August 24, 2011 in AWR, Contractor News, Industry comment, Recruiter News
With only a few weeks to the start of the Agency Workers Regulations, here is a simple round up of the current news:
http://www.understandingawr.co.uk/awr-only-8weeks-left/
The actual regulations become law on the 1st September but enactment starts 1st October 2011. What fun!
April 14, 2011 in AWR, Contractor News, Freelancing, Industry comment, Recruiter News
I wanted to take a few moments to remind a few people (mainly in the advisory community) that not all Umbrella Companies are villains and/or cowboys. I accept that advisors will want to drum up business by highlighting bad practice but at the same time not much balance is shown in my opinion. For the avoidance of doubt, here is what in combination, a compliant umbrella co should be doing:-
So, Parasol and a few others will continue to thrive because at our very core we believe that doing it right is so much more rewarding in the long run for everyone concerned. It’s up to us to distance ourselves from much of what is bad and based on short term goals and Parasol will be doing this.
We welcome the future with great optimism and confidence.
February 11, 2011 in AWR, Contractor News, Freelancing, Industry comment, Recruiter News
We at Parasol have been running an Agency Workers Regulations website for some time now and like to think we are reasonably close to developments. We work with over 2000 recruitment businesses so hear a lot about what is concerning staffing businesses big and small. We are also a founder member of the FCSA trade association whom are involved in the DBIS guidance workshops alongside the REC, CBI, TUC, APSCo and others. I’m not saying we are on the “inside”, no one is but I do like to think we are very close to the subject matter and can therefore provide a decent balanced view.
So, what do we know?
So what can Agencies expect to need to do and resolve with clients? Well, dialogue is important and bringing people up to speed. This is not on the basis of fear, it’s on the basis of understanding where an end-client sees the temporary workforce going for them. At worse case, the staffing business is going to need to collect some data about rates of pay from that end-client and in turn be prepared to pass that data on to providers that will largely mitigate the risks for the agency and the end-client. In addition, there may need to be conversations around margin, rates and tenure but is that really such a bad thing?
And what about swedish derogation I hear you cry as you unpack your meatballs and sofa. Well, there is certainly the basis of a compliant (I hate the word “outside”) AWR model and again I will make the point that the model is very close to what a professional provider (Parasol) does today. Adding the extra componets is not trivial but equally with a long term view, achievable.
Let’s not forget that the courts will be the judge of this new world and as we have seen in Germany (Union class cases) the need for a staffing business to engage with a professional provider is paramount.
Our AWR site has of course more details and do get in touch via this site or one of the others if you have any specific questions you would like answering. See you at an AWR seminar soon, we will be the ones with solutions, not gloom 
January 4, 2011 in Contractor News, Freelancing, Industry comment, Life, Recruiter News, Tax
Welcome to 2011 and very best wishes to everyone for the year ahead. Let’s hope it’s happy, healthy and of course prosperous. Here at Parasol and Clearsky we are looking forward to another busy year and as we approach our 11th year of trading, there is much to be done.
2010 was an interesting year in many respects, January 2010 saw the high profile collapse of an “Umbrella” company and I use the quotes as the reality of the model was once again exposed and the spectre of offshore activities discovered. The noise around the Agency Workers Regulations (AWR) intensified as the reality began to sink in and this was followed by National Minimum Wage consultations and HMRC consultations on the overall operation of PAYE. The new Government then instigated the office of tax simplification and ir35 once again regained top spot in Contractor related news and debate. More offshore solutions came under pressure through some high profile collapses and alleged financial irregularities. So on the political landscape it was pretty full on and our founding membership of FCSA helped us contribute and educate on many of these issues for the (usually unseen) benefit of Contractors and Agencies alike.
The actual business of contracting was tough with roles and rates remaining a challenge. I am not sure 2011 will be hugely different but I think steady progression is better than boom and bust. As we progress through the year I also expect the noise around AWR to intensify, remember that the true employment based solution is already doing much of what AWR requires and this compliant solution will remain after October!
I therefore look forward to 2011 with sensible optimism and confidence that Contracting will remain a crucial part of the UK economy. We will be doing our very best to support this and have always been about the long term, here’s to the next ten years!!
May 24, 2010 in Contractor News, Freelancing, Industry comment, Life
So the dust has settled (for now) and our new masters are setting about making the changes they believe are necessary to improve our economy and improve our lot.
