December monthly

Member’s Newsletter December 22

Message from the CEO

Dear member,

The Government’s TBESS scheme should finally be operating in December. The first claim period for which a claim can be made is September 2022 and it was expected that businesses would be able to make claims through the Revenue Online Service (ROS) by the end of November 2022 Applications for REGISTRATION for the scheme opened on 26th November, and businesses will be able to use the online system to submit claims under the scheme from 5th December Electric Ireland has a good summary of access to the scheme here

Please let us know if there are difficulties with the scheme. As you can see from the Revenue guidance linked above, what sounded like a simple scheme has over 60 pages of detailed guidance!

On top of other measures such as statutory sick pay (which commences in January) the Tánaiste recently announced a plan to move to a "Living Wage" over the next three years This would represent a substantial (16%) increase over the 1st January 2023 level of the national minimum wage of €11.30 per hour. We can expect this to have a significant impact on employers in the grooming, leisure, childcare, distribution, retail and hospitality sectors. You will find our reaction to the Tánaiste’s announcement here.

The Christmas season is here, and from an SME point of view, so many businesses rely on this time of year for a substantial part of their annual revenue We encourage ISME members to actively support our Shop Local campaign, in both the B2B and B2C sectors

Christmas is also a time when many businesses will treat staff to a festive night out or a party. This is always an area of potential risk for employers, since any function organised by the employer is effectively controlled by the employer, who has ultimate responsibility for what happens at the event. You will find detailed guidance in an article about organising Christmas gatherings in this issue

You will, unfortunately, have seen mention of ISME in the press regarding a defamation claim which followed the dismissal of a fraudulent claim in the High Court. Of greater and more recent concern to us however is a threat of defamation proceedings made against us by a solicitor following submission by ISME of a complaint of professional misconduct about them to the Legal Services Regulatory Authority. We have asked the Department of Justice to explain what protections they intend to introduce to protect complainants who avail of their entitlement under Section 51 of the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015 So far, I regret to tell you, we have heard nothing from the Department of Justice in this regard In the meantime therefore, while you have every legal right to make a complaint against a solicitor, you are advised to seek your own legal advice before you submit a complaint to the LSRA.

Don’t forget If you need money, use the ISME FINANCE FINDER!

Thanks to all of you who attended our Roadshows around the country, that’s it for 2022, but you’ll see us soon again in 2023

Finally, on behalf of our Chair Margaret O’Rourke Doherty and the ISME National Council, may the staff and I wish you a very Happy Christmas and a prosperous 2023.

AJ Brennan & Co

Brian Conneely Commercial 2 Limited

DP

FIS

ISME welcomes new members

ISME news

Negative impact of the proposed increase to minimum wage

The Government recently announced a plan to increase the National Minimum Wage to a “Living Wage”. We believe that moving to a living wage will come at a serious economic and social cost in Ireland, most especially for lower skilled and unskilled workers.

ISME CEO, Neil McDonnell said: “The most significant cost for individual workers today is that for accommodation. Adjusting the Minimum Wage upwards will have no impact on the affordability of housing and rental accommodation for workers as rents spiral upwards, chasing an ever diminishing supply of accommodation. Ireland must face the fact that the 96% reduction in the supply of rental accommodation since 2012 is due to tax and regulatory changes which have made the provision of rental accommodation prohibitively unattractive The solution to the accommodation crisis cannot be “outsourced” to employers since the problem is not wages It is the non availability of affordable accommodation Supply is the only solution Therefore, hundreds of employers are already providing accommodation to thousands of their employees because they cannot afford to pay them wages sufficiently large to cover current national rent levels ”

Finbarr Filan, a convenience store owner from Sligo on the ISME National Council, said: “The National Minimum Wage is used as a benchmark for all the employees in the retail and hospitality sector An increase of 16% in the base Minimum Wage would impact the wages of all our staff and would increase grocery prices to the customer by 4% if passed on in full. In reality, we would have to look at ways to avoid passing on the full impact to customers, so we would have to make savings elsewhere.”

Read full details here.

Think, Spend & Support LOCAL

Our Shop Local 2022 campaign is live, and the theme is Think, Spend & Support LOCAL. The focus to the campaign is for us all to Think Local before we buy, then Spend locally and Support with recommendations and referrals, now just now but throughout the year Through a Local focus we can:

• Support our local community

• Reduce our carbon footprint and transport costs

• Access products that are sustainable and traceable money have created 2 portals for consumers here and for businesses variety of categories such as gifts & crafts, fashion, food & breaks, which offers gift ideas for Christmas and showcases can access a directory of B2B products and services such as financial services, IT and marketing, transport, printing, office more

We invite businesses, no matter what type of business you have, to participate and advertise in our campaign by filling in the form here

The listing is free for members and the rates for non members is here

ISME news

Tell us what you think?

