Monday newspaper round-up: Pensions, remote roles, business optimism

(Sharecast News) - Employers are offering signing-on fees of up to £10,000 to tempt "gold dust" applicants as more than 1.1m jobs in the UK remain unfilled, with the pingdemic worsening a shortage of workers caused by Brexit and a lack of skills. Care home operator HC One is offering a £10,000 "welcome bonus" on two jobs for registered night nurses, both in Scotland, as private health care providers battle with a shortage of workers partly caused by EU citizens returning home. - Guardian Hollywood's Sunset Studios, which produced La La Land, Zoolander and the first in the X-Men franchise, has become the latest US movie production house to adopt the leafy Hertfordshire countryside as its main base outside the US. Backed by £700m from two major US investment firms, the TV and film studio complex will create more than 4,500 jobson a 37-hectare (91-acre) greenfield site in Broxbourne, close to the arc of rival studio complexes north-west of London known as Britain's Hollywood. - Guardian

Rishi Sunak is considering a temporary suspension of the Conservatives' "triple lock" election manifesto commitment on state pensions that would save billions by linking this year's rise to inflation instead. The lock commits the Chancellor to lift payouts to match the highest out of average earnings, inflation or 2.5pc. However, the impact of the furlough scheme last year is likely to leave wages more than 8pc higher than last year, adding more than £7bn to the state pensions every year if fulfilled. - Telegraph

A third of new jobs in industries including marketing, software and IT are offering remote working, as bosses bow to staff demands for more flexible terms. A number of traditionally office-bound sectors have seen an increase of 20pc in remote vacancies after Covid sparked a homeworking revolution. - Telegraph

Businesses are stepping up recruitment plans and increasing wages as the recovery gathers strength but optimism in the private sector has peaked, according to a corporate survey by Lloyds Banking Group. Its monthly business barometer found that hiring intentions climbed for a sixth consecutive month to the highest level since November 2018. More than a quarter of respondents, 27 per cent, expect pay growth of 2 per cent, up from 24 per cent last month and back in line with pre-pandemic readings. - The Times

The government is considering removing restrictions on bankers' bonuses as part of its plan to ditch EU rules and to make the City more competitive. The idea is at an early stage and not yet part of any public consultations, as officials fear scrapping the bonus cap could trigger a public backlash. But the move has support among some within the Treasury as a way to make London more attractive for senior bankers than Frankfurt, Paris or Dublin, boosting the capital's prospects for retaining its key role in financial services. - The Times