With a year to go until the Olympics, Acas has issued guidance to employers on getting the best from their staff and avoiding absence during the Games.

The UK is in the grip of royal wedding fever, elated at the prospect of seeing William and Kate finally tie the knot, but also perhaps at the prospect of two consecutive bank holiday weekends.

With absenteeism costing 30 billion a year, business must start addressing the issues behind the problem.

Baker Tilly has reduced HR spend by 75% as a result of moving to an online HR system.

Automotive manufacturer R-TEK has moved from paper-based HR administration to computerised HR, payroll and time and attendance systems.

More than 100 cleaners at St Pancras Station in London are considering strike action over plans to introduce machines for them to clock in and clock out using their fingerprints.

Brewer, retailer and hotel chain Adnams has implemented a managed payroll service and an online time and attendance system.

Masterlease UK, the fleet management company, is using self-service software from Sage HR & Payroll to reduce HR admin and increase employee engagement.

Wincanton has reduced absence by 10,000 days in the past nine months, thanks to piloting a new management system, and now plans to roll it out across the company.

Absence is more likely to be decreased through morale and engagement programmes than through absence management systems.

Comic Relief is to implement an online HR system as a means of saving staff time and cutting costs.

The sunshine state is planning a massive HR outsourcing project. Justin Hunt explores the likely impact on the UK public sector