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Tag: employees

  • Netflix lends support to those affected by fires in LA

    Netflix lends support to those affected by fires in LA

    MUMBAI: In response to the devastating wildfires that swept across Southern California, Netflix and its co-CEOs, Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters  stepped up to support those affected. At least that’s what Sarandos  assured  in a blog post last week that the company was committed to aiding  employees and the wider community during this difficult time.

    “Many of our employees and creative partners have been directly impacted by this disaster,” Sarandos stated.

    To facilitate recovery efforts, Netflix has pledged a substantial $10 million donation. This funding will be distributed among several organisations, including the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation, California Community Fund Wildfire Recovery Fund, World Central Kitchen, Motion Picture and Television Fund, and Entertainment Community Fund, aiming to provide immediate relief and ongoing support.

    In addition to financial contributions, Netflix is directly assisting affected employees, including offering temporary housing solutions for those who have lost their homes. The company is also implementing a double-match for all employee charitable contributions through its giving program.

    Sarandos expressed gratitude to the firefighters and first responders tirelessly battling the flames. “These heroes have been saving lives and communities with little rest,” he remarked.

    Reflecting on the spirit of Los Angeles, Sarandos, a long-time resident, noted, “For many, LA is more than just palm trees and movie stars; it’s a family of hardworking individuals from diverse backgrounds.”

    He higlighted the community’s resilience, stating that while many dreams may currently feel distant, the capacity to rebuild is strong.

    “The next few years will pose challenges, but we will come back stronger than before,” he concluded. 

  • Glad U Came PR agency introduces menstrual leave for employees

    Glad U Came PR agency introduces menstrual leave for employees

    Mumbai: Glad U Came becomes the first PR agency to announce period leaves for its menstruating employees on ‘Menstrual Hygiene Day’. With 90 per cent of its employees being women, the agency recognises the importance of the hour and believes that period leaves are something that every working woman deserves.

    This policy will make it easier for women to take time off on the first day of their period. Female employees are hesitant to explain the reason for their leave during their period, so they avoid taking leaves and work in discomfort & pain. 

    In any case, most women try to push through and go to work. This is typically due to a concern of being viewed as weak or unable to execute their jobs if they disclose menstrual-related symptoms to their supervisors in most of the companies. This policy by Glad U Came would give employees who have painful menstrual or menopausal symptoms the option of working remotely and taking a set number of paid leave days each year. It’s past time to acknowledge that women menstruate and that it’s perfectly acceptable to take a day off to get through the discomfort. 

    Speaking of this new policy, Glad U Came founder Maddie Amrutkar said, “We are a young and small team of twenty five people, twenty one of whom are women. Menstruation is something that she goes through every month and this is the least we can do to comfort her. I believe that period leave is not a privilege but a basic right that every woman deserves. The aim is to decrease the stigma associated with menstruation and make it easier for women who are experiencing period pain to take a break.”

  • LMIL reverses salary cuts effective 1 September

    LMIL reverses salary cuts effective 1 September

    Mumbai: In a piece of good news for the employees at Living Media India Ltd (LMIL), founder and chairman Aroon Purie has announced the organisation’s decision to reverse the salary cuts imposed last year amid the pandemic.

    Apart from the over and above the Ex-Gratia Award given recently, the salary reductions for all the staff will be reversed, effective 1 September 2021, informed Purie in a letter written to the entire staff.

    Purie said the reduction of salaries in June 2020, was the “most painful decision” that he had to make in the 46 years he has worked in India Today, which is published by LMIL. “As you know, even before the pandemic, the magazine industry was under severe stress. With the economy contracting, advertising, our primary source of revenue, virtually collapsed, plus distribution was impacted due to corona lockdowns. The only way to survive was to reduce costs,” he wrote.

    Purie also thanked his employees for working through the crisis undeterred, and ensuring that the magazine did not miss a single issue, and maintain the quality at the same time.

    “You have shown courage, resourcefulness, forbearance and ingenuity. While we are nowhere near pre-COVID levels, or expect to be there in the foreseeable future, we must move on and adjust to a new reality. I have faith in our strong brands, content, our team’s belief in the magazine and our will to succeed,” he wrote.

