Taking Care of Lone Workers

According to the British Security Industry Association (BSIA), more than six million UK employees work without supervision or in isolated conditions, and a high proportion of these work in situations or locations that pose a considerable risk.

Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, employers are required to guarantee the safety of their staff. If you employ lone workers, or any of your staff may be at particular risk, maybe because they are in contact with potentially violent behaviour or they work late at night or early in the morning, then the following information may prove very useful.

Free Guide for Employers of Lone Workers

If you employ lone or vulnerable workers, you may be interested to read the free BSIA publication Lone Workers: An Employer’s Guide. This sets out your legal obligations and offers easy to follow advice.

There is also an annual exhibition, the Lone Worker Safety Expo 2015, held every November at the Olympia Conference Centre in London. This year it takes place on Tuesday 24^th November 2015.

Security Measures

Security is clearly a major consideration and there are numerous measures and products available that are specifically designed or suited to lone or vulnerable worker situations.

You should always consult a security professional who will carry out a tailored risk assessment at your premises and produce a security plan bespoke to your needs. This will usually incorporate a number of security measures, which might include:

Access Control: a system that allows only authorised personnel to access given areas.

Door Entry Systems: these give you precise control over who can enter and leave the building.

Electronic Locking Systems: whether you lock in to protect or lock out to prevent unwanted access, these systems can be combined with intruder and fire alarms and CCTV to provide a comprehensive safety net.

Panic Alarms: staff can call for urgent assistance using a panic button, either from another staff member, security or the emergency services.

Lone worker safety is a major issue. Talk to your security consultants and have them tailor you a plan to protect your valued staff. Need a recommendation? Your bookkeepers will be able to guide you in the right direction.

Petition to Halt New Tax on Share Dividends

As of April 2016, notional 10% tax credit on dividends will be abolished. Instead, a £5,000 tax-free dividend allowance will be brought in. Dividends above this level will be taxed at 7.5% on the basic rate, 32.5% on the higher rate and 38.1% on the additional rate.

The changes, announced in the Chancellor’s summer budget, have been met by much furore amongst the small business community, and a campaign has been launched with the aim of attracting the support of 100,000 business leaders via signatures on a petition. Once that figure is reached, the campaign will be considered for debate in Parliament.

70,000 Signatures Still Needed

Launched on September 10 by small business owner Serena Humphrey of financial Nottingham based training company The F Word, the petition has so far been signed by almost 30,000 people.

Serena said, “There is massive interest in scrapping the tax on dividends and helping small and medium-sized enterprises have a better chance of surviving. We’re asking the Government to reconsider the tax.”

Serena points out that pension auto-enrolment, the increase in the Minimum Wage and insurance premium tax and the new Living Wage for the over 25s will make it even more of a challenge for smaller companies to survive. “This dividend tax is an attack too far on small businesses,” she says, continuing: “Those profits have already been taxed at 20 per cent, so this 7.5 per cent tax means we’re paying 27.5 per cent tax, well above the basic rate.”

Where to Find the Petition

If you agree with Serena and would like to sign the petition you can do so by following this link: http://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/106525. The deadline is 24 February 2016. The Government’s response to the campaign can also be read by following the same link.

If you are concerned as to how the new dividend taxation system will affect your business finances, don’t hesitate to discuss the matter with your bookkeepers who will be able to explain the potential effects in your particular situation.

Important Considerations for Employers of Remote Workers

The Office for National Statistics reports that 13.9 per cent of UK workers carry out their jobs remotely. That translates as 4.2 million people, and it is a figure that is on the rise.

As an employer offering remote working, you will enjoy numerous benefits, but there are a lot of considerations to take into account, from data protection and insurance to health and safety.

Data Protection

Any loss of data through a breach of security, theft or malicious attack can be deemed a breach of the Data Protection Act.

With remote workers, it can be difficult to lock down the security of your data. You will no doubt be using a cloud based network, which will need to be carefully set up and meticulously monitored to ensure its security. Of course, privacy laws will need to be considered as part of this monitoring.

