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News and analysis HR news briefing McDonald’s rolls back DEI initiatives S T O C K : A D O B E I M A G E S 1 Teenage employment advisor victimised for wearing trainers to office, tribunal rules Recruitment firm victimised teenager for breaching dress code 2 Working from home risks women’s career progress, says Nationwide leader Men are more likely to come to the office, CEO says 3 Age UK finance manager jailed for stealing £460k Finance manager spent stolen money on holidays 4 Recruitment agency to pay £37k for incorrect IR35 deductions Agency unlawfully deducted employer’s NI, tribunal rules 5 HR leaders feature in 2025 New Year Honours List New Year’s Honours list recognises HR leaders The CEO of McDonald’s announced a roll-back of some of its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, four years after they were introduced. McDonald’s chair and CEO Chris Kempczinski emailed employees and suppliers on 6 January. Having reviewed “all aspects of inclusion” across its system in 2024, and reaffirming that its “commitment to inclusion is steadfast”, the fast food chain leader stated that he would modify its aspirational representation goals for senior leadership levels, and pause external surveys. He stated that the firm would also retire the supply chain mutual commitment to DEI, and refer to its diversity team as the global inclusion team. At the same time, McDonald’s introduced a new “golden rule” concept of “treating everyone with dignity, fairness and respect, always”. Kempczinski stated that the firm was refining its language to “better capture” its commitment to inclusion. Charity donations boost employee engagement Three quarters (75%) of employers do not donate to charity, despite employees reporting that they feel more engaged at companies that give to charitable programmes, research by Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) has found. More than half (54%) of employees said that working for an employer that supports charities increases their sense of pride in working there. Meanwhile, 51% of employees reported feeling more loyal to an employer that donates to charity. Around half (47%) said that it incentivised them to go the extra mile for their employer. “Corporate giving significantly enhances employee engagement by aligning a company’s actions with its purpose and values,” said Philippa Cornish, CAF’s head of corporate clients. “People want to work for an employer that reflects their values. HR should clearly communicate how corporate giving aligns with the company’s values, in a way that employees from every area of the business will understand.” CAF found that younger generations felt especially motivated by charity donations. More than three fifths (63%) of 16-to-24-year-olds who were surveyed reported that their loyalty to their employer was boosted by its charitable giving. Decision-makers should especially make sure to engage young people in corporate giving programmes from the start, noted Alastair Gill, employee engagement lead for the water dispensing business Aqua Libra. He said: “Fuse the business mission and values into day-to-day actions so that it all makes perfect sense. “Want to align it with younger people? Involve them in every single stage. Involve anyone interested, test, learn and share. Yes, it will take a little longer, but it will make sense. That is the goal: it is about being effective, not efficient.” 6 HR January/February 2025 hrmagazine.co.uk
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HR news briefing News and analysis what January/February means for you Men in 1970s paedophile campaign worked with minors Men who were a part of a 1970s campaign group for the legalisation of paedophilia were employed in roles where they came into contact with minors, BBC News reported on 8 January. Nearly a quarter of the 300 men were identified as having come into contact with children professionally, and a “small number” of men may still be, the BBC report stated. This meant that they could have passed in-depth background checks when applying for jobs, the report suggested. “The findings are deeply disturbing and demand urgent action,” said Katie Waissel, founder and director at OWHL, a safety network that provides verification in the creative industries. “It is appalling that individuals with such histories could infiltrate positions of trust with minors as well as vulnerable adults. “Safeguarding must never be treated as a box-ticking exercise. The consequences of failure are devastating.” Employers should rely on offi cial background checks when hiring candidates to work with minors or vulnerable people, according to Kate Palmer, employment services director at HR consultancy Peninsula. She said: “Use recognised methods to check suitability, and carry out thorough reference checks.” CPO falls off fastest-growing jobs list Chief people officer (CPO) has fallen off LinkedIn’s list of the 25 fastest-g rowing jobs in the UK. AI and sustainability roles are among the most popular jobs. Last year, LinkedIn listed CPO as the 13th fastest-growing role in its Jobs on the Rise List 2024. CPO was the 10th fastest-growing role in 2023. However, the CPO job title did not feature in this year’s list at all. How to harness the power of nature to transform your work culture Encouraging employees to spend time outdoors can improve concentration and productivity, executive coach Karen Liebenguth argues. How HR can prepare for the employment law changes of 2025 Clare Chappell, partner at Carbon Law Partners, explains what HR needs to know about upcoming employment law changes. HR can’t afford to ignore ‘organisational t e l s’ rs ct e, charlatans’ False performers can impact team morale, psychologist Marie Dunnion explains. ie ns. “The chief people offi cer role saw significant growth during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic,” said Maxine Blackwell, people and culture director at internet service provider Zen Internet. “The more recent slowdown [in the chief people offi cer role] is centred around economic uncertainty, with more caution broadly around investment in executive roles. You’ll now see many traditional C-suite roles with much wider remits than we had previously.” “HR strategy remains a top priority and requires continuous focus. The rise of AI and sustainability roles reflects the expanding remit and value that people strategy brings.” hrmagazine.co.uk JJanuary/February 2025 HR 7