    Purie highlighted that despite the churn in the media landscape, magazine stories have a profound and lasting impact. “Advertisers see that too. I hope more will. The good times will return. They have to. We will all then progress and prosper with our magazines,” he added. 

  • ZEE set to onboard over 500 tech experts for digital hub in Bengaluru

    ZEE set to onboard over 500 tech experts for digital hub in Bengaluru

    New Delhi: Media and entertainment conglomerate ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEE) is set to expand its digital footprint by setting up a cutting-edge technology hub in Bengaluru to drive innovation and exponential growth for its integrated platforms.

    Taking strategic steps in the digital transformation journey of ZEE 4.0, the innovation centre in Bengaluru will onboard over 500 experts with a strong expertise in the field of design, technology, data & cyber security. The Company has already on-boarded as many as 120 experts to drive the change and enhance its overall tech prowess.

    The products and solutions designed by the team will lead the Company’s digital pivot, driving exponential growth across platforms, it said on Wednesday.

    According to the company, the innovation centre in Bengaluru will help build a strong cohort of design, tech, data and talent to cater to the new-age consumer seamlessly across connected devices, built on futuristic tech stack that will enable engineers & data scientist to unlock innovative technology-led solutions.

    Speaking on this development, ZEE, president – technology and data, Nitin Mittal said, “In order to build an awesome user experience across platforms, it is imperative to build design thinking, enhance tech capabilities to serve the ever-evolving needs of the consumer and leverage data to personalize the options for them. As a digitally adept data-first company, the new technology hub set up in Bengaluru will create an environment that sparks innovation. The centre will be focused on developing world-class tech products & data solutions by creating synergies across our businesses, promoting innovative thinking and driving collaboration. We are looking for sharp, like-minded innovators who think new, act agile and create with passion to join us and shape the next.”

    ZEE, head HR – digital platforms, technology & head – employee engagement, Aditi Vashisht said, “Human Capital is the most precious asset for us at ZEE and we are building the ZEE 4.0 team across our digital arm to drive higher innovation as well as capitalize on the immense growth opportunities in the M&E landscape. ZEE has always been an Academy of Talent in the M&E Industry and the new tech hub is designed with a unique employee value proposition focused on culture, collaboration & innovation. The tech hub will be an amalgam of a cross functional talent pool of like- minded individuals ready to challenge the status quo and lead innovative solutions in the digital ecosystem.”

    The new ZEE 4.0 version of the company will focus on reinventing existing business models, maximising its core, expanding into adjacent spaces and exploring new areas of business. 

  • Covid Care: JCB India to support education of children of deceased employees

    New Delhi: JCB India has decided to support the education of the children of its employees who succumbed to Covid-19 and extend medical insurance for their families to ten years.

    “Besides, the term insurance policy benefits, the company will support the education of the children of deceased employees to the tune of Rs one lakh per child, per year for their schooling and Rs two lakh per child, per year for three years for their graduation. For contractual employees, there will be one-time support of Rs 3 lakh,” JCB India said in a statement.

    “The past few weeks have been a phase of intense learning. Virtually all our organisational resources were deployed towards supporting the health and safety of our employees and their families. Unfortunately, we also went through the painful phase of losing some of our colleagues to the virus,” said JCB India CEO and MD Deepak Shetty, highlighting that the company is fully committed to supporting the families.

    The company is also conducting special vaccination drives for its employees and has already inoculated over 2,000 employees and their families in Ballabgarh, Pune and Jaipur facilities.

    On 30 April, JCB India had to temporarily pause all manufacturing operations for ten days to stop the spread of the virus, which had taken a toll on workers across different facilities. Other manufacturers like Tata Motors, Maruti Suzuki, Honda also had to close down their manufacturing facilities during the second wave

  • CavinKare to vaccinate all employees in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka

    CavinKare to vaccinate all employees in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka

    New Delhi: Fast moving consumer goods major CavinKare has announced that it will provide Covid-19 vaccination cover to all its employees and dependent family members in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

    The company said it will cover 1,700 employees both at factory and corporate level. In addition, it will provide financial assistance to the bereaved family by paying an annual salary for a fixed time frame as an immediate monetary support over and above the statutory insurance benefits, it said on Friday.

    As part of Covid-19 relief initiatives, the company has also extended educational support and sponsorship till college for two children of the deceased employee, it said.

