For the majority of businesses in Britain, Brexit is a major cause for concern. In January, Theresa May said Britain would leave the European single market. Payroll doesn’t have to be less profitable as a result of Brexit. There are a number of steps you can take to reduce the risk for your bureau, including reducing costs, automating your payroll processes and increasing efficiencies.
With Brexit uncertainty and 750k employers to stage in 2017, make the right financial and business decisions to survive and remain profitable. There is little doubt that payroll bureaus will need to take strategic steps to survive. It would be advisable to try and increase your competitive advantage to stay sustainable and profitable. Bureaus will need to make smarter decisions when it comes to staffing, cost of overheads, productivity levels and profits. It’s not all doom and gloom though. Payroll bureaus that decide to be innovative will not only survive but thrive..
Agenda
Brexit so far..
The Effects on your Client's business
Is payroll less profitable for bureaus
Working faster and smarter
Auto enrolment
Pricing your Services
When is the best time to switch your payroll provider?
How BrightPay can help
For more information visit www.brightpay.co.uk
5. Webinar Agenda
BREXIT so far… The Effects on
Client's Business
Possible Impact on
Employment Law
How can bureaus
be profitable?
Auto Enrolment
as a Service
Working faster
and smarter!
Pricing Your
Services
Best time to switch
payroll provider?
How BrightPay
can help?
7. BREXIT so far…
• Value of the pound
• BREXIT negotiations to begin
in March
• Job cuts
• Relocating elsewhere
• Future investment
8. “We have repeatedly made clear that we
will plan for a range of BREXIT contingencies,
including building greater capacity into our
existing operations in Dublin.”
(Barclays)
BREXIT so far…
9. BREXIT so far…
• The outcomes of BREXIT are still very
vague and daunting
• Massive impact on consumer and
business confidence
• Possibility of knock on effect on your
bureau
11. The Effects on Your Client’s Business
• Weakening pound – paying more for goods & services
• Impact felt by small and medium businesses within just 2 months
12. “Access to the single market means access to 500
million potential consumers, more than 26 million
businesses and is worth €11 trillion.”
(Mike Cherry, FSB)
The Effects on Your Client’s Business
13. The Effects on Your Client’s Business
• Businesses who operate and trade across the EU will be most
affected – trade barriers & tariffs?
• BREXIT will have financial implications for everyone, even for those
businesses who don’t deal directly with the EU
• Clients may react & look to save money where possible
16. Family Friendly Rights
• Maternity Leave
• Adoptive Leave
• Paternity Leave
• Shared Parental Leave
• Flexible Working
• Grandparents Leave
17. Agency Worker Regulations 2010
• Basic protection for agency workers
• To have the same basic working rights and employment conditions
after 12 weeks
18. Annual Leave
• UK annual entitlement exceeds EU law
• Recent unpopular & confusing European decisions
– Accrual of annual leave whilst on sick leave
– Calculation of holiday pay
19. Collective Redundancy Consultation
Current Thresholds
Redundancies to be made
100 + 20 - 99
Period Redundancies to be
made
90 Days 90 Days
Required Consultation
Period 90 Days 30 Days
20. Discrimination
• The Equality Act 2010 – protects people from discrimination in the
workplace and in wider society.
• Possible cap on discrimination claims
22. What can employers do?
• 3/10 UK employees have witnessed racial harassment (2015)
• Have appropriate policies in place
– Grievance policies
– Harassment and anti-bullying policies
– Equality policies
24. How can bureaus be profitable?
• Bureaus will need to take strategic steps to survive
• Look at other areas to save money
• Increase competitive advantage
25. How can bureaus be profitable?
Accountants can advise clients on
the implications of exiting the EU
47%
Of MPs
BREXIT will have a positive impact
on the accountancy profession
WHY?
26. “Amongst all this uncertainty it is very clear that
accountants have a valuable role to play in
advising clients on the tax and financial
implications of our EU withdrawal.”
(Mark Farrar, AAT)
How can bureaus be profitable?
27. “…the strategic insight and analytical rigour
of accountants will be integral to providing
politicians and the civil service with the
information they need”
(John Williams, ACCA)
How can bureaus be profitable?
