"Low Pay Nation"

Dusty Bin · **Joined:** Wed Sep 03, 2003 3:20 pm **Posts:** 3272

I see the next next programme in the BBC Scotland series which last week featured the corruption allegations regarding Edinburgh council is called "Low Pay Nation" and is about how employers get round paying the minimum wage.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b015gp4d

Hopefully there will be some stuff about the taxi trade on it, because the programme is presumably the one that a researcher was making enquiries about in this thread:

viewtopic.php?f=12&t=16953

skippy41 · **Posted:** Sat Sep 24, 2011 10:11 am

I hope they mention drivers who rent have to work more than 40 hours just to get the rent, before they start to even earn a wage, so in some places they are working 70 hours plus,
The same applies when owners just keep on renting out more and more vehicles when there is not enough work for half of them,just greed on the owners part
Both putting drivers and passengers lives at risk, due to the extra long hours the drivers have to work, for around £2,00 an hour in some cases

If an owner requires a driver they should pay the min wage period.
Will any of the UK governments listen will they hell, as it keeps the jobless totals down, but it costs them more in working/family tax credits to make up the drivers wage
If they did force taxi /private hire owners to pay the min wage they could cut the tax credits bill by several millions a year

wee eddie · **Posted:** Sat Sep 24, 2011 2:25 pm

Skippy: If they earn less than the Minimum Wage, why do it?

bloodnock · **Joined:** Thu May 03, 2007 8:15 pm **Posts:** 9164

wee eddie wrote:

Skippy: If they earn less than the Minimum Wage, why do it?

Out of desperation I guess...

Skull · **Joined:** Thu Feb 10, 2005 4:54 am **Posts:** 10460

wee eddie wrote:

Skippy: If they earn less than the Minimum Wage, why do it?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wage_slavery

:-|

wee eddie · **Posted:** Sun Sep 25, 2011 4:01 am

We know what it is but not why they do it, if they are working for so little.

gusmac · **Posted:** Sun Sep 25, 2011 5:13 am

wee eddie wrote:

We know what it is but not why they do it, if they are working for so little.

Many use the welfare system to top up their earnings.

Skull · **Joined:** Thu Feb 10, 2005 4:54 am **Posts:** 10460

wee eddie wrote:

We know what it is but not why they do it, if they are working for so little.

I'll take a wild guess and say many have dependants and few options to do anything thing else.

Wage slavery refers to a situation where a person's livelihood depends on wages, especially when the dependence is total and immediate.[1][2] It is a negatively connoted term used to draw an analogy between slavery and wage labor, and to highlight similarities between owning and employing a person.

“why they do it, if they are working for so little.” Not because they feel they have a choice. :-|

skippy41 · **Posted:** Sun Sep 25, 2011 2:03 pm

This may or may not be relevant but in transport, ie working for the supermarkets, there are alot of "self employed" drivers, normally working through an agency and umbrella limited companies, therefore the driver saving on tax and the supermarket saving on both taking someone on full time and also saving on paying employers NI contributions plus everything else that goes with employing directly..........anyway, as of 1/10/11 the rules are changing and anyone who is working on a self employed basis with the same company for a period of more than 12 months are entitled to holiday pay and all of the benefits of being employed........goverment throwing a spanner into the works of all of those who bend and manipulate the rules to suit themselves and their profit line???

Skull · **Joined:** Thu Feb 10, 2005 4:54 am **Posts:** 10460

skippy41 wrote:

This may or may not be relevant but in transport, ie working for the supermarkets, there are alot of "self employed" drivers, normally working through an agency and umbrella limited companies, therefore the driver saving on tax and the supermarket saving on both taking someone on full time and also saving on paying employers NI contributions plus everything else that goes with employing directly..........anyway, as of 1/10/11 the rules are changing and anyone who is working on a self employed basis with the same company for a period of more than 12 months are entitled to holiday pay and all of the benefits of being employed........goverment throwing a spanner into the works of all of those who bend and manipulate the rules to suit themselves and their profit line???

There's got to be a catch somewhere, it's not like a Tory government to slap down big business. :-|

grandad · **Joined:** Tue Apr 03, 2007 11:27 pm **Posts:** 19717

skippy41 wrote:

anyway, as of 1/10/11 the rules are changing and anyone who is working on a self employed basis with the same company for a period of more than 12 months are entitled to holiday pay and all of the benefits of being employed........goverment throwing a spanner into the works of all of those who bend and manipulate the rules to suit themselves and their profit line???

Good!

toots · **Posted:** Mon Sep 26, 2011 1:00 am

skippy41 wrote:

This may or may not be relevant but in transport, ie working for the supermarkets, there are alot of "self employed" drivers, normally working through an agency and umbrella limited companies, therefore the driver saving on tax and the supermarket saving on both taking someone on full time and also saving on paying employers NI contributions plus everything else that goes with employing directly..........anyway, as of 1/10/11 the rules are changing and anyone who is working on a self employed basis with the same company for a period of more than 12 months are entitled to holiday pay and all of the benefits of being employed........goverment throwing a spanner into the works of all of those who bend and manipulate the rules to suit themselves and their profit line???

Where did you read that Skip?

skippy41 · **Posted:** Mon Sep 26, 2011 1:43 am

toots wrote:

skippy41 wrote:

This may or may not be relevant but in transport, ie working for the supermarkets, there are alot of "self employed" drivers, normally working through an agency and umbrella limited companies, therefore the driver saving on tax and the supermarket saving on both taking someone on full time and also saving on paying employers NI contributions plus everything else that goes with employing directly..........anyway, as of 1/10/11 the rules are changing and anyone who is working on a self employed basis with the same company for a period of more than 12 months are entitled to holiday pay and all of the benefits of being employed........goverment throwing a spanner into the works of all of those who bend and manipulate the rules to suit themselves and their profit line???

Where did you read that Skip?

Got it off the London taxi forums trying to find it on Gov web site

Found this though and it could apply to every taxi company
http://blog.hobbspayrollservices.com/bl ... 23462.html

MR T · **Joined:** Thu Sep 07, 2006 8:26 pm **Posts:** 8522

There's a big VAT case going on at the moment

wee eddie · **Posted:** Mon Sep 26, 2011 3:22 am

I don't wish to rock anyones boat but it has been the case for several years, that if an individual works regularly, as a freelance for one company only, then HMR&C does not regard that person as being Self Employed.

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