    “We want to stand by our employees and their family during these trying times by offering the right support and nurturing a positive ecosystem. Their health and safety are of monumental importance to us at CavinKare,” said company director and CEO – Personal Care and Alliances, Venkatesh Vijayaraghavan.

    “We will continue to prioritise the overall well-being of our employees and extend support to their family in these uncertain times” he added.

     to their family in these uncertain times” he added.

  • Covid Care: Droom announces 1 cr budget to support fight against Covid

    Covid Care: Droom announces 1 cr budget to support fight against Covid

    New Delhi: Stepping up to take care of its employees during the devastating second wave of Covid2019, AI-driven online automobile marketplace Droom on Thursday announced Rs one crore budget for its new initiative – Droom Cares.

    As a part of this initiative, Droom will ensure sanitization of some healthcare facilities, police stations, clinics, pharmacies, and homes of healthcare workers in Delhi NCR using Germ Shield, its anti-microbial coating. It has also created a Covid SWAT team to verify all leads regarding oxygen supply, hospital beds, ICU availability, oximeters, food suppliers, plasma donors, and Covid-related life-saving drugs.

    The company has also launched programs for its 20,500+ dealers to assist with pharmaceuticals, Covid vaccination, medical assistance, and also provide isolation ward to asymptotic dealers with basic medical facilities. It has launched a telemedicine consultation for mental and physical health free of cost for Droomers. A unique Buddy Program has been initiated where Droom will assign one employee to another who is recovering from Covid2019 and requires assistance.

    “The second wave of the pandemic has triggered an unprecedented crisis for the country. We would like to show our commitment to society by trying to help people in these difficult times. We have also organized a Covid SWAT room for quick assistance and have converted one of our office facilities into emergency wards with basic medical facilities and doctor teleconsultation for our employees in times of need,” said Droom, founder and CEO, Sandeep Aggarwal.

    Among other relief measures, the company has announced a special insurance scheme for all its employees and dealers to have hassle-free treatment in these stressful times. The insurance scheme will give five times more cover to its employees and be also extended to their parents and current family members. “Our endeavor has always been to stand firmly united with our stakeholders in the most stressful times and we are confident to overcome these together,” Aggarwal added.

  • Urban Company unveils unlimited mental health leave policy for employees

    Urban Company unveils unlimited mental health leave policy for employees

    NEW DELHI: In the run-up to World Mental Health Day, home services start-up Urban Company (formerly UrbanClap) has introduced its mental health leave policy, a first in the industry.

    Under this employee-centric initiative, employees will be allowed to take unlimited sick leaves if they suffer from any form of mental or physical illness, particularly if the patient has contracted Covid2019.

    In addition to the leave policy, Urban Company is making some of the top psychologists of the country accessible to its employees by partnering with the leading mental wellness platform, iWill. Any employee who wants to avail the service can register on iWill, after which they would be connected with a leading psychologist who will address the psychological challenges faced by them. The bill for the doctor’s consultation will be footed by the company.  

    Mental health is one aspect of human well-being about which people have very little understanding, says Urban Company director HR Suhail Vadgaokar. Identifying and treating the symptoms is more critical than ever in these stressful and anxious times, he adds, while acknowledging that treatment and psychological consultations are quite expensive. “Through such initiatives, Urban Company is not only trying to foster employee overall well-being but also create an environment where people feel safe to talk about mental health issues.”

    The company has already implemented various employee well-being friendly policies in the past six months: optional work-from-home till 31 December, granting five additional privileged leaves, and no internal meetings on Wednesdays. A buddy system has been implemented for those living alone in the city. The company also follows silence hours and encourages employees to take personal time off from work. 

    “We are trying to make a difference in society by creating avenues where mental health challenges can be addressed and resolved,” Suhail stated.

  • What’s Employee Monitoring Software and How Can

    What’s Employee Monitoring Software and How Can

    It Help Your Business?

    Since more and more business processes are being performed digitally, an increasing number of managers and business owners are looking for ways in which they can oversee these processes. Lately, a popular trend has been to use a tool known as employee monitoring software for precisely this purpose.

    You might have heard about this technology before, but if you haven’t used it yourself, it might be hard to comprehend what benefits it can bring to your company and, consequently, why it’s grown so much in popularity over the recent years.