28. How can bureaus be profitable?
• Bureaus don’t have to be less profitable because of BREXIT
• Bureaus can offer new services to clients
• Examine your clients and their business needs to determine what
services you want to offer
• Which services would be most lucrative for your BREXIT survival
strategy?
30. Auto Enrolment as a Service
• AE can be time consuming, frustrating and costly for SMEs
• 750,000 employers are staging this year
• Spike in potential clients for bureaus
• Employers need help to comply with AE
• Perfect platform for bureaus
32. Working Faster and Smarter!
• Bureaus can improve payroll processing times
• Automation is the key to success
• Good quality software will automate the repetitive and time
consuming payroll tasks
• Significant time savings to using an automated system
33. Working Faster and Smarter!
• API Integration – allows payroll and pension systems to connect
to each other
• Integration is a crucial part of saving time, reducing errors and
reducing time spent submitting files to the pension provider
• NEST and Smart Pension have released API functionality
34. Working Faster and Smarter!
• Dramatic increases of prices in the payroll & accounting industry
• Expensive overheads can be financially crippling for bureaus
• Price hikes & BREXIT could put a real strain on your bureau
• Reduce software overheads to remain profitable
• Payroll and AE software does not have to be costly
36. Pricing Your Services
• Setting a price too high or too low could impact your bureau
• It is important to choose a good pricing strategy from the outset
• Use a good pricing model that makes it feasible to offer AE
services that clients will be willing to pay for
• Re-evaluate your current pricing strategy
37. Pricing Your Services
• Download here
• Online Resources:
– Free webinars
– On demand webinars
– Auto enrolment guides
39. Best Time to Switch Payroll Provider?
• Switching provider – tricky? stressful? time consuming?
• Key reasons to switch:
– Increasing prices
– Lack basic features
– Poor customer support
40. Best Time to Switch Payroll Provider?
• Switching provider – tricky? stressful? Time consuming?
• Key reasons to switch:
– Increasing prices
– Lack basic features
– Poor customer support
41. Best Time to Switch Payroll Provider?
• Switching is not painful, as long as your choose the right payroll
provider!!
• Deciding to make the switch can be a positive and worthwhile
exercise
• If the provider has a good reputation and is well established, then
you can be assured you are on a better path to success
45. Tuesday 21st March @ 11.00 am
https://www.brightpay.co.uk/events/2118/
The Do's and Dont's of Offering
Auto Enrolment as a Service
46. Questions & Answers
For more information visit www.brightpay.co.uk, email
sales@brightpay.co.uk or phone 0845 3004 304
Editor's Notes
Good morning everyone, you are very welcome to today’s webinar.
My name is Rachel Hynes and I work in the marketing department here at BrightPay for the past 3 years. Today I will be talking about Brexit and how it might affect your payroll bureau in 2017 and beyond.
Today’s webinar is also in conjunction with our sister company, Bright Contracts.
Our employment law expert, Laura Murphy, will be joining us later on behalf of Bright Contracts. Laura will have a quick look at the possible impact that BREXIT will have on employment law in the workplace.
You are more than welcome to ask questions throughout the webinar. Feel free to type them into the question bar on your control panel. We will have a few minutes for questions and answers at the end of the webinar and we will get through as many questions as possible.
Click
Today’s webinar is being recorded, and we will send an email to all attendees later today with a link to the recording and a copy of the slides.
So, here is the agenda for my slot today, and as you can see we have a lot to get through.
I’m going to start off first with how BREXIT will potentially affect your clients, the knock on effect that this might have on your bureau, and how you can offer new services to both new and existing clients to sustain profitability.
So having a look first at Brexit so far… For the majority of businesses in Britain, BREXIT is a major cause for concern.
Although the value of the pound declined dramatically after the referendum, it dropped even further when Theresa May announced that Britain would begin BREXIT negotiations by March.
The Labour Party has warned that ‘enormous dangers’ lay ahead under the Prime Minister's plans.
The weakening pound has led to some businesses who are dependent on imports to raise their prices.
