You are currently browsing the Blog - EMS - Business Consultants weblog archives for June, 2010.
29/06/2010 by Geoff.
If you provide an employee with a non-cash award to reward long service, the payment can be made without deduction of tax or National Insurance contributions, as long as the following criteria are observed:
1. As this is a reward to employees it is not available to self-employed sole traders or partners. It is available to directors who receive a salary for their services.
2. The award has to mark at least 20 years of service.
3. You must not have made a previous long service award within the last ten years.
4. The value of the reward cannot exceed £50 per year of service - so the maximum value of an award to an employee with 20 years of service is £1,000.
5. As pointed out in the opening paragraph of this article the award has to be made in a non-cash form. Cash awards are taxable as earnings in the usual way. You should also be wary about awards that can quickly be converted into cash, for example marketable stocks or shares or precious metals - these do not fulfil the non-cash criteria.
There are a number of complicated rules to abide by if your payment falls outside the above five points - for instance if you exceed the £50 per year or if the employee has less than 20 years of service.If you are thinking of making use of this potential tax-free perk it is best to check with a qualified accountant before making the award.
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29/06/2010 by Geoff.
If you talk to my husband he would say it depends on your GOAL!
I’ve just returned from another visit to Torun in Poland delivering a Leadership Training Course. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve visited now but they still want me back and I haven’t done any marketing! I believe the secret is I’m delivering what is needed and I’m good at what I do. The message quite simply is that being good at what you or your business does is a pre-requisite to getting work.
My next Polish visit is already planned, Warsaw, much to my husbands frustration I haven’t done any marketing there either!
Written by our Education and Leadership expert Linda Trapnell
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22/06/2010 by admin.
As of 6th April 2010, Fit notes replaced the traditional Doctors’ Certificates. There are reports that fake “fit notes” can be obtained via the Internet. The website selling these documents state that “they should be used for entertainment purposes only”. Employers need to carefully check that any “fit notes” received are authentic.
Written by our HR specialist Simone Greasley
Well done Simone finger on the pulse as always.
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22/06/2010 by Geoff.
The new Bribery Bill comes into operation on the 1st October 2010, and it appears it will become an offence for a company not to stipulate that bribes should not be paid or taken.Therefore we need more paperwork, and proof of circulation to all employees. Can employees accept entertainment and/or hospitality, if so to what level and how often?What about gifts? Is a £20.00 bottle of wine acceptable once a year, what about a case at Christmas?
Don’t think you can get away with it overseas either. Under the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001 - tips, inducements or bribery conducted by a UK company overseas is subject to the same criminal penalties as if the act were conducted in the UK. Perhaps now is a good time to update the company Code of Ethics and define what is acceptable and what is prohibited.
Do you have one? Written by John Hill one of our finance experts.
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08/06/2010 by Geoff.
I read with interest Rachel Bridge’s article “How to stay aloft after the Summer” in the Sunday Times 23-5-10. It describes the issues faced by a business whose product or service is seasonal and how to overcome them.
It struck me that some of the message could be applied to any business. For example “What to do during the lull”:
Worth thinking about how these can be applied and benefit your business!
Geoff
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08/06/2010 by Geoff.
People are always going on about change and we at EMS fully support the view that an organisation continually needs to change if it is to improve its performance. This reminds me that if your not improving your business then its probably deteriorating.
There have been many books written about how easy it is to change. In reality these books are trying to encourage us to recognise the need for change and how to cause it. The latest of these books is “Our Iceberg Is Melting” by John Kotter (ISBN 978-0-230-01420-6) in-which a simple eight stage process is described:
Enjoy the books example.
Geoff
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03/06/2010 by Geoff.
According to the 2008 survey of Employment Tribunals, claimants are more likely to be men, managerial workers or aged 45 or over.
Also there has been an increase in the number of claimants representing themselves, without taking any advice prior to proceedings.
Written by Simone Greasley - HR & Recruitment Specialist
Posted in Current Issues | 1 Comment »
03/06/2010 by Geoff.
Hi
As you know my Sunday papers reading generally includes the sports section (especially if there’s something about Leicester Tigers!) and the business section. On the 16th May I came across this article written by Rachel Bridge - http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/retailing/article7127538.ece
It expounds that its not difficult to deal with retail giants. Its main points for success are:
Worth a read. Enjoy - Geoff
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