    In this text, we’ll be discussing what exactly employee monitoring software is and how it works, as well as what benefits this system can bring to your business. After you’ve learned more, maybe you’ll even discover that implementing computer monitoring software could be a viable option for your company as well.

    What Is Employees Monitoring Software Exactly?

    Employee monitoring system is a business program that you install on every corporate computer you wish to track. Then, it automatically collects certain kinds of data from those computers, which you can access through a manager dashboard. The implementation is a very simple download-and-install process, and you can keep all the data on a secure cloud, or, if you wish, on the servers on your own premises.

    Employee monitoring software is pretty intuitive to use – it’s not made exclusively for those who are fluent in technology. You get graphs, timelines, statistics and other types of reports which reflect your employees’ performance at work.

    So, what kind of data does this software collect?

    The basic functionality is tracking which apps your workers are usings and which websites they’re visiting, and for how long. This gives you greater control over how your company’s time and resources are used. But there are almost necessarily other features that build up on this, so let’s mention a few of those too.

    Some platforms give you the functionality of time tracker software – you can measure time on different tasks, project duration, keep track of the budget and billable hours, and so on. This work time track feature is very useful is you want more in-depth analysis on your work on various projects or if you want to provide proof of work for your clients.

    Next, we have some advanced features of screen monitoring software, most notable of which are screenshots and keystroke logger. While the first one can be triggered manually or automatically, the second one is a bit more intrusive in terms of taking employees’ privacy into account.

    And finally, we’ll just mention productivity features, since they’re arguably one of the most useful functionalities of this software if performance improvement is what you’re looking for. These include active versus idle time, productivity reports and trends, daily timelines and biorhythms, etc.

    What Are the Benefits of Employee Monitoring Software?

    There are many ways in which this system can help your company move forward, grow and be more efficient. It all depends on what kind of business problems you wish to solve with it. Here, we’ll mention three broad categories of benefits that this software can provide.

    The first one is increased control over your employees’ digital activities. Just the fact that you can see what each of them is doing in real time and as historical data records can give you some sort of security that the time they spend working is really spent on the activities that provide value for your business. This software can also track attendance, which is one more thing that you can have more control over.

    Secondly, screenshots and other monitoring features can be used as an additional layer of data security. Even though it won’t be able to prevent a breach, it’s quite effective in discouraging malicious behavior, and can also be used as a tool during the investigation process.

    And finally, there are possible productivity improvements resulting from the analysis of employees’ performance with all the productivity stats and features we’ve mentioned earlier. Basically, if you know how to use these insights right, you’ll get to enjoy more efficient and less distracted teams.

    Conclusion

    All in all, as we’ve seen, employee monitoring software can be a pretty useful tool in many aspects. Improving your employees’ performance, increasing asset control and protecting your data are just some of the reasons why this system is so popular today and might be worth considering.

  • National Geographic Channel to undergo major rebranding

    National Geographic Channel to undergo major rebranding

    MUMBAI: Come 14 November and the National Geographic Channel will have a new shortened sobriquet. The word channel will disappear from its name and it will be simply known as National Geographic and a new tagline “Further.”

    The change is expected to take place simultaneously across all the 445 million households in 171 countries it is telecast in. The channels are expected to have a new distinctive on-air look, brand IDs, packaging and talent IDs.

    A new web series by the same name is expected to launch around the same time.

    Almost every property associated with the National Geographic – the magazine, nationalgeographic.com, its social and digital platforms, and its global Hq in Washington DC – will be part of the rebranding exercise. The “Further” tagline embodies “the aspirations of the National Geographic audience and serves as a rallying cry for its employees, explorers, photographers, producers and other constituencies as well as a promise to advertisers, affiliates, educators and other external partners.”

    NatGeo has been under the Twenty First Century Fox umbrella after it took majority control of its joint venture National Geographic Partners with the society.

    “This rebrand marks a significant turning point in the realization of our transformational new vision for National Geographic Channel,” said National Geographic Global Television Networks CEO Courteney Monroe to World Screen. “As a new brand positioning statement, ‘Further’ aligns perfectly with our new premium programming strategy, which is built on quality, distinctiveness and the relentless pursuit of creative excellence. The new visual design is sophisticated, contemporary and cinematic, and lives up to the promise of the National Geographic brand.”