Budget March 2017

The self-employed will have to pay more tax…

Millions of self-employed people will pay more in National Insurance from April 2018.

People who pay Class 4 NI contributions, which are paid by self-employed workers earning more than £8,164, currently pay a 9pc tax.
That will rise to 10pc in April 2018, and 11pc in April 2019. This is still less than the 12pc paid to employees, but it closes the gap, with Mr Hammond saying the difference between the two is “no longer justified”.

The self-employed previously paid lower National Insurance Contributions (NICS) because they did not qualify for the same state benefits as employed people. However, they now qualify for the same state pension as employed people.
This will cost the average self-employed person an extra 60p per week.

This highlights a challenge associated with a population that has been working in increasingly diverse ways. With this in mind, and with more people thought likely to become self-employed or involved in other forms of atypical employment, employers may need to anticipate an increase in costs if you currently use, or intend to use self employed personnel in the future.

T – Levels

The Chancellor confirmed the introduction of a new regime of so-called T-levels, the flagship measure in an overhaul of post-16 education he said would put technical skills on a par with academic qualifications, and make sure students were “genuinely work-ready”.

Any government agenda which seeks to increase the skill levels of employees would be welcomed by Tamar HR. With a significant slowdown in workers coming from the EU, it is a timely reminder for employers to look at their workforce planning. What skills do you need now and in the future? You may want to consider entry level employment options such as apprenticeships.

Tamar HR would be happy to support you with a workforce planning review.

£5m budget pledge for returnships

Off the back of International Woman’s Day, the Government announced that £5m will be put aside to open up existing work schemes, to support people back to work at all levels of management after a career break. This is open to both men and woman, but has been primarily focused on woman due to the fact that they tend to be the ones giving up their careers to devote themselves to motherhood.

This is a good opportunity for employers to look at their gender representation; to consider the huge advantages of having a diverse workforce; and a culture which acknowledges the important and varied skill set that each person brings to the business.

Tamar HR has a very successful recruitment process which supports Businesses find the right fit for their workplace, and would be happy to discuss this and your recruitment needs further