Silence Is Deafening – And Negligent?
Frustrations among experts in the umbrella sector are reaching boiling point as the government continues to ignore it’s promise to regulate the sector, and 14 months later has still not published their response their consultation on the umbrella market. This lack of action leaves an ever-increasing population of umbrella workers unprotected in an unregulated industry […]
Government Labour Market Strategy “Too Little Too Late”
Some 12 months after it was written, the long-awaited Labour Market Enforcement Strategy 2022/23 has finally been published – almost at the end of the period it is meant to cover! The strategy outlines the government’s plan to ensure legislation keeps pace with the evolving employment landscape. Within this, Margaret Beels OBE Director of Labour […]
Queen’s Speech Omits Employment Bill – Again!
We were disappointed to see that once again the Queen’s Speech (delivered by Prince Charles) has omitted to include the long awaited employment bill that was first promised in 2019. It should have included draft legislation enabling the government to finally start regulating the umbrella sector, something that was first muted in 2017. Now, some […]
New Director of Labour Market Enforcement – at last!
After a gap of some 9 months, BEIS has announced the appointment of a new Director of Labour Market Enforcement – Margaret Beels OBE takes up the role with immediate effect. She brings extensive industry experience, having been Chair of Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) since 2011, where Margaret led on work to tackle […]
Would State-Run Umbrella Sector Regulation Ensure Workers Get Paid?
Umbrella workers unpaid You may have seen reports of a cyber-attack on Giant Group last week which has resulted in problems for many of their workers who have not been paid – including some lorry drivers which likely exacerbates the fuel shortage situation. According to a statement on Giant Pay’s website: “We can confirm that […]
TUC Proposes Banning Umbrella Companies
The TUC has called for umbrella companies to be banned, and have issued a report which outlines their reasoning. Their research has led the TUC to conclude that umbrellas serve no useful purpose for workers due to confusion regarding pay rates, no Key Information Documents, and employment protections being largely theoretical and/or not valued by […]
027 Umbrella Regulation – Some Quick Wins
This is the second of our two-part special chatting about the unregulated umbrella sector with industry expert Crawford Temple. We rejoin the conversation discussing the lack of enforcement in the sector and the detrimental impact this is having. We go on to discuss some quick-wins that HMRC could easily implement which would support and empower […]
026 Could Umbrella Regulation Mirror Financial Services?
There have been many calls for the umbrella sector to be regulated by the government, so we chat to industry expert Crawford Temple to find out his thoughts on the subject. His answer is very interesting: implement a system similar to financial services which has a track record of success and could achieve the same […]
Umbrella Companies Classified As Tax Advice
The definition of “tax advice” should be broadened out to include umbrella companies and tax software providers according to the Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT) in their response to HMRC’s consultation on “Raising standards in the tax advice market”. They say that a wider definition of tax advice is vital to raise standards and enable […]