One question that regularly arises is what degree of control you allow your worker when it comes to setting up and using technology. For example, would you prefer things like email set up, security settings, software configuration and device locking to be left to the member of staff, or controlled by your IT department? The latter would tend to be the safer option of course, but may mean more pressure for IT personnel.

Security

It is a good idea to pay a visit to your remote workers’ premises so you can run an audit on security measures and if necessary, make any recommendations for improvements. You’ll want to ensure physical work related articles are protected against flood or fire and of course, theft. Ideally any paperwork containing sensitive data should be kept locked away, as should any devices used to store data, such as tablets, laptops or portable drives.

It is good practice to issue written guidelines to your workers setting out rules such as storing anything sensitive in an insurance graded safe overnight or whilst not in use, and keeping paperwork in a locked, fire-resistant filing cabinet.

Health & Safety

Regardless of where they work, you are responsible for the health and safety of your employees.

If your staff work at a desk using display screen equipment (DSE) then you will need to comply with The Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992. These regulations stipulate that if you have provided the workstation, then you must make sure that it meets minimum requirements, and you must carry out a risk assessment. If you did not provide the workstation, then you are still required to issue advice on the safe use of any equipment and safe working practice.

If you are in any doubt over your duties as an employer of remote workers, why not have a chat with your bookkeepers? They’ll be able to inform you of the steps to take, and put you in touch with any other professional for advice on the law, security and insurance.

Tax Cut Makes Rent a Room Scheme Even More Attractive

If you rent out a spare room, whether to a lodger or to holiday or business travellers, there is good news in store.

The Rent a Room scheme has since its introduction a few years back offered the opportunity to earn extra income. It’s a programme that is open to owner occupiers or tenants of rental properties (whose tenancy agreement allows) who are able to let furnished accommodation to a lodger.

Up until now, the scheme has allowed the people doing the renting to earn up to £4,250 a year tax free, or £2,125 if renting out jointly. This amount has been frozen since 1997. However, from 2016 this amount is set to rise to £7,500 and £3,250 respectively.

The additional allowance is worth £1,300 a year to a higher rate taxpayer, and £650 a year to a basic rate taxpayer.

Who Qualifies for the Rent a Room Scheme?

As long as the property is your main residence and the room you are renting is furnished, you are permitted under the scheme to earn up to £144 per week in rent. If you are a tenant rather than a homeowner, then you will need to have a clause in your tenancy agreement allowing you to rent a room.

According to Spareroom.co.uk it is estimated that in England there are 19 million empty bedrooms, many of which are in the homes of pensioners who find themselves unable to downsize. A lot of the other empty rooms belong to ‘empty nesters’ whose older children have flown the nest.

What you Need to Know About Tax

If you are earning less from renting a room than the threshold of the scheme - £7,500 per year from 2016 – then you don’t need to do anything as your exemption from tax will be automatic.

However, if you are earning more than the threshold, then you will need to complete a tax return. In doing so, you can either choose to opt in to the Rent a Room scheme, in which case you will need to state this on your tax return so you can claim your tax-free allowance, or you can decide not to opt in, in which case you just set down your income and associated expenses using the property pages of the tax return.

If you are new to tax returns then you will need to contact HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) to request one, and you can do this using this link.

  

Of course, your local bookkeepers will be a mine of information and advice on the subject, so why not seek out their help?

Does your Company Logo Actually Belong to your Company?

Most businesses have a logo these days; even the smallest companies appreciate the importance of carrying an identity to reinforce their brand.

Logos form a significant part of the marketing armoury because they allow people to instantly recognise a business. When you see the Lacoste crocodile for example, or the bitten-into Apple logo, you know straight away who you are dealing with. These examples work at all levels of the business scale and demonstrate how valuable a logo can be.

With this in mind, it may come as something of a surprise that in some cases, companies don’t actually own their own logos. Here is a story to illustrate what we appreciate has probably come as something of a shock to you.

An Innocent Tale

Travel back in time in 1998 when smoothie maker Innocent was a new business. It commissioned a logo to be designed by a branding company, which produced the now well-known halo/face design. The two parties liaised over how the designers would be paid for their work, but no contracts were ever signed and no money changed hands.

