The HSE is consulting SMEs as it considers new strategies to ensure that complying with regulations is easier.
The HSE has stated that it wishes to ensure that all SMEs meet their legal obligations "in a manner proportionate to the risks posed by their work activities".
"The HSE is clearly acknowledging that small businesses face very different challenges to [their] larger counterparts when it comes to fulfilling health and safety criteria," said James Thompson, a partner in law firm Ward Hadaway's health and safety team.
"This is an encouraging move because what is appropriate for sizeable companies with many employees may not work for SMEs."
The HSE is still insisting that all small firms have at least one person who is in overall charge of a company's health and safety policy, but reiterated that does not have to be a member of staff and can be an external person.
Friday, 13 March 2009
Thursday, 12 March 2009
Wage Subsidy Fund
A wage subsidy fund would help reduce the amount of staff that SMEs are forced to cut due to the recession, according to the TUC and FSB.
The TUC and FSB have called on the government to subsidise up to 60% of a worker's wage by a combination of a specially set up fund and the job seekers allowance.
With unemployment figures in the UK steadily increasing - it currently stands at just under 2m - the TUC and FSB claim that the government could support over 600,000 employees a year at a cost of £1.3bn.
A number of European countries such as France, Italy, Spain and Germany have already set up such a fund to try and reduce the amount of staff that are laid off as firms seek to cut costs.
"Where they are needed, wage subsidy schemes provide a quick and effective way to cut costs for struggling businesses and vital financial help for hard-pressed employees," said Brendan Barber, TUC general secretary.
The TUC and FSB have called on the government to subsidise up to 60% of a worker's wage by a combination of a specially set up fund and the job seekers allowance.
With unemployment figures in the UK steadily increasing - it currently stands at just under 2m - the TUC and FSB claim that the government could support over 600,000 employees a year at a cost of £1.3bn.
A number of European countries such as France, Italy, Spain and Germany have already set up such a fund to try and reduce the amount of staff that are laid off as firms seek to cut costs.
"Where they are needed, wage subsidy schemes provide a quick and effective way to cut costs for struggling businesses and vital financial help for hard-pressed employees," said Brendan Barber, TUC general secretary.
Wednesday, 11 March 2009
Employee tribunals on the rise
Age discrimination claims have risen by 27% in the last year as the recession leads to more staff cut-backs.
Source: Research by law firm Eversheads.
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) is due to decide on a landmark case this week whether the British government's decision to allow employers to force staff to retire at 65 breaches their human rights.
Hundreds of age tribunal claims have been postponed, awaiting the ECJ's decision and the ramification this will have on UK employment law.
"Too much of the discussion about age discrimination and the age regulations has focused on the issue of enforced retirement at age 65," said Chris Ball, of the Age and Employment Network.
"Age discrimination can occur at any time throughout an individual's working life and it frequently does at the recruitment stage."
Source: newbusiness.co.uk
Source: Research by law firm Eversheads.
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) is due to decide on a landmark case this week whether the British government's decision to allow employers to force staff to retire at 65 breaches their human rights.
Hundreds of age tribunal claims have been postponed, awaiting the ECJ's decision and the ramification this will have on UK employment law.
"Too much of the discussion about age discrimination and the age regulations has focused on the issue of enforced retirement at age 65," said Chris Ball, of the Age and Employment Network.
"Age discrimination can occur at any time throughout an individual's working life and it frequently does at the recruitment stage."
Source: newbusiness.co.uk
Tuesday, 10 March 2009
UK firms adapt to recession
Short and medium term business confidence has risen simultaneously for the first time in 13 months........
This is according to the latest Business Trends report by accountants and business advisers BDO Stoy Hayward LLP. The modest rise of BDO’s Output and Optimism indices suggests businesses have accepted the realities of the recession and are adapting their plans to manage against the downturn.
Despite this, the labour market picture remains bleak with BDO’s Employment Index dropping from 94.2 in January to 91.7 in February, suggesting a further 320,000 people will be added to the unemployment register over the next three months. However the increases in both the Output and Optimism Index, which predict economic growth, is a tentative sign that the recession has been factored into confidence and business planning and is in stark contrast to the collapse of these indicators since October.
The result also indicates that businesses are taking swift and decisive action to tackle the challenges of the recession, including halting production or implementing new employment strategies to keep costs down. This tactic is further illustrated in the report which reveals that while there has been a reduction in full time employment figures, part time employment actually rose by 33,000 in October – December 2008.
Peter Hemington, Partner at BDO Stoy Hayward, says: “Optimism remains low and businesses expect the economy to continue to contract, but companies are now adapting their business models for an uncertain future. It’s still too early to say if business confidence has hit rock bottom and we’ve already seen a number of false dawns, but this month’s modest increases are encouraging. We must watch carefully to see if this is the start of an upward trend.”
The report’s Optimism Index, which measures business confidence two quarters ahead, rose to 90.5 in February from 89.9 in January. Similarly, the Output Index that measures order book strength and short run turnover expectations in the next quarter edged up to 88.3 in February from 88.1 in January 2009 - a 29 year low.