How did your business find Q3? We are living in particularly challenging times, so we want to hear from you on how your business has been impacted by completing our Q3 Trends Survey 2022

The Trends Survey provides us with the latest up to date information on pay, insurance costs and confidence indicators in the SME sector.

You can take the Q3 Trends Survey here

ISME in the news

ISME featured in the media this past month speaking some about the following subjects:

• Economic cost of introducing living wage

• Shop, Spend & Support LOCAL

• ISME Roadshows Series 2022

• Wages

You can view and listen back to a selection of ISME’s media coverage here.

ISME Finance Finder

Looking at planning for 2023 and beyond, then explore the funding options available to SMEs with the ISME Finance Finder powered by Swoop Funding. This online tool offers loan choices to SMEs in minutes, streamlining the funding application process

View our new series of Q&A videos with Andrea Reynolds, CEO with Swoop Funding about the online portal that explain how it works, the funding available and more here

Your funding journey starts now by going to www.isme.ie/finance finder

ISME’s Christmas Office Hours

The ISME office and phonelines will be closed during the Christmas holiday on 26th 30th December, reopening on Tuesday 3rd January.

ISME news

Energy Supports

ISME has created an Energy section on the website with information, updates and advice to help your business during the cost of energy crisis. You can view here.

Temporary Business Energy Support Scheme (TBESS)

The TBESS will assist businesses with their electricity or natural gas (energy) costs during the winter months. The scheme will be open to businesses that:

• are tax compliant

• carry on a Case I trade or Case II profession (including certain charities and approved sporting bodies in relation to certain income) and

• have experienced a significant increase of 50% or more in their natural gas and electricity average unit price between the relevant bill period in 2022 and the corresponding reference period in 2021

Revenue will administer the scheme, which is being designed to be compliant with the European Union (EU) State Aid Temporary Crisis Framework. This means that EU Commission approval will be required for the scheme before any payments can be made to businesses.

Applications for registration for the scheme opened on 26th November, and businesses will be able to use the online system to submit claims under the scheme from 5th December.

Information on the scheme is available from Revenue here and you can read the guidelines here

Other government supports include:

• Ukraine Enterprise Crisis Scheme

• Small Firms Investment in Energy Efficiency Scheme

• Ukraine Credit Guarantee Scheme

• Growth and Sustainability Loan Scheme

Find out more here

ISME news

Energy Supports

Starting your Energy Efficiency Journey

There are a number of government supports and resources available to help businesses mitigate the impact of energy price rises and become more energy efficient whether you are beginning your journey to sustainability or at an advanced stage, find out more here

Reduce Your Use and Fund you Renewable Energy Transition

Watch back SEAI’s recent business briefing webinar called ‘Reduce Your Use and Fund you Renewable Energy Transition here.

SEAI Energy Efficiency Guide for Retailers

The SEAI Energy Efficiency Guide is for Irish retailers aims to introduce simple and effective energy related advice to help businesses use and manage energy more efficiently The guidance outlined will help retail businesses start their energy efficiency journey and point them towards SEAI resources to help ensure successful long term energy management practices.

The guide is available on the SEAI website here.

Health & Safety

Choose Safety Programme

The HSA are running the Choose Safety Programme, a free programme available to post primary schools and colleges of Further Education. It introduces senior cycle students/students in further education to the principles of workplace safety and health. So, for employers, look out for the Choose Safety programme awards on CVs when hiring young workers! If you are hiring young workers who haven’t complete the programme, please recommend that they take a free health and safety course here

The HSA website has detailed information about the Choose Safety Programme, discover more here.

HSA Publications

Check out the HSA’s latest publications including a guide on High Visibility Clothing for Use Around Moving Vehicles here

ISME news

InterTradeIreland

There’s still time to register for InterTradeIreland’s December events which include:

• InterTradeIreland Go 2 Tender Supplies & Services Workshop Tuesday 6th December, 9.30am 1.00pm, Register here.

• InterTradeIreland Equity Advisory Clinic Thursday 15th December, Register here.