Several companies have discussed job cuts. Other global companies whose head offices are based in the UK are taking steps to possibly relocate to somewhere else in Europe.
Some businesses are holding off on future investment and growth until they know for certain how BREXIT will affect their business and profits.
Worryingly, Barclays has already set in motion the process of moving its main EU headquarters as a result of BREXIT.
Barclays said they are moving forward with their contingency plans and will relocate in order to continue to service their EU clients if Theresa May fails to agree a deal.
In a statement from Barclays, they are quoted saying: “We have repeatedly made clear that we will plan for a range of BREXIT contingencies, including building greater capacity into our existing operations in Dublin.”
Although leaving the EU has significant consequences associated with it, the outcomes of BREXIT are still very vague and daunting for UK businesses.
The uncertainty is having a massive impact on customer and business confidence, and if your client’s business suffers, then this may have a knock on effect on your bureau.
So how will BREXIT affect your clients business?
The truth is, nobody is sure what the exact and long term implications of BREXIT will be.
The weakening pound means that British companies are already paying more for goods and services.
According to the Financial Times, the impact was beginning to be felt by small and medium size businesses just two months after BREXIT.
Mike Cherry, Chairman at the Federation of Small Businesses, stresses: “Access to the single market means access to 500 million potential consumers, more than 26 million businesses and is worth €11 trillion.”
It is certain that BREXIT will primarily affect businesses who operate and trade across the EU. The concern for export and import businesses is that there could be an introduction of trade barriers and tariffs.
Although only about 11% of smaller businesses export, this will certainly have financial consequences for the rest of Britain. The reality is, BREXIT will have financial implications for everyone, even for those businesses who don’t deal directly with the EU.
With the high level of uncertainty, clients may react and look to save money where they can and potentially bring some of their outsourced services in-house, such as payroll. Due to financial constraints, clients may ask for a reduction of your payroll fees. Others may have to cease trading.
Along with financial implications, BREXIT may also have an impact on employment law. So here I am going to pass you over to Laura to have a look at these possible impacts…
Looking at the possible or likely impact of Brexit on UK employment law, the first point of note is that really there are very few areas of UK law that can boast a level of European influence as substantial as employment law.
Over the last twenty years EU law has had an immense bearing on UK employment legislation; agency workers’ rights, TUPE, principles of equal treatment, and working time rules including holiday pay and rest breaks to name but a few.
Politicians who campaigned for the UK's exit from the EU cited EU-derived laws as intrusive to UK workplace relations and unnecessary red tape for British business. Irrespective of whether this view is justified or not, there is likely to be an impact on employment law on the UK's exit from the EU.
However, that said, EU legislation has by no means been the only driver behind the development of UK employment legislation. We have instances where UK employment law go beyond EU directives, and there is legislation that is specific to the UK only. With this in mind, if changes to employment law are to be made they will need to strike a very careful balance. Unpopular EU legislation will need to be addressed, but if there is seen to be an erosion of fundamental rights and freedoms of employees and workers then that may well likely cause issues.
It is unlikely that TUPE would be repealed in its entirety because it has become embedded into UK business practices, and the protection it affords to employees in the event of an asset transfer or outsourcing is generally considered to be reasonable and in the interests of business and employees. However, significant restrictions on harmonising terms and conditions after a transfer cause employers real difficulty and may be the subject of change
Maternity leave, adoption leave, paternity leave, shared parental leave. It is unlikely that we will see any change in this area. Momentum has been for some time swinging in favour of extended family friendly rights that reflect social, workplace and technology changes. The right to shared parental leave for example is entirely a domestic piece of legislation. Then there’s grandparent leave due to come into effect in 2018 – again this is solely a domestic move.
The Agency Workers Regulations 2010 provide basic protection for agency workers, the most fundamental being the right to the same basic working and employment conditions as those direct recruits after 12 weeks on assignment. This has been one of the more unpopular pieces of legislation particularly for stretched businesses trying to plug short-term gaps. As such, this piece of legislation is likely to be most at risk post Brexit.
