Changes to minimum wage
On 1 October 2009 the new rates for the National Minimum wage will come into effect:
- the adult rate (for workers aged 22 and over) rises from £5.73 to £5.80 an hour;
- the development rate for those aged 18 to 21 rises from £4.77 to £4.83 an hour;
- the rate for 16 to 17-year-olds is increased from £3.53 to £3.57 an hour.
-------------------------------------------------
Also from 1 October, employers will no longer be able to include tips to make up the balance of the minimum wage. This means that all eligible workers must receive at least national minimum wage in base pay with any tips they receive being paid on top of that. Currently, firms can use service charges and gratuities processed through the payroll as part of staff wages.
The Department for Business Innovation and Skills have issued a best practice guide:
http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file52948.pdf
-------------------------------------------------
The 1 October is also the implementation date for the one-off 2009 Budget increase in the maximum amount of "a week's pay" for calculating compensation for unfair dismissal and redundancy pay, from £350 to £380.
How to negotiate a great deal
The purpose of negotiation is to reach a fair and reasonable compromise, not to try to do the impossible. The key to good negotiation is to gain on issues that are very important to you and yield on those that are not, and come to an agreement that both parties find reasonable and commercially acceptable. To achieve that, here are some tips and tools ...read more....
How to execute documents by virtual signing
Many documents nowadays are managed via internet and it has become common for transactions to complete without the need for a physical completion meeting. The benefits in terms of time and cost savings are obvious. Below is a guidance on how virtual signings can be carried out effectively, provided that the parties are in agreement with the arrangement:
1) Final copies of the documents should be emailed to all absent parties and/or their lawyers, as agreed then each absent signatory should print and sign the signature page only. There is no requirement to print off the full document.
2) Each absent party should then return a single email to its lawyers or to the person co-ordinating the signing/closing. Such email should have attached either the final version of the document and a pdf copy of the signed signature page or the signed signature page with express authority to attach it to the final approved document.
3) A final version of the document, along with copies of the executed signature pages, may be circulated to evidence the execution of the final document. The final approved version of the document with the pre-signed signature pages that have been attached with the prior approval of the parties (or their lawyers) will constitute the original signed document.
New trademark fees and services
The current official fees for filing a UK trade mark application are £200 for one class, and £50 for each additional class. From 1st October 2009 if an application is filed online, and the fees are paid at the same time the application is filed, a the total fees will be reduced by £30. While this is helpful, national offices still have a long way to go to make national filings cost effective when compared with Community Trade Mark.
There is related second significant change in procedure from 1st October 2009: if a trade mark application is filed online, all subsequent correspondence from the Intellectual Property Office to attorneys is sent by e-mail only. Given the significant cost benefit, it may only be a matter of time before all correspondence from the IPO (and indeed OHIM) is sent by e-mail only.
Story link:
http://class46.eu/2009/07/uk-ipo-new-trade-mark-fees-and-services.html
------------------------------------------------------
New, faster scheme for ´green´ patent applications
Earlier this year, a new 'Green Channel' scheme for patent applications was introduced by the UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO). Under the scheme applicants are able to request accelerated processing for a patent application if the invention relates to green or environmentally-friendly technology. Under the new scheme there are a number of acceleration options which mean that a green patent can be issued in as little as 9 months.
The IPO have not specified the criteria they will apply to determine whether the claim that the application relates to green technology is justified. Nor have they stated how much information the applicant must give to prove the 'greenness' of the invention. The IPO has simply stated that the Green Channel is available to any applicant who makes a reasonable assertion that the invention in the patent application is one which has some environmental benefit. There are no additional costs for accelerating an application.
Story link:
http://www.ipo.gov.uk/p-pn-green.htm
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Queen's Awards for Enterprise 2010 - open for entries
The Queen's Awards for Enterprise 2010 are open for entries until the end of October 2009. The Awards aim to recognise and reward the success of growing British businesses in three areas - International Trade, Innovation and Sustainable Development.
For further information and to access the online application forms go to:
http://www.queensawards.org.uk/business/2007_winners.html
(This is the right URL, honest!)
On 1 October 2009 the new rates for the National Minimum wage will come into effect:
- the adult rate (for workers aged 22 and over) rises from £5.73 to £5.80 an hour;
- the development rate for those aged 18 to 21 rises from £4.77 to £4.83 an hour;
- the rate for 16 to 17-year-olds is increased from £3.53 to £3.57 an hour.
