On 5th July this year, Ed Davey, the Minister for Employment Relations made a written statement to the commons that the government were "currently considering the way forward" in response to a question about the Agency Workers Regulations.
It's not necessarily under review.
It's definitely not being scrapped.
What does this mean?
Click on the Ed Davey link to ask him. It is hard to plan when you don't know what the rules will be.
Lawspeed are keeping an eye on this.
Friday, 30 July 2010
Thursday, 29 July 2010
The Agency Workers Directive
The Agency Worker Regulations (AWR) come into force on 1st October 2011. The Regulations mean that all workers on any site must have the same working conditions and holiday entitlement. Some areas of the legislation are still unclear but through discussion within the industry we hope to be able to adapt to this major change to how the industry operates.
Not included in the directive is the right to occupational social security schemes, presumably meaning sickness absence or hospital benefits, therefore agency workers will still only be entitled to Statutory Sick Pay, Maternity Pay and Paternity Pay even if the other workers are entitled to a better package.
The regulations define a temporary worker as an individual who is supplied by a temporary work agency to work temporarily for and under the supervision and direction of an end client and has a contract of employment with the temporary work agency.
An individual is also considered to be an agency worker if the individual is supplied by an intermediary, or one of a number of intermediaries, to work temporarily for and under the supervision and direction of the end user. This basically covers all the current arrangements such as Umbrella Companies, Personal Service Companies, Managed Service Comapnies and all the other payment vehicles such as offshore "self-employment" companies.
The worker only comes under the AWR after 12 weeks on the same site.
The full regulations can be viewed here.
Not included in the directive is the right to occupational social security schemes, presumably meaning sickness absence or hospital benefits, therefore agency workers will still only be entitled to Statutory Sick Pay, Maternity Pay and Paternity Pay even if the other workers are entitled to a better package.
The regulations define a temporary worker as an individual who is supplied by a temporary work agency to work temporarily for and under the supervision and direction of an end client and has a contract of employment with the temporary work agency.
An individual is also considered to be an agency worker if the individual is supplied by an intermediary, or one of a number of intermediaries, to work temporarily for and under the supervision and direction of the end user. This basically covers all the current arrangements such as Umbrella Companies, Personal Service Companies, Managed Service Comapnies and all the other payment vehicles such as offshore "self-employment" companies.
The worker only comes under the AWR after 12 weeks on the same site.
The full regulations can be viewed here.
Monday, 12 July 2010
More good news for Umbrella Company Employees
REC confirmed on Friday that the Government has decided not to extend the remit of the Gangmaster Licensing Authority (GLA). This move could have had serious consequences for Umbrella's and their employees as the GLA made it an offence to include part of the minimum wage as expenses off set, also known as Salary Sacrifice. All Salary Sacrifice means is giving up part of your taxed salary in favour of untaxed travel and subsistence expenses, thus giving you more money. It is obvious that the GLA's primary aim, of looking out for the interests of low paid workers, became one of increasing the tax take of the previous government. So, if you work in food production you should probably not be employed by an Umbrella company. For any other industry Umbrella's remain a viable method of engagement.
REC Link
REC Link
Monday, 5 July 2010
Future road pricing is not 'inevitable'
So the RAC say that to avoid total gridlock on the UK's roads we will have to be charged for every mile we travel.
BBC Link
Lets face it, we are already charged for every mile we travel with duty and VAT on fuel, it doesn't stop us flooding the roads with cars and the atmosphere with CO2.
At the end of the day the constant upward pressure on fuel prices will force people off the road and onto public transport, this is inevitable when our transport infrastructure is powered by the finite resources of the planet, fossil fuels.
have a look at powerswitch.org for more information and join the discussion if you like. It's friendly enough.
BBC Link
Lets face it, we are already charged for every mile we travel with duty and VAT on fuel, it doesn't stop us flooding the roads with cars and the atmosphere with CO2.
At the end of the day the constant upward pressure on fuel prices will force people off the road and onto public transport, this is inevitable when our transport infrastructure is powered by the finite resources of the planet, fossil fuels.
have a look at powerswitch.org for more information and join the discussion if you like. It's friendly enough.
The Edge of the Universe
Wow, I mean WOW. We are treated to a view of the heavens like none before, it is a picture of the edge of the Universe, the beginning of space and time.
Reported today by the BBC
What is at this edge of the Universe? Is it a big surrounding mass of ultimate density? I mean, what is on the other side of that if it is there? An astronomer type fellow once told me that space doesn't work like that, it is curved and so there is no edge. If you travelled uninterrupted in a straight line into the Universe you would eventually come back to where you started, similar to travelling in a straight line around the earth.
It still leaves me thinking what is the Universe sitting in? Or is it somehow a 2 dimensional place with a flat earth and magic doors!!!
The mind boggles...
Reported today by the BBC
What is at this edge of the Universe? Is it a big surrounding mass of ultimate density? I mean, what is on the other side of that if it is there? An astronomer type fellow once told me that space doesn't work like that, it is curved and so there is no edge. If you travelled uninterrupted in a straight line into the Universe you would eventually come back to where you started, similar to travelling in a straight line around the earth.
It still leaves me thinking what is the Universe sitting in? Or is it somehow a 2 dimensional place with a flat earth and magic doors!!!
The mind boggles...
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