A company in Manchester has decided to give all of its staff the day off on Friday to show how much it “appreciates” them.
As this Friday (3 March) is Employee Appreciation Day, Sellick Partnership – a recruitment company with a base right here in Manchester city centre – has made the, presumably pretty popular, decision to give its all its staff across the UK an extra day off to properly mark the annual holiday.
Founded in 2002, Sellick Partnership has seven offices across the UK and employs over 100 people.
The company specialises in recruitment services in the finance and accountancy, legal, HR, housing and property services, actuarial, procurement, change and transformation, ICT and digital technology, wealth and investment management, and senior and executive sectors.
It was named as one of the best places to work in the UK last year – and if it’s handing out free days off, then perhaps it’s not that hard to see why, right?
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Next Friday is #EmployeeAppreciationDay and in line with our tradition of giving back, we will be giving every member of staff the full day off. We are grateful to everyone that works at Sellick Partnership not just on Employee Appreciation Day, but every day! pic.twitter.com/5qxkHRx3us
In previous years, the business has allowed its employees to finish early and enjoy a free lunch on them, but this year, the firm has decided to take things one step further to show how much staff are appreciated by giving them an extra day off, not included in their annual leave allowance.
“We are dedicated to creating an environment that enables each individual to thrive,” said managing director Jo Sellick told the MEN.
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“The secret to the success of Sellick Partnership is the people that we employ.
“We want all staff to come into the office in the morning and enjoy their time at work, as that’s what it’s all about, so we try to create a platform that will make a difference to the lives of our people and in turn we hope this will help many more, by providing a tailored and compassionate approach to recruitment.
Manchester company to give all staff the day off on Friday to show ‘appreciation’ / Credit: Sellick Partnership
Sellick Partnership explained that any staff member already off on annual leave this Friday will be able to cancel their holiday request, and part-time members of staff who use Fridays as a non-work day will be given permission to take the time back on another day in March.
“The effort and dedication from all our staff doesn’t go unrecognised,” Jo Sellick added.
“This is just another way we can say we are truly thankful.”
Featured Image – Sellick Partnership
Business
Wetherspoons introduces new phone rule at all UK pubs after customers are ‘driven nuts’
Emily Sergeant
JD Wetherspoon has announced a major new phone rule in all its sites across the UK after customers complain of being ‘driven nuts’.
The pub chain – which has nearly 800 branches across the UK – announced earlier this week that it has made the decision to ban people from playing music or videos out of their phones, and from taking calls on loudspeaker.
The ban, which has been introduced effective immediately, follows a rising number of complaints from customers about the noise – with owners saying sounds from smartphones and tablet computers had become an ‘increasing problem’ in recent years.
Wetherspoon founder and chairman, Tim Martin, says he wants Wetherspoon pubs to be ‘an oasis of tranquillity and contemplation’.
Wetherspoons has introduced a new phone rule at all its UK pubs after customers are ‘driven nuts’ / Credit: Allan Rohmer (via Unsplash)
A formal statement from the company announcing the ban reads: “Following complaints from customers, who are being driven nuts by other people’s videos and amplified phone conversations, Wetherspoon has asked customers to switch their phones to silent or to use earphones.”
Tim Martin added: “In order to avoid customers being driven chicken jalfrezi by a cacophony of sound, we are kindly asking phone users to pipe down.”
Wetherspoon’s ban follows a YouGov poll conducted last year questioning public opinion on a proposition made by the Liberal Democrats of introducing fines of up to £1,000 for ‘headphone dodgers’ who play music out loud on buses and trains.
62% of people, on average, said they would back this move if it was introduced.
The poll, which surveyed 6,815 British adults, found that almost three-quarters of those over 65 would support the fines, while those aged between 18 and 24 were split 47% to 43% in favour of it.
Early public reactions to Wetherspoon’s ban appears to be overwhelmingly positive.
Featured Image – Jonathan Borba (via Unsplash)
Business
Trainline and Virgin Atlantic among companies being investigated for ‘misleading’ pricing
Emily Sergeant
A number of companies are currently under investigation for ‘misleading’ pricing practices.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has launched three new consumer protection investigations into Trainline, Virgin Atlantic, and RED Driving School over concerns that customers were not shown the total price upfront when buying things like train and coach tickets, holidays, or even driving lessons.
The investigations are part of a wider CMA clampdown on misleading pricing practices – in this instance, where mandatory charges are separated from the headline price, or added later in the buying process, which is known as drip pricing.
These practices leave consumers facing ‘unexpected’ costs or having to calculate the so-called true cost themselves.
Such practices can also impact competition between businesses, as a firm using drip pricing may falsely appear to be cheaper than a competitor pricing correctly, and therefore attract more customers.
Trainline and Virgin Atlantic are among the companies being investigated for ‘misleading’ pricing / Credit: Northern | Aric Cheng (via Unsplash)
Trainline is being investigated over whether all mandatory fees have been included in the upfront prices displayed to consumers buying tickets in advance on its app and website, while Virgin Atlantic’s investigation will focus on whether mandatory resort fees and local taxes have been included in the upfront prices shown to customers buying package holidays.
RED Driving School is being investigated over how a mandatory booking fee and ‘digital’ fee have been displayed to people booking driving lessons – specifically whether these fees have been included in the total upfront price.
“At a time when many households are watching every pound they spend, it is important that people are not surprised by extra fees,” commented Emma Cochrane, who is the Executive Director for Consumer Protection at the CMA.
“Clear pricing helps people compare offers confidently and choose the option that works best for them.
“Unexpected mandatory charges make this much harder, which is why the CMA initially put these firms on notice over concerns about their pricing practices and is now opening formal investigations.”
The CMA says it’s at the beginning of its investigations and has reached no conclusions about whether these firms have broken the law.
If it finds there has been an infringement of the law, the CMA can order businesses to pay compensation to affected customers or be charged up to 10% of global turnover.
Emily Sergeant -
1st March 2023 