• InterTradeIreland Equity Advisory Clinic Tuesday 20th December, 8.30 9.30am, Register here.

National Pension Summit 2023

Taking place on Thursday, January 26th, Croke Park, Dublin, the summit will explore the forms pensions schemes may take in the future; developments in pensions policy; regulation and enforcement; the wider social implications; and new ways of communicating with members. Its interactive format is designed to encourage delegate participation and facilitate discussion about critical DC issues.

ISME Members can get a 30% discount by adding code ISME30 whey you book. To find out more and book your place click here.

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ISME news

Employee Awards Programmes

Up to now, the Small Benefit Exemption Scheme allowed Irish employers to provide a non cash tax exempt benefit to Irish employees of up to €500 once per year. The exemption threshold is now increased from €500 to €1,000 per employee per year. Employers can give two tax free rewards in a year up to the threshold instead of just one.

Two ISME Members offer tax free reward products Allgo Rewards Card, details here, and One4All Rewards, find out more here

Want to be in the media?

We frequently get requests from local and national media to talk to our members about their businesses or key issues that are impacting them. If this would interest you, please contact marketing@isme.ie

A valuable support for your employees

ISME partners with Laya healthcare and their health & wellbeing provider, SpectrumLife to provide 24/7 Mental Wellbeing Support Programme (EAP) for ISME Members. We offer unlimited access for your employees and their families to a 365 freephone EAP service, accessible via website, app, or live chat. The cost for up to 30 employees is €500 + VAT and each subsequent employee €9 per employee. Find out more here.

HR Update

The Payment of Wages (Tips and Gratuities) Act 2022

The Payment of Wages (Amendment) (Tips and Gratuities) Act 2022 became law on the 20th of July 2022 and comes into effect on the 1st of December 2022 This Act introduces new rules about how employers share tips, gratuities, and service charges amongst its employees and gives new rights to employees. The aim of this Act is to provide clarity on the meaning of tips, gratuities and service

charges

An important features of this Act are that employers cannot use tips and gratuities to ‘make up’ contractual rates of pay and cannot make a deduction from a person’s wage in relation to tips and gratuities Employees are legally entitled to receive electronic tips and gratuities and they must be distributed in a fair, equitably and transparent manner. This will be context specific, it will take into account factors such as the seniority or experience of an employee, the role and influence of the employee in providing service to customers, or the number of hours worked (This list is not exhaustive). The act clarifies that an employer cannot retain any share of electronic tips. The employer must provide a statement to workers showing the amount of tips obtained in a period and the portion paid to the individual employee for that period. However, there may be circumstances e g to pay tax, or bank charges arising from providing electronic modes of tipping, or when the employer regularly performs to a substantial degree the same work performed by some or all the employees, where such an amount may be deducted that is fair in the circumstances.

Furthermore, customers have the right to know what service charges are used for and who they go to this will now be reflected in these upcoming changes. From the start of December this year, employers must clearly display their policy on how cash and card tips, gratuities and service charges are distributed. The ‘Tips and Gratuities Notice’ must clearly state:

• Whether or not tips or gratuities are distributed to and among staff

• The way they are distributed, and the amounts distributed

• Whether or not service charges (or any portion of them) are distributed, and if so, how they are distributed, and amounts distributed

In the past, there was no legislation which requires employers to give the tips received by them to employees Therefore, a customer had no way of knowing if the tip they left was given to the employee they dealt with, and the worker had no protection if their employer chose to keep some or all the tips left by customers. This new law will provide clarity to the customer as to where their tip will go.

All employers are obliged to consult with their employees on any changes to their current process regarding tips or gratuities distribution. Under this act it is for the employer to decide on the policy that will be implemented in relation to the distribution of tips or gratuities An employer must now include the policy regarding the distribution of tips or gratuities and service charges in the employee’s core terms and conditions of employment within 5 days of commencing employment. It is important to note that an employee has the right to take a case to the Workplace Relations Commission if they feel the way the employer is distributing the tips or gratuities is unfair.

This new law is another improvement to employees’ rights, which is an area that the Government is focusing on. Other elements in this plan include a new public holiday in February, Statutory Sick Pay, the upcoming Right to Request Remote Work and the plan to move to a National Living Wage.

Learning & Development

We are Back in Business! Additional funding secured to continue our Back to Business programme in 2023. This is a complimentary service to our loyal membership.