Source: BDO
This is according to the latest Business Trends report by accountants and business advisers BDO Stoy Hayward LLP. The modest rise of BDO’s Output and Optimism indices suggests businesses have accepted the realities of the recession and are adapting their plans to manage against the downturn.
Despite this, the labour market picture remains bleak with BDO’s Employment Index dropping from 94.2 in January to 91.7 in February, suggesting a further 320,000 people will be added to the unemployment register over the next three months. However the increases in both the Output and Optimism Index, which predict economic growth, is a tentative sign that the recession has been factored into confidence and business planning and is in stark contrast to the collapse of these indicators since October.
The result also indicates that businesses are taking swift and decisive action to tackle the challenges of the recession, including halting production or implementing new employment strategies to keep costs down. This tactic is further illustrated in the report which reveals that while there has been a reduction in full time employment figures, part time employment actually rose by 33,000 in October – December 2008.
Peter Hemington, Partner at BDO Stoy Hayward, says: “Optimism remains low and businesses expect the economy to continue to contract, but companies are now adapting their business models for an uncertain future. It’s still too early to say if business confidence has hit rock bottom and we’ve already seen a number of false dawns, but this month’s modest increases are encouraging. We must watch carefully to see if this is the start of an upward trend.”
The report’s Optimism Index, which measures business confidence two quarters ahead, rose to 90.5 in February from 89.9 in January. Similarly, the Output Index that measures order book strength and short run turnover expectations in the next quarter edged up to 88.3 in February from 88.1 in January 2009 - a 29 year low.
Source: BDO
Monday, 9 March 2009
VAT rate change - no help to SMEs
82% of SMEs feel that the Chancellor's VAT rate cut was not a good idea.
According to a survey released today. The findings of the survey, conducted by mid-market business software house Access Accounting, will make difficult reading for the government as it looks at ways to stimulate the suffering economy.
The Chancellor's 2.5% VAT rate cut has been in effect for almost three months, yet 51% of businesses say that the change is not doing enough to stimulate the economy. 27% believe that it was a good start, but that the Chancellor needs to do more. Overwhelmingly, 98% feel that the rate change will not result in any material increase to their business.
When asked what other steps the Chancellor could take to help SMEs, 21% of respondents suggested that the Chancellor should force banks to pass on rate changes to business overdrafts and loans. 19% want to see a decrease in corporation tax rates and 16% want increases in tax allowances for small and medium businesses. 16% also want to see a reduced legislative burden on employers, while 13% want better protection for small and medium businesses from bad debt situations.
Kevin Misselbrook, Customer Services Director of Access Accounting said, "The Chancellor needs to start listening to UK businesses. Cutting the rate of VAT has clearly done nothing to stimulate business or the economy. The results of this survey show that more could be done to help boost the economy without putting greater time and cost pressures on small businesses."
When asked about the cost of implementing the VAT change, 53% of businesses estimated that it cost less than £100. However the time-costs associated with the change varied; 42% had to spend half a day to make the changes, 25% required less than a day, 15% used 1-2 days, 12% are still addressing the issue to date and 6% took more than 2 days. With 4.7 million businesses in the UK, (according to the Department for Business Enterprise & Regulatory Reform), the base cost to implement the changes, even at a cost of less than £100, cost UK businesses approximately £470 million.
Misselbrook continued, "The government is doing little to help SMEs survive the current economic situation. The VAT rate cut has been more of a burden than a boon to SMEs, forcing them to look internally for ways to save money and operate more efficiently."
In offering a solution for businesses, Misselbrook said, "It's very likely that the government will continue to play with business taxes. Businesses are already faced with a challenge as they look to 2010 when once again they'll need to implement the planned VAT rate increase. SMEs should be looking to update their accounting systems to ensure that they can implement any changes efficiently. They should also look to software vendors that demonstrate agility in responding to government legislation."
When asked how long it will take for the economy to recover, the largest group of respondents (47%) predicted twelve to eighteen months, 24% said eighteen to twenty-four months and 19% felt it would be twenty-four to thirty months or thirty months or more. Just 11% believe the recovery will begin this year.
Generally, 52% of respondents are uncertain about the economy. 25% report they are not confident and 15% are very unconfident about the economy; only 8% believe that they are confident at the moment.
"We are in an uneasy time and the importance of knowing the money you have in your business is crucial as it could mean the difference between surviving or not. Every company should have a transparent accounting system, helping businesses to monitor cash flow and budgets as well as conducting data analysis and importantly, being able to adjust to the governments ever changing demands."
Source: Access Accounts
According to a survey released today. The findings of the survey, conducted by mid-market business software house Access Accounting, will make difficult reading for the government as it looks at ways to stimulate the suffering economy.
The Chancellor's 2.5% VAT rate cut has been in effect for almost three months, yet 51% of businesses say that the change is not doing enough to stimulate the economy. 27% believe that it was a good start, but that the Chancellor needs to do more. Overwhelmingly, 98% feel that the rate change will not result in any material increase to their business.
