Employee Benefits

GLOBAL - Mercer Human Resource Consulting has broken up its international consulting team led by Giles Archibald.

UK - Manitou UK has appointed Alexander Forbes Financial Services to provide actuarial, administration and consultancy services to its DB pension scheme as it switches from DB to DC.

UK - The variability inherent in defined contribution pension plans is likely to fuel the growth of hybrid pension plans in the UK, according to Hewitt Associates.

NEW ZEALAND - Mercer Human Resource (HR) Consulting has bought Watson Wyatt's New Zealand business.

UK - Record numbers of British employees, more than 8.5 million people, believe that their employer does not offer a company pension scheme, new research from AXA claims.

UK - Brian Storms, global CEO of Mercer Human Resource Consulting is scouting the market for multi-manager acquisition targets. Mercer HR is currently in the process of rolling out its new investment management business, Mercer Global Investments.

UK - Hewitt Associates, a global human resources services firm, hasannounced the appointment of Jerry Edmondson to its Talent andOrganisation Consulting (TOC) group in the UK.

US - The pension reform Bill proposed by House Republicans will bring "new ability and new flexibility" to defined benefit plans, Seattle-based consulting firm Milliman testified in front of a US government committee.

US - The pension reform Bill introduced by House Republicans is a "significant improvement" over the Administration's proposal but still has some problematic areas, says Mercer.

UK - Mercer Investment Consulting has lost a consulting brief with cosmetics company L'Oreal on the back of a tender which saw the £120m mandate awarded to Buck Consultants.