-------------------------------------------------
Also from 1 October, employers will no longer be able to include tips to make up the balance of the minimum wage. This means that all eligible workers must receive at least national minimum wage in base pay with any tips they receive being paid on top of that. Currently, firms can use service charges and gratuities processed through the payroll as part of staff wages.
The Department for Business Innovation and Skills have issued a best practice guide:
http://www.berr.gov.uk/files/file52948.pdf
-------------------------------------------------
The 1 October is also the implementation date for the one-off 2009 Budget increase in the maximum amount of "a week's pay" for calculating compensation for unfair dismissal and redundancy pay, from £350 to £380.
How to negotiate a great deal
The purpose of negotiation is to reach a fair and reasonable compromise, not to try to do the impossible. The key to good negotiation is to gain on issues that are very important to you and yield on those that are not, and come to an agreement that both parties find reasonable and commercially acceptable. To achieve that, here are some tips and tools ...read more....
How to execute documents by virtual signing
Many documents nowadays are managed via internet and it has become common for transactions to complete without the need for a physical completion meeting. The benefits in terms of time and cost savings are obvious. Below is a guidance on how virtual signings can be carried out effectively, provided that the parties are in agreement with the arrangement:
1) Final copies of the documents should be emailed to all absent parties and/or their lawyers, as agreed then each absent signatory should print and sign the signature page only. There is no requirement to print off the full document.
2) Each absent party should then return a single email to its lawyers or to the person co-ordinating the signing/closing. Such email should have attached either the final version of the document and a pdf copy of the signed signature page or the signed signature page with express authority to attach it to the final approved document.
3) A final version of the document, along with copies of the executed signature pages, may be circulated to evidence the execution of the final document. The final approved version of the document with the pre-signed signature pages that have been attached with the prior approval of the parties (or their lawyers) will constitute the original signed document.
New trademark fees and services
The current official fees for filing a UK trade mark application are £200 for one class, and £50 for each additional class. From 1st October 2009 if an application is filed online, and the fees are paid at the same time the application is filed, a the total fees will be reduced by £30. While this is helpful, national offices still have a long way to go to make national filings cost effective when compared with Community Trade Mark.
There is related second significant change in procedure from 1st October 2009: if a trade mark application is filed online, all subsequent correspondence from the Intellectual Property Office to attorneys is sent by e-mail only. Given the significant cost benefit, it may only be a matter of time before all correspondence from the IPO (and indeed OHIM) is sent by e-mail only.
Story link:
http://class46.eu/2009/07/uk-ipo-new-trade-mark-fees-and-services.html
------------------------------------------------------
New, faster scheme for ´green´ patent applications
Earlier this year, a new 'Green Channel' scheme for patent applications was introduced by the UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO). Under the scheme applicants are able to request accelerated processing for a patent application if the invention relates to green or environmentally-friendly technology. Under the new scheme there are a number of acceleration options which mean that a green patent can be issued in as little as 9 months.
The IPO have not specified the criteria they will apply to determine whether the claim that the application relates to green technology is justified. Nor have they stated how much information the applicant must give to prove the 'greenness' of the invention. The IPO has simply stated that the Green Channel is available to any applicant who makes a reasonable assertion that the invention in the patent application is one which has some environmental benefit. There are no additional costs for accelerating an application.
Story link:
http://www.ipo.gov.uk/p-pn-green.htm
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Queen's Awards for Enterprise 2010 - open for entries
The Queen's Awards for Enterprise 2010 are open for entries until the end of October 2009. The Awards aim to recognise and reward the success of growing British businesses in three areas - International Trade, Innovation and Sustainable Development.
For further information and to access the online application forms go to:
http://www.queensawards.org.uk/business/2007_winners.html
(This is the right URL, honest!)
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Entelliz Weekly Newsletter - Issue 36, 2009
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YOUR RANT...
I have recently attended a public consultation that was organised by my NHS Primary Care Trust on the changes in local healthcare provisions. Following a very good summary of the "planned changes", what became apparent was that this "consultation" took place after the new service contracts have already been awarded. It was also clear that we have no way of deciding whether any of these contracts should go to profit-generating commercial companies instead of GP teams; they have already gone to them.
I am a business woman and I like commercial, but cannot see sense in bringing in profit-making commercial companies to deliver public sector services and spend millions, from the same tax-money pool, on boosting social enterprise in the private sector. Shouldn't we try to promote social enterprise into both?
Click here to comment or email me your rant...