Creative HEAD May 2017

#BusinessEdit
YOUR SALON CHECKLIST
MAKING SURE YOUR BUSINESS IS READY FOR THE YEAR AHEAD
ALCOHOL LICENCES: A toughening up of the rules governing the sale of
alcohol to businesses means salons that sell or provide alcohol should now
check that their supplier has been properly approved by HMRC under its
Alcohol Wholesaler Registration Scheme.
HAIRDRESSERS
LOVE THEIR WORK
NEARLY NINE OUT OF 10 NHF salon and
barbershop owners – 87 per cent – describe
themselves as being either ‘happy’ or ‘very
happy’ in their work, an NHF members’ survey
has revealed.
The poll of nearly 150 members found that
‘making clients feel good’ was the most satisfying
element about their work (45 per cent) followed
by ‘working in or running a successful business’
(28 per cent). On the other hand, stress was the
thing that made members most unhappy (35 per
cent), followed by “not making enough money”
(28 per cent). The survey suggested there was
a clear link between a happy team and a happy,
successful salon. If a salon had a happy, engaged
team, that was more likely to feed through into a
better client experience, excellent service and a
more relaxed, pleasant atmosphere.
“Hairdressing is a sociable job; we’re chatting
and interacting with the clients all day long.
Hairdressing is about making people feel good
about themselves, feeling happy, and that
comes through I think within the job,” agreed
NHF member Sarah Turnbull, who runs Sublime
Hairdressing in Stirling.
When it came to what made members unhappy,
responses included: “The amount of money I
pay to HMRC, VAT, PAYE, tax, auto-enrolment
and wondering what they are going to introduce
next” and “stress caused by staffi ng issues and
diffi culty fi nding qualifi ed staff that can actually do
the job properly without the need to retrain”.
APPRENTICESHIP LEVY: The new apprenticeship levy came into force
from April. Any employer with a pay bill of more than £3m will be charged
0.5 per cent of this (so a minimum of £15,000) to pay into a central pot to
fund apprenticeship-based education. This will, however, only affect larger
employers in the industry.
CCTV: Hair salons and barber shops are being warned that, if they have a
CCTV security system to monitor their premises, they need to register it
with the Information Commissioner’s Office. It costs £35 a year to do so, and
you can do it at ico.org.uk/for-organisations/register/. Failure to register your
system can put you at risk of being taken to court and fined up to £500,000,
said CCTV.co.uk.
EMPLOYMENT CHECKS: The NHF is reminding salons owners to carry out
background checks on all new staff, after the government carried out a drive to
crack down on illegal workers, which included targeting the beauty industry.
The government outlines how to carry out right-to-employment checks on its
gov.uk website. This includes making sure you see original, valid and in-date
documents showing they have a right to work in the UK, and making and
keeping copies. It is also important to ensure photographs and dates of birth
match and the potential employee has permission to do the type of work you’re
offering. The NHF also outlines how to carry out the checks in its employment
guides, available online at nhf.info.
GENDER PAY REPORTING: Since April, larger employers (employing 250
people or more), have been required to report publicly on any gender pay gap
they may have, including any bonus payments they may make.
MATERNITY, PATERNITY AND SICK PAY
Statutory pay rates for maternity, paternity, adoption and shared parental leave
all rose from April, as did the rate for statutory sick pay. They are now:
PAY WEEKLY RATE NOW WEEKLY RATE PREVIOUSLY
SICK £89.35 £88.45
MATERNITY, PATERNITY, ADOPTION
AND SHARED PARENTAL LEAVE £140.98 £139.58
Workers on Living and Minimum Wage ‘unaware of rights’
MORE THAN HALF (57 per cent) of workers on
the National Minimum Wage or National Living
Wage do not realise it is illegal for their employer to
deduct money from their wages to cover the cost of a
uniform, if that then takes their pay below the legal
minimum, government research has suggested.
A study by the Department for Business, Energy
and Industrial Strategy ahead of April’s increases
in both wages found widespread ignorance among
low-paid workers as to what they are entitled to. More
than two thirds (69 per cent) of employees did not
know they were entitled to be paid for travel time
between work appointments. And nearly half (48 per
cent) did not realise employers cannot use tips to “top
up” pay to the legal minimum. The NHF’s ‘A Guide to
the National Minimum Wage’ is available at nhf.info
The NHF has
revised and simplifi ed
its employee contracts,
staff handbook and
apprenticeship agreements
for England and Wales
nhf.info/nhf-shop/
To find out more information and how to join the NHF, call 01234 831965 or visit nhf.info
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