, John said: “Northern Ireland’s bakery and snacks sector remains very competitive, with businesses continually needing...
Sara’s On the Ball
THE Irish Football Association has appointed Sara Booth (above) as Tournament Director for the UEFA Women’s Under 19 Championship. This major event, taking place in Northern Ireland between August 8-21, 2017, will welcome the seven best teams in Europe with Northern Ireland making up the eighth team. Sara’s multifaceted role will involve collaborating...
Workers’ Rights
IT has been announced that payments and awards made to workers in employment rights cases are to rise in line with inflation. An Order made by the Department for Employment and Learning brought these new limits into operation from February 14, 2016. The Minister for Employment and Learning, Stephen Farry, said: “The increased...
Larne Jobs Forum
LARNE Town Hall recently played host to a Jobs Fair and Advice Forum. The fair was organised by the Department for Employment and Learning (DEL) in conjunction with Mid and East Antrim Borough Council. Over 20 employers including PwC, Wrightbus and Crumlin-based aerospace engineering company, RLC UK Ltd took part. Pictured at the event (above)...
Charity Champions
CHARITY CHAMPIONS STAFF from the Progressive Building Society have helped raise over £110,000 for 14 local charities in 2015. Staff from the institute’s branches and the head office in Belfast hosted a series of events to significantly exceed the pledge it gave in February 2015 of donating a minimum of £70,000 to the charities within...
Academic Joins CAS
ACADEMIC JOINS CAS A QUEEN’S University professor has been appointed as an arbitrator to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Known as the international court of justice for sport, Prof Jack Anderson, from Queen’s School of Law, is the first person based in Northern Ireland to be appointed to the organisation in its 20...
Decrease in Jobless
DECREASE IN JOBLESS FIGURES released for the period September-November 2015 show a decrease in the Northern Ireland unemployment rate. The Northern Ireland Labour Force Survey statistics show the unemployment rate was 5.9% — a decrease of 0.1 percentage points over the quarter. More recent figures for December 2015 show that the number of claimants in...