Even though workers in the UK receive a more generous minimum holiday entitlement than required by EU law various decisions of the European Court of Justice relating to the operation of annual leave have proved both unpopular and confusing for UK businesses.
The Right to accrue annual leave whilst on sick leave
The calculation of holiday pay – CJEU ruled that commission payments and some overtime payments should be included in holiday pay not just basic pay.
These rulings have left more questions than answers in many cases. Exit from the EU could provide the UK with the opportunity to clarify and soften this area of employment regulation for employers.
This is an area where changes could be made, the most probable being either to the threshold numbers of redundancies (currently 20 or greater, and 100 or greater) triggering collective consultation and/or the applicable time frame (currently 90 days over which the redundancies are made). Theoretically it could be abolished altogether but with a renewed emphasis on keeping individuals in work rather than on benefits, it is likely that this will remain in some form, although possibly watered down.
In part, the Equality Act 2010 collates previous discrimination legislation that has existed in the UK for some time, particularly in relation to sex, race and disability, and most believe that there will not be wholesale change in this area of law. However one change which we might see is a cap on compensation for discrimination claims, the removal of which was a result of European case law. Such a cap would represent a significant change and would be welcomed by most employers.
The Prime Minister has now made it clear that one of her key priorities in the negotiations with the EU will be to control immigration from within the EU. This is likely to affect current and future workers from the EU who are working in the UK and UK nationals working within other EU countries, who may be subjected to similar and reciprocal restrictions on working rights. We are likely to see greater control of EU immigration but this will need to be balanced against maintaining trade links with Europe, either as part of the single market or otherwise and the potential impact on migrants from other important trading partners outside the EU (and EEA) such as the US, China and India. As many UK businesses depend on having a wide pool of labour and talent this is likely to become an acute issue.
Research by the CIPD revealed that more than 25% of employers suspect that EU staff will quit in 2017. How will this leave your business?
Brexit has given rise to a number of reported incidents of racial harassment within certain communities and many EU nationals have reported being made to feel unwelcome and vulnerable. (research racial harassment report 2015, 3 out of 10 employees in the UK had witnessed racial harassment in the workplace) It is possible that employers will start receiving grievances and claims based on incidents within the work place. Harassment and anti-bullying policies should be reviewed and diversity training should be considered as measures to mitigate the risk of such claims arising.
Race at Work report by Business in the Community. Only 55% of Black, Asia or Minority Ethnic workers said they felt they are a valued member of their team, compared to 71% of white employees.
Creat zero tolerance.
Thanks for that Laura. I must say, it’s quite interesting to hear how much of an impact that Brexit can have on the likes of employment contracts – I don’t think many people have considered this.
Going back again to the big question, which is: How will BREXIT affect your bureau and is it possible to make a profit?
As there is the possibility that clients may cease trading or bring their payroll in-house, payroll bureaus will need to take strategic steps to survive.
While these client scenarios are difficult to control or to plan for, bureaus can look at other areas where they can save money.
Bureaus will need to make smarter decisions when it comes to staffing, cost of overheads, productivity levels and profits.
It would be advisable to try to increase your competitive advantage to remain sustainable and profitable.
It’s not necessarily all doom and gloom for accountants however as it is expected that BREXIT will increase the demand for accountants.
Almost half of MPs (47%) believe that BREXIT will have a positive impact on the accountancy profession, because accountants can advise clients on the implications of exiting the EU.
The Chief Executive at AAT, said: ‘Amongst all this uncertainty it is very clear that accountants have a valuable role to play in advising clients on the tax and financial implications of our EU withdrawal.’
Another quote, this time from the head of ACCA UK: ‘From renegotiating trade deals to developing policies which can help businesses thrive in a globalised 21st century, the strategic insight and analytical rigour of accountants will be integral to providing politicians and the civil service with the information they need.’
Payroll bureaus do not have to be less profitable as a result of BREXIT.
In actual fact, there are a number of new areas of expertise that bureaus can offer as a chargeable service to clients.
It will be significantly beneficial to examine your clients and their business needs to determine what services you want to offer and which services would be most lucrative for your BREXIT survival strategy.
Auto enrolment has been an important growth area