Over the past two years we successfully delivered a powerful programme providing mentoring and coaching to ISME Members to ensure they were well equipped to get back to business post pandemic

The engagements completed focused on several critical business areas, including improvements to operations (HR, Recruitment, Finance), the introduction of new technologies, the use of social media for sales and marketing, introducing new products and services, and assist with geographical reach and open international markets.

If you are a private sector business based in Ireland with between 5 and 250 employees, you are eligible to participate in the ISME Back in Business initiative.

Business coaching and mentoring is a proven, highly effective method to review, improve and grow a business but it is costly.

Our panel of experienced mentors and business advisors have either sectorial or domain expertise. They have been through ordeals that many businesses are going through themselves. Therefore, offering to share their experience allows the development of a trusted partnership, and set a confident path to success. Apply for

Have you applied for your free business mentor?

HR Update

Work Christmas Party Season

After an unprecedented 2+ years, and many a Zoom Christmas Party had, 2022 is the first time in what feels the longest time, where in person Christmas Parties are back. Whilst this might sound like a great idea, employers need to be aware that they may also find themselves liable for complaints of inappropriate behaviour like insulting conduct and unwanted sexual advances, etc, which may have occurred as a result of excessive alcohol consumption during the event

Given that most employees perhaps have not seen each other a day to day basis, serious catch ups are on the cards, however with alcohol in the mix we would recommend taking Pre emptive Action prior to the party/get together to ensure that it’s a good night for all and there are no unsavoury issues or Grievances to deal with on the Monday morning….

Pre emptive Action

As employers you don’t have the automatic entitlement to take disciplinary action following an incident at a work related event, because employees have a reasonable expectation that what they do outside of working hours is not subject to company disciplinary rules. However, employers can take the following steps:

• Ensure all employees are aware of clear policies on bullying, harassment, email and internet use and disciplinary procedures

• Issue a Memo to staff in advance of the event to ensure they are aware of the company’s expectations of conduct that they may be subject to disciplinary action for unacceptable behaviour

• Remind staff to drink alcohol responsibly and in moderation

• Consider arranging transportation for employees to and from the event to reduce the likelihood of drink driving, and help ensure that employees get home safely.

• Employers should ensure that the venue is safe and appropriate, bearing in mind its suitability for any disabled employees.

• Managers are advised to avoid work related discussions at all costs.

• Coach managers on how to respond to any unwanted conduct that may occur at the event.

• If any inappropriate behaviour occurs, investigate all complaints promptly upon return to work, making reference to the memo mentioned above

• Absence Management where the Christmas party falls on a day when employees will be required to attend work the following day, employers should communicate to staff not to be at work under the influence of alcohol so that they do not endanger their own or another person’s health and safety at work

Be mindful that some employees still may not be comfortable with an in person Christmas Party, so be mindful of individual concerns and perhaps offer an alternative if an employee makes you aware that they are feeling this way.

It is undoubtedly nice to give back to your employees, as well as a team building opportunity for employees’ to mark the festive season, however whilst out in a group setting employees are still representing the company and should conduct themselves in a manner that is in line with the company Dignity & Respect Policy It is advisable to remind employees of this using some of the pre emptive measures above

For more information on this topic, or any other HR Support please don’t hesitate to contact HR@ISME.ie

A copy of the Memo mentioned above can be found on the next page

HR Update

Christmas Party Memo

TO: ALL STAFF

FROM: MANAGEMENT

SUBJECT: CHRISTMAS PARTY

DATE:

Dear Team,

As you are aware the Christmas Season is approaching, and we will be having our company party.

This is a great event and I hope everyone can make it, however I am just writing to remind everyone that it is a work event. As such you are reminded that you are expected to behave in a manner that reflects the company values of respect and dignity for its employees.

If you are having a drink, please take responsibility of your consumption and don’t overindulge as this could result in behaviour that may cause an issue for you or the company.

You are also reminded that you are expected to adhere to the company Bullying and Harassment policy while at company events. Please remember that if someone indicates that your behaviour is unwelcome, stop whatever it is that you are doing and be respectful if their position.

We are encouraging everyone to have a good time but are asking you to be mindful that your own behaviour does not affect another member of the team.

Also, please remember that if you are posting on Social Media platforms, that you keep the posts appropriate and in line with company expectations. Please do not post inappropriate statements of photos that undermine employee or company credibility.

You will be provided with a copy of the Corporate/Social Events Policy in advance of the event.

Any complaints will be addressed through the company’s Grievance and Disciplinary procedures.

Signed, Management