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The purpose of this paper is to investigate how private pension supervisors in selected jurisdictions monitor and address lost pension accounts and unclaimed pension assets or benefits and draw supervisory implications.

This paper is based on the survey on private pension schemes of selected International Organisation of Pension Supervisors member jurisdictions.

This paper finds that there are differences in severity of the issue of lost pension accounts and unclaimed pension benefits among jurisdictions, and that pension supervisors/regulators differ with regard to awareness of and approaches taken to handle this issue. Some jurisdictions show a well-established systematic approach to deal effectively with the problem of lost pension accounts or unclaimed benefits, while other jurisdictions are yet to recognise and tackle the issue.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first larger cross-country study on lost pension accounts and unclaimed benefits in private pension schemes. The paper presents international comparison of this issue in 32 different jurisdictions and provides examples of good supervisory or regulatory practices.

Watch your language ‐ One of my earliest schoolday memories is of a sweet, angelic little girl who sat behind me in class and at frequent intervals shot her hand in the air to exclaim ‘Please Miss, Allan Bunch swore’. Ever since then I have learnt to mind my language and whenever I felt the need to say ‘bloody’, I made sure it was suffixed by ‘Tower’, which somehow rendered it harmless. I was reminded of this incident by a new pamphlet published by NALGO called Watch your language, which is not about swearing but is a guide to using non‐sexist language for NALGO members. It is a very helpful guide, since it not only points out words to avoid but suggests alternatives or alternative ways of presenting the same information without the male bias. So, ‘manpower’ becomes ‘workforce or staff’ and ‘man‐made’, ‘artificial’. The pamphlet also covers stereotyping of jobs, sex‐typing and patronising married women by such phrases as ‘the better half’,‘the little woman’ and so on. I am less certain of their advice that cartoons should not portray women in the usual stereotyped roles and treat them as objects of ridicule, since the purpose of a cartoon is to ridicule, tosatirizeor poke fun at a person or behaviour and it achieves its effects mainly through exaggeration and stereo‐typing. But the point is taken. I was disappointed not to find the answer to a problem that has bothered me for some time, namely how to address a non‐sexist letter to a corporate body. ‘Messrs’ is out since it's masculine, but ‘Dear Madams/Sirs’ or ‘Dear Mesdames/Messrs’ sound terribly clumsy. Copies of Watch your language are free from NALGO, 1 Mabledon Place, London WC1 9HJ.

Unclaimed property is an important part of state government operations, yet very little research has been conducted on the function of returning unclaimed property to owners or the related public administration operation of unclaimed property. The purpose of this paper is to offer an exploratory study of unclaimed property in the USA and the factors that influence management.

The authors use Agency Theory to examine the role of unclaimed property in state government budgeting and operations. The data consisted of a 2011 survey of state unclaimed property agencies, which was utilized for a regression model.

Results showed: type of uniform code used to govern unclaimed property; and presence and size of marketing staff in the agency had a significant relationship with extent of property returned to owners.

This is the first comprehensive study on how state governments manage unclaimed property. This study can provide practitioners, policymakers, and researchers with a better insight into unclaimed property management.

Devon County Council was one of the pilot sites for the Government's Care Direct initiative, a multi‐agency partnership initiative for joined‐up information and help for older people. This article describes how the service has developed, the outcomes achieved and the future plans.

Personnel specialists from both employers and unions should be given, or, if necessary, should seize influential roles in the planning and implementing stages of computerisation projects. The seven‐month “Pensions Strike” at the Department of Health and Social Security centre in Newcastle which cost more than £150 million is assessed, revealing that deficiencies in planning the introduction of new technology, limited objectives, and the failure to understand the industrial relations and personnel implications of those plans will crucially show up at the implementation stage.

Is it in corporations' long‐term interests to exceed their social and environmental obligations and deliver a superior ethical performance? This is one of the key questions raised in the debate launched by the European Commission's green paper last year regarding the concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR). It is clear that the commercial world must rise to the challenge of building the confidence and trust demanded by stakeholders worldwide. There is a broad consensus on the need for businesses to take the social, economic, and environmental impact of their actions — the ‘triple bottom line’ — into account. Businesses are an integral part of the society (local and international) and they have to consider the impact their behaviour has on it. Many businesses highlight the links between CSR and their wider sustainable development agenda. Corporate reputation or image depends on how the company conducts or is perceived as conducting its business. Today the ability to build a sustainable corporate reputation is more important than ever before as stakeholders are more educated, more knowledgeable, and more demanding. The Cyprus Popular Bank, the second largest banking organisation in Cyprus, has developed and launched ‘Radiomarathon’ in support of children with special needs, which has won a place in the Guinness World of Records as the most successful charitable event in the world on the basis of per capita contribution, and was chosen among the top five charity events worldwide by the Chartered Institute of Bankers for 2003. Radiomarathon has been used in order to build a strong corporate identity and corporate reputation: “With the Radiomarathon we have hit a vein of gold…our corporate reputation is stronger than ever before! In such a turbulent climate, a positive corporate reputation can play a vital role in ensuring that the organisation is on a solid footing. ” (Yiannos Pissourios, Cyprus Popular Bank). The bank realised the importance and need for corporate social responsibility in their efforts to build a good corporate reputation and achieve competitive differentiation.

The main focus of this paper is upon the use of computers and other elements of Information Technology (IT) in the daily practice of social work, specifically in relation to the impact which it has upon the service user and the social workers and upon the outcome of service delivery. But it is also necessary to stray into other territories; notably management uses of computing in social work agencies, and to the more abstract area of the relationship between service‐users, social work and society.

This article is a study of how Nottinghamshire Drug and Alcohol Action Team used Drug Intervention Programme monies to support partnership working in Nottinghamshire to secure supported housing for drug‐using offenders who were fast‐tracked into treatment by their involvement with the Criminal Justice System. The article identifies lessons learnt in relation to partnership engagement, community involvement and the importance of involving wrap‐around services in holistic delivery of supported housing and treatment. It also identifies the ongoing challenges of meeting the needs of service users alongside those of housing providers, and looks at very quick wins in relation to housing for substance misusers from bond schemes and use of established debt advisors who can support individuals in their resettlement needs.