Europe is the sick man of the globe: Britain will thrive away from its enfeebling grip September 28, 2015 In the 1970s, Britain was sick. It suffered from endemic inflation, high unemployment, volatile growth and structural decline. Eyes wandered jealously across the Channel to the fast-growing European economies. It is little wonder that some thought the patriotic cause was to join forces with the European Economic Community. Today, the economic wheel has turned [...]
John McDonnell at the Labour Party Conference 2015: Here’s what businesses think September 28, 2015 Newly-appointed John McDonnell made his conference debut as shadow chancellor today – and despite promises of a "stultifyingly boring" speech, it actually turned out to be pretty punchy, with attacks on big business and buy-to-let landlords, as well as a hint that the Bank of England's mandate might be up for discussion. But what did business [...]
Starbucks pledges living wage and interest-free loans for rent to workers September 25, 2015 Starbucks has said it will pay the National Living Wage to all of its workers in the UK and will even offer its workers interest-free loans to help them with housing costs. Read more: Time's running out to reap goodwill from the living wage The coffee conglomerate said that, from November, all baristas – including those [...]
National Living Wage: Business groups raise red flag on future pay rises September 25, 2015 Leading business groups are cautioning against “artificially increasing pay” today, as the Low Pay Commission closes its public consultation on the minimum wage. The Low Pay Commission – an independent body set up to advise the government on the national minimum wage – opened the public consultation last month, as part of a larger [...]
Why London could afford to introduce a much higher National Living Wage September 24, 2015 The chancellor's introduction of a new National Living Wage, which will raise the wage floor by 50p to £7.20 an hour for over-25s from April, is a dramatic break from the last two decades of policy. Whereas previously it had been set by the Low Pay Commission at the highest level that wouldn’t increase [...]
Convenience stores scale back investment ahead of Chancellor George Osborne’s National Living Wage September 24, 2015 Convenience stores are scaling back on business investment as they brace for the impact of Chancellor George Osborne's National Living Wage.. How much convenience stores invested in improvements such as shelving, store signage and in-store lighting fell 34 per cent to £116m in the three months since the summer Budget, compared to the previous quarter. The Association of [...]
National living wage to hit convenience stores including Tesco, Morrisons and Sainsbury’s September 24, 2015 Convenience retailers warned today that they may have to reduce staff hours or cut jobs entirely to fund George Osborne’s national living wage of £9 for over-25s by 2020. Britain’s convenience sector employs around 407,000 staff and consists of around 50,000 stores – of which fewer than 2,500 are run by Tesco, Morrisons and [...]
London jobs will be safe from the National Living Wage September 23, 2015 While some business figures have warned about the potentially nasty side-effects of the government's National Living Wage it appears London will be largely immune from this. The National Living Wage means employees aged over 25 will be paid £7.20 an hour from next April, rising to 60 per cent of median earnings in 2020, estimated to be [...]
Lidl promises to pay above the National Living Wage to all its UK staff September 18, 2015 Lidl has already beaten the big four supermarkets on price. Now, the German discounter also plans to trump them on employee benefits, after revealing that it will pay its staff above the living wage from October. The fast-growing chain announced yesterday that it will adopt the new higher rate it expects the Living Wage [...]
JD Sports share price rises: Retailer posts record first half profit but warns National Living Wage will bite September 17, 2015 JD Sports share price climbed 1.4 per cent this morning as the retailer revealed record first-half profit. But the company has tempered its outlook for the future with a warning over the impact of the Living Wage – yet another company to do so. The figures JD Sports' adjusted pre-tax profit jumped 82 per cent [...]