Some of Britain’s biggest supermarket chains are recruiting thousands of workers to help cover the busy Christmas period. With last year’s Christmas effectively cancelled for many, customers are expected to splash out on big celebrations this year.Asda has announced plans to recruit 15,000 temporary workers for the festive period, with roles covering checkouts, shop floor and home delivery. Around 500 roles are based in Asda’s depots and 1,500 for home delivery driver positions. Asda has … [Read more...]
Stuck for fun things to do this October half term?
Stuck for fun things to do this October half term? We’ve put together a list of some top UK attractions to keep the kids – and yourselves, entertained.We’ve all spent a lot of time indoors over the last 18 months, so why not enjoy some quality time outside of the home? Ghost Raiders at the Tower of London, London Solve a spooky mystery at the tower this half term!This Halloween, spirits have been accidentally released and are roaming the Tower of London. It is your job to save and … [Read more...]
UK travel restrictions eased – will you be off anywhere?
From Monday 4th October, the UK government revealed new rules for travel. Countries and territories are now categorised as either the red list or rest of the world.The new travel system means that eligible fully vaccinated passengers and eligible under-18s returning from a country, not on the red list, can do so without needing to complete a pre-departure test. They are also not required to carry out a day 8 test or enter a 10-day isolation period.People will still need to take a test on … [Read more...]
HMRC issue guidance on how to reduce your risk of using tax avoidance umbrella companies
Here at ePayMe, we have written a number of blogs on compliant umbrella firms, knowing your supply chain and tax avoidance schemes. Now, HMRC has published their own guidance on how to reduce this risk.As we’ve highlighted previously, off-payroll changes are bringing more workers under PAYE. However, some companies are finding unconventional and non-compliant ways to avoid this and pay less tax.These tax avoidance schemes operate on disguised remuneration, reporting some earning as … [Read more...]
Job adverts at a new record high
The number of job vacancies is currently at a new record high, indicating that the labour market is still yet to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.Between 4th-10th October there were a record 2.29 million job adverts available in the UK. In the same week, there were around 235,000 new job postings – the second-highest weekly figure since data began.Wales is currently a hotspot for hiring, with four out of the UK’s top 10 most active cities for new jobs. Swansea in particular saw … [Read more...]
Self-employed pension savings at a low
HMRC have released figures that reveal self-employed pension savings have hit record lows across 2019/2020. Since 2012 to 2013, non-eligible employee participation has increased to 34%. However, this has declined for the self-employed to 16%.In 2019/20 self-employed people paid around £830m into their personal pensions. Though, this figure is down from the £1.15bn paid in the previous year.It is thought that due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this figure would have reduced even further … [Read more...]
Could IR35 be responsible for the UK’s HGV driver shortage?
Food shortages, petrol crisis, the last few months in the UK have been challenging for a number of Brits. A lot of the recent issues are down to a shortage of HGV drivers. It’s estimated that Britain needs an additional 100,000 drivers to ease pressures.The COVID-19 pandemic and Brexit are being blamed for the shortage of drivers. However, new research from the Road Haulage Association (RHA) reveals that recent tax changes could partly be to blame.For those that aren’t familiar with it, … [Read more...]
Could the National Living Wage be going up?
It’s the Conservative Party Conference this week, and Boris Johnson has raised speculation that the National Living Wage could be set for an increase.It seems his goal is to move the country “towards a high wage, high skill, high productivity economy”. They could potentially be just a few weeks away from signing-off on this rise.Under the new measures, earners over the age of 23 could receive around £9.42 an hour. This would come into effect from the start of the new tax year, April … [Read more...]
Know your supply chain post IR35 reform
With a rise in exploitation and non-compliance in the recruitment industry, it has never been more important for all links of the supply chain to work together and ensure a good working practice.Since the IR35 reform, a number of contractors are now turning to umbrella companies for their payroll needs. Unfortunately, there has seen a rise in disguised remuneration schemes and bad practices amongst some businesses. A number of firms are actually tax-avoiding and deceiving contractors into … [Read more...]
Government confirm £20 Universal Credit uplift will end
Despite some MPs appealing to the Government to make the £20 universal credit uplift permanent, they have announced that this will indeed be stopped.The scheme will now officially end on 6th October, however, the exact date money will stop being paid will be dependent on when someone receives their universal credit allowance.For some, this will mean the last payment they receive at the higher rate will be the end of September, only a matter of days. With this news and the announcement of … [Read more...]