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News and analysis HR news briefing

McDonald’s rolls back DEI initiatives

S T O C K

: A D O B E

I M A G E S

1 Teenage employment advisor victimised for wearing trainers to office,

tribunal rules Recruitment firm victimised teenager for breaching dress code

2 Working from home risks women’s career progress, says Nationwide leader Men are more likely to come to the office, CEO says

3 Age UK finance manager jailed for stealing £460k Finance manager spent stolen money on holidays

4 Recruitment agency to pay £37k for incorrect

IR35 deductions Agency unlawfully deducted employer’s NI, tribunal rules

5 HR leaders feature in 2025 New Year

Honours List New Year’s Honours list recognises

HR leaders

The CEO of McDonald’s announced a roll-back of some of its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, four years after they were introduced. McDonald’s chair and CEO Chris Kempczinski emailed employees and suppliers on 6 January.

Having reviewed “all aspects of inclusion” across its system in 2024, and reaffirming that its “commitment to inclusion is steadfast”, the fast food chain leader stated that he would modify its aspirational representation goals for senior leadership levels, and pause external surveys. He stated that the firm would also retire the supply chain mutual commitment to DEI, and refer to its diversity team as the global inclusion team.

At the same time, McDonald’s introduced a new “golden rule”

concept of “treating everyone with dignity, fairness and respect, always”. Kempczinski stated that the firm was refining its language to “better capture” its commitment to inclusion.

Charity donations boost employee engagement

Three quarters (75%) of employers do not donate to charity, despite employees reporting that they feel more engaged at companies that give to charitable programmes, research by Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) has found. More than half (54%) of employees said that working for an employer that supports charities increases their sense of pride in working there.

Meanwhile, 51% of employees reported feeling more loyal to an employer that donates to charity. Around half (47%) said that it incentivised them to go the extra mile for their employer.

“Corporate giving significantly enhances employee engagement by aligning a company’s actions with its purpose and values,” said Philippa Cornish, CAF’s head of corporate clients.

“People want to work for an employer that reflects their values. HR should clearly communicate how corporate giving aligns with the company’s values, in a way that employees from every area of the business will understand.”

CAF found that younger generations felt especially motivated by charity donations. More than three fifths (63%) of

16-to-24-year-olds who were surveyed reported that their loyalty to their employer was boosted by its charitable giving.

Decision-makers should especially make sure to engage young people in corporate giving programmes from the start, noted Alastair Gill, employee engagement lead for the water dispensing business Aqua Libra. He said: “Fuse the business mission and values into day-to-day actions so that it all makes perfect sense.

“Want to align it with younger people? Involve them in every single stage. Involve anyone interested, test, learn and share. Yes, it will take a little longer, but it will make sense. That is the goal: it is about being effective, not efficient.”

6 HR January/February 2025

hrmagazine.co.uk

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