In the recently published coalition document there were probably two of three key specific Contractor related matters that come to mind:
For me IR35 and tax simplicity for Contractors is all about “certainty”. As drafted, IR35 is subjective and, therefore, using the same set of facts two different views can be taken. If the legislation was clear and could provide a series of specific tests that then produced a balanced answer and that answer met a criteria level then taxpayers, advisers & HMRC would save a lot of time and certainty would be gained for all.
Cuts – I think that in the short term, public spending cuts may have an impact as certain Government department are forced to reduce temporary headcount and then permanent. Once that round is over, guess where they will probably go to then ensure key projects are then delivered?
I don’t agree with some commentators views that AWR will be removed or stopped. This is European wide legislation and therefore cannot be simply put to one side. It may get some guidance updates (welcome) but I can’t see it going!
Let’s hope the new government can address some of the issues that the flexible workforce faces as in my opinion, they are a crucial part of the UK’s recovery process.
September 18, 2009 in Contractor News, Industry comment, Recruiter News, Tax
Gordon Brown unsurprisingly appealed to the TUC this week when part of his speech included a loose promise on the Agencies Workers Directive (AWD) coming into power within this government’s tenure. This was then followed by more comment from BIS (used to be BERR and was DTI before that!) that suggested a “2010 or 2011″ implementation – so a perhaps a little bit contradictory to the PM’s position.
Any new contractors/freelancers may be confused by all this as in many ways it is a bit too far off when you are focused on a role and earning some money. For those that are interested (and at a very high level view), it’s EU legislation that grants “temporary workers” the same “rights” as their fully employed counterparts after 12 weeks. I put the terms and values in quotes as the EU seem to think that Contractors need protecting and don’t get any employment rights. Clearly this is not the case as the Umbrella employee gets FULL employment rights (or should)!
Anyway, like IR35 and MSC before, AWD is starting to create some turmoil and noise. “Umbrellas are dead” and “everyone move to Ltd” is starting to be shouted. In my opinion it does the industry no good to create disquiet in a time when there is equal focus to be placed on helping people get work and start contracting. “Well you would say that Crossland ” I hear you cry – maybe, but don’t forget we also have a true Accountancy Practice (Clearsky) and try to offer the right choice to Contractors based on best advice and not solely on % return (often advertised by the more unscrupulous providers before an individuals position is known!).
Surely if the “industry” (Umbrella Co’s, Specialist Accountants etc) is to have a better image with the authorities then at least some sense of the bigger picture should be thought of? Maybe I am being naive and self interest will always ultimately be the driver for many. The industry needs to wake up and smarten its act up. We and a few others have tried to do it with an emphasis on doing the right thing but that’s not the easy option nor the cheap option.
AWD like its previous legislative policies before it will come in, it is not the end of all current business models, it will simply create new models, some good and some bad. Here at Parasol we are very happy with our plans and confident that a new generation of solid prosperity for Contractors will be created and protected.
So if you read any “the end is nigh” articles that seem to suggest changing how you operate, just take a second to think why that might be.
by Rob Crossland
Stock up with tinned peaches and powdered eggs!
September 29, 2011 in AWR, Contractor News, Freelancing, Industry comment, Life, Recruiter News
It’s almost the 1st October and the end of the world is nigh! I have already sent the wife down to Morrisons to clear the shelves of tinned peaches and soup.
For those of you who have been blissfully unaware (e.g. not in recruitment or in the service industry that supports it) then 1st October sees the formal start of the Agency Workers Regulations (AWR) (and you can go here if you need the basics). In very simple terms it means a clock has started ticking, not as some might think, as precursor to doomsday but to the 12 weeks hence (24th of December!) where a vulnerable agency worker can potentially receive equal pay and conditions of a full time counterpart (if one exists). I may sound a bit cynical but the amount of work that has gone into preparing for this has been quite substantial and for the vast majority of Parasol and Clearsky users it won’t make any difference, it will be business as usual. As a very sensible and safe business we were already doing 90% of what the regulations require so most of our work has been in trying to educate and inform in a market which has very interesting views.
So the boring message is that it’s very much carry on as normal at Parasol House and Clearsky towers. We have shiny new payslips for Parasol employees and some changes in terminology but for contractors it won’t be much different. For Agencies, it’s just as dull, were open for business, a model of operation for all those interesting views and primarily a nil cost, no hassle approach to the legislation.
I suspect I will have to write some more as the dust settles in October and the first potential claims emerge (probably in Union backed environments) after December but in the meantime I shall put the peaches in the garage next to the peas that we bought in December 1999.
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