Mini Umbrella Schemes – fraudulent, court rules
The Tax Tribunal has confirmed that mini umbrella schemes are fraudulent.
Category: News
Minimum wage changes April 2024 – are you ready?
For 1st April 2024 the national living wage rate has increased from £10.42 to £11.44 per hour. However, this is not the only change taking place .
EAS complaints on the increase – are you at risk?
Employment Agency Standards (EAS) is responsible for the enforcement of the Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003 (‘Conduct Regs’), and has reported an increase in complaints. Are you compliant with key elements of the regulations, and how would your business fair if inspected? The most common issues where agencies run into problems […]
Redundancy and pregnancy or other family friendly rights
There are some new rules around redundancy where the employee is pregnant, on maternity leave, adoption leave, or shared parental leave.
Employment policy update for April 2024
April 2024 sees changes to the rules around paternity leave, flexible working and time off for carers, all of which demand some attention.
Rolled up Holiday Pay – Good News for recruiters
For leave years starting from the 1st of April 2024, businesses are now legally permitted to provide holiday pay on a ‘rolled up’ basis and should calculate leave and pay entitlement at a fixed rate. BUT ONLY FOR irregular hours or part year workers.
Draft bill threatens worker status and agency supply
One of the key advantages of hiring an agency worker is the very low risk of a claim for employment rights by the worker against the hirer. This position has been challenged many times over the years, but remains legally secure as things stand. Now however there is a new challenge, the Status of Workers Bill, which has recently been proposed by the House of Lords to create a single status for workers as employees, in effect demolishing worker status altogether.
Protecting your business when working with Umbrellas
HMRC has recently updated guidelines for umbrellas, and individuals who work through an umbrella. There has also apparently been a surge in umbrella accreditation services. Does accreditation actually address the issues identified in the government’s consultation on how to regulate the umbrella company market which was announced earlier this year?
Roll up, roll up – Holiday pay rules set to change
Following two government consultations on holiday pay in 2023 draft legislation has now been published to change the rules. The current law has been in place since the advent of the Working Time Regulations in 1998 but due to Brexit and the Supreme Court decision in Harpur v Brazel, which caused considerable confusion in practical terms, there has been a need for clarification particularly on the issue for temporary workers including agency workers.
Options when a client can’t or won’t pay?
Company insolvencies are reported by the Insolvency Service to be at their highest levels since the 2009 financial crisis. Recruitment businesses may be worried about the risk of hirer insolvency or financial difficulty. Where does a business stand if a hirer client is still trading but can’t or won’t pay, and are there steps that can be taken to improve the prospect of recovery?