When asked what other steps the Chancellor could take to help SMEs, 21% of respondents suggested that the Chancellor should force banks to pass on rate changes to business overdrafts and loans. 19% want to see a decrease in corporation tax rates and 16% want increases in tax allowances for small and medium businesses. 16% also want to see a reduced legislative burden on employers, while 13% want better protection for small and medium businesses from bad debt situations.
Kevin Misselbrook, Customer Services Director of Access Accounting said, "The Chancellor needs to start listening to UK businesses. Cutting the rate of VAT has clearly done nothing to stimulate business or the economy. The results of this survey show that more could be done to help boost the economy without putting greater time and cost pressures on small businesses."
When asked about the cost of implementing the VAT change, 53% of businesses estimated that it cost less than £100. However the time-costs associated with the change varied; 42% had to spend half a day to make the changes, 25% required less than a day, 15% used 1-2 days, 12% are still addressing the issue to date and 6% took more than 2 days. With 4.7 million businesses in the UK, (according to the Department for Business Enterprise & Regulatory Reform), the base cost to implement the changes, even at a cost of less than £100, cost UK businesses approximately £470 million.
Misselbrook continued, "The government is doing little to help SMEs survive the current economic situation. The VAT rate cut has been more of a burden than a boon to SMEs, forcing them to look internally for ways to save money and operate more efficiently."
In offering a solution for businesses, Misselbrook said, "It's very likely that the government will continue to play with business taxes. Businesses are already faced with a challenge as they look to 2010 when once again they'll need to implement the planned VAT rate increase. SMEs should be looking to update their accounting systems to ensure that they can implement any changes efficiently. They should also look to software vendors that demonstrate agility in responding to government legislation."
When asked how long it will take for the economy to recover, the largest group of respondents (47%) predicted twelve to eighteen months, 24% said eighteen to twenty-four months and 19% felt it would be twenty-four to thirty months or thirty months or more. Just 11% believe the recovery will begin this year.
Generally, 52% of respondents are uncertain about the economy. 25% report they are not confident and 15% are very unconfident about the economy; only 8% believe that they are confident at the moment.
"We are in an uneasy time and the importance of knowing the money you have in your business is crucial as it could mean the difference between surviving or not. Every company should have a transparent accounting system, helping businesses to monitor cash flow and budgets as well as conducting data analysis and importantly, being able to adjust to the governments ever changing demands."
Source: Access Accounts
Sunday, 8 March 2009
Business planning is more important than ever
Small businesses make up the vast majority of all businesses in the UK, yet fewer than half of these organisations have a plan in place should disaster strike. A number of high profile incidents, such as the recent extreme weather have brought sharply into focus the importance of business continuity plans for business of all sizes.
What classifies as a disaster for one company can be very different to another. If a small accountancy firm fails to back up its data, and has no plans for keeping that data secure in the event of a fire, it could be taken to court for failure to comply with data storage regulations affecting financial organisations.
Recent research carried out by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) shows that, despite the fact that 60% of medium-sized firms currently use the internet in their supply chains, less than half of these have no security to cope with online attacks and no backup plans.
Read more here: http://www.newbusiness.co.uk/articles/business-continuity/business-planning-more-important-ever
Free Business Plan Template - click here.
What classifies as a disaster for one company can be very different to another. If a small accountancy firm fails to back up its data, and has no plans for keeping that data secure in the event of a fire, it could be taken to court for failure to comply with data storage regulations affecting financial organisations.
Recent research carried out by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) shows that, despite the fact that 60% of medium-sized firms currently use the internet in their supply chains, less than half of these have no security to cope with online attacks and no backup plans.
Read more here: http://www.newbusiness.co.uk/articles/business-continuity/business-planning-more-important-ever
Free Business Plan Template - click here.
Saturday, 7 March 2009
Must your business diversify to survive?
As every small business owner will know, the current economic climate is extremely challenging. The UK is in its first recession since the early 1990's, and there is every indication that the situation will remain difficult for at least the rest of the year.
If your business is struggling then you must ask yourself whether you are doing everything possible to survive. What have you done to diversify your business? Are you and your staff putting in longer hours? Have you diversified your business in terms of staff roles, cross-training and what services and products you are offering your customers?
The economic downturn has changed the way that businesses need to operate. This is not the time to carry on operating the same way that your firm was before the recession; you must adapt to the changing conditions.
Read more here: http://www.newbusiness.co.uk/articles/business-continuity/why-you-must-diversify-survive
If your business is struggling then you must ask yourself whether you are doing everything possible to survive. What have you done to diversify your business? Are you and your staff putting in longer hours? Have you diversified your business in terms of staff roles, cross-training and what services and products you are offering your customers?
The economic downturn has changed the way that businesses need to operate. This is not the time to carry on operating the same way that your firm was before the recession; you must adapt to the changing conditions.
Read more here: http://www.newbusiness.co.uk/articles/business-continuity/why-you-must-diversify-survive
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