You are currently browsing the Blog - EMS - Business Consultants weblog archives for March, 2009.
30/03/2009 by admin.
Simone reports
As of 6th April 2009 Employers will face a penalty if HMRC (HM Revenue & Customs) find they have failed to pay the National Minimum Wage (NMW) to workers. Any arrears in wages will be paid to the workers at current rates. The Employment Act 2008 gives HMRC Compliance Officers new inspection powers, with its campaign to stop NMW offences. BEWARE those Employers who deliberately fail to pay the NMW……………….
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30/03/2009 by Geoff.
“If I had to choose between betraying my country and betraying a friend, I hope I should have the guts to betray my country” - E. M. Forster, Two Cheers for Democracy, 1951.
I came across this quote in an article in the sporting press concerning Sale Sharks rugby players playing for their respective National Rugby Union Teams.
It got me thinking that its not much different in the things we would expect from an effective Management Team of a business? Perhaps:
In summary we would expect them to look after the money (of the business) as if it were their own.
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30/03/2009 by admin.
Discard those old P45’s! - Simone keeps us is in line
In October 2008, new versions of the form P45 were introduced by HMRC. These new forms must be used from 6th April 2009. Any stocks of the old A5 versions must not be used, but be destroyed.
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27/03/2009 by admin.
Springtime is a busy time for Employment Lawyers and HR practitioners as many pieces of legislation are reviewed and updated…………..For those of you who may have missed it, the 1st February 2009 saw a rise in compensation limits for unfair dismissals:-- A “week’s pay” for calculation of a basic award and redundancy award has increased from £330 to £350.- Maximum redundancy payment has increased from £9,900 to £10,500.
- Maximum compensatory award for unfair dismissal: £63,000 to £66,200.
Thanks Simone
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24/03/2009 by admin.
Simone reports………
Is the UK Age Discrimination legislation unlawful? Age Concern think so…….. they are currently challenging the Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006 on two fronts. They believe Regulation 30, which permits employers to compulsory retire employees at age 65, is contrary to the EC Equal Treatment Directive and that the circumstances in which direct age discrimination can be justified, have been drafted too widely. Recently, Age Concern’s challenge won an important victory in the European Court of Justice (ECJ). It ruled that the:
We’ll await with interest the High Court’s ruling later this year on whether the
Whatever happens there will be some interesting ricochets for employers……
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24/03/2009 by Geoff.
We’ve referred to the need to deal with getting more orders / customers (the external constraint) in previous blog entries. But how to do it?
There are over 65,000 business owners out there so its not that there isn’t opportunity!
In our experience companies have a fairly static group of customers who use their products or services. The problem is that companies don’t go outside this comfort zone so if their customers demand goes down then so does the performance of their business.
We would suggest companies who want to break out of this circle and be successful look at the following:
Tackling the problem in this way might just generate more orders!
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15/03/2009 by admin.
………….as Spring time approaches and your thoughts turn to warm sunny balmy days; you should be aware that employees’ annual leave entitlement increases from 4.8 weeks to 5.6 weeks from 1st April 2009. The new entitlement can include the eight statutory Bank Holidays.
……..from Simone
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15/03/2009 by Geoff.
In the current climate there has never been a more important time to resolve problems in your business. But you’ve probably cut resource to the bone and in any event may not have the necessary expertise in house.
The answer is use outside expertise. Whilst on the face of it this might seem expensive this type of resource can be turned on and off as required. The key to using outside expertise successfully is that there is a cultural fit with your organisation, that it is focused on the problem area (clear relevant deliverables) and a fixed price.
Many times we see the alternative - a business lives with the problem (it never gets resolved) - how expensive is that and what is the cost to the business?
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12/03/2009 by admin.
Simone - our HR consultant - reports on the latest developments
The Home Office has undertaken its biggest shakeup of the Immigration system for 45 years. There are now new procedures for UK based employers employing migrant workers from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland. “Snap-shot” - Under the new system, migrants will need to pass a points based assessment before they are granted the right to enter or remain in the United Kingdom. The system has five tiers. Migrants applying under any tier (except tier 1) will need to be “sponsored” by the potential Employer. This means applying for a licence via the UK Border Agency. So, if you are an Employer who is actively seeking skills, which cannot be found in the UK, you will need to become a “sponsor” and obtain a licence from the UK Border Agency. If you don’t intend to employ someone from abroad, then you don’t require a licence. Above and beyond this remains the obligation for Employers to check Employees eligibility to work in the UK. The Home Office are certainly intent on cracking down on illegal working……………
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09/03/2009 by Geoff.
I had a recent conversation with a senior manager in the leisure industry. He’d just dealt with the problem that he felt his team didn’t do much when he wasn’t there. He’d told them to “manage as though it was their own business or money” - it probably wasn’t quite as polite as that!
I asked him how he intended to ensure this had the desired effect and improvements were realised? His answer was that his team had targets. Whilst targets are essential, I pointed out to him the need to know his team were moving in the right direction to achieving the set targets. Our view of how to do this is to have relevant key performance indicators and that individuals on the team know which of these they are accountable for.
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