Two years later in 2000, Innocent applied to register its logo as an EU trade mark. At first the registration was accepted, that was until the company that had designed the logo applied to cancel the registration, claiming that they were the rightful owners of the logo. Innocent could not own the logo trade mark, because no copyright had been assigned.

What the Law Says

According to UK copyright law, when a business commissions a design agency to undertake any type of design work, the designer is deemed to own the copyright on the designs, unless an agreement to the contrary has been signed.

Whilst the party doing the commissioning retains an implied licence and with it a right to use the logo once they have paid for its design, the intellectual property rights do not automatically become the property of the commissioner, unless there is a contract stating otherwise.

What to do?

Every time you commission any design work, you need to request written assignment of copyright from your design agency courtesy of a contract agreed and signed by both parties.

Check ownership of your current logo and branding work. If you are not clear who owns it then talk to a lawyer about having a copyright assignment contract drawn up to present to your design agency. Your logo is valuable: make sure you own it!

Dealing with E-Cigarettes in the Workplace

Employers are having a hard time dealing with the scenario of e-cigarettes in the workplace, for numerous reasons.

Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) says that in the region of 2.1 million adults in the UK use e-cigarettes, which raises the question of whether or not a company’s smoking policy should differentiate between the use of traditional cigarettes and e-cigarettes.

What is the Legal Position on E-Cigarettes?

Because the act of smoking involves a substance being burnt, e-cigarettes fall outside the scope of smoke-free legislation. Because of this, companies can make their own decisions as to whether to allow employees to use e-cigarettes at work.

Considerations When Creating a Smoking Policy

There is plenty to consider on the subject of e-cigarettes when putting together your smoking policy.

Firstly, you should bear in mind that some workers may be using e-cigarettes as part of a smoking cessation plan. For this reason, you may wish to support their use.

Next up, you have to think about other employees. They may find the vapour irritating, and there may be a health risk through passive consumption. There is little research at this stage as to whether there are any health risks associated with inhaling the vapour from e-cigarettes, but it is still something to consider.

E-cigarettes can be very similar in appearance to traditional cigarettes which may lead to other employees or visitors to your premises thinking that smoking is going on in the workplace. Even if you do allow staff to use e-cigarettes then it would be a good idea to put a layer of management approval in so that it is known who is using them for the purposes of distinguishing between those and traditional cigarettes.

If you are going to allow employees to use e-cigarettes in a designated area, then you will need to think about whether it should be the same area used by traditional smokers. Taking into consideration the fact that e-cigarette users are fairly likely to be attempting to quit the use of traditional cigarettes, they may find it difficult to be around traditional smokers. It may be an idea to create separate areas.

Take Advice When Drawing up Smoking Policies

Whatever you decide to do, you need to be clear on your rules and set out policies that everyone understands. Talk to your employment lawyers who will help you draw up policies in accordance with the approach you settle upon, and that stay in line with the law.

Landlord Wear and Tear Allowance to be Scrapped

The July budget headline that mortgage interest relief for private landlords is to be restricted to the basic rate of income tax has perhaps overshadowed another announcement by the Chancellor that is going to leave landlords reeling.

By April 2016, the current system whereby landlords of furnished residential properties are allowed to deduct 10 per cent as a tax break for wear and tear will be no more. Instead, only actual costs incurred will be deductible.

Whilst it is not yet clear how the new fair wear and tear system will work in practice, there is a glimmer of good news for residential landlords, as the Government looks set to reform how they can account for the costs incurred in maintaining and enhancing their rental properties.

Government Issues

At the moment, the issue the Government has is that the law dictates landlords are able to offset their tax liability by 10 per cent, regardless of whether they spend money on improving their rental properties. Feeling this is unfair and out of line with other business types, they are changing the rules. Landlords will still be able to deduct costs, but they can only be genuine ones.

Recouping Losses

This announcement, alongside the headline plans to decrease tax relief on buy to let mortgages down to the basic rate over the next four years, is no doubt going to have you thinking of ways to recoup losses if you are a landlord.

Why not discuss the issue with your bookkeepers? They’ll be able to put together cashflow forecasts and profit and loss projections to help you fathom your way through the forthcoming changes, and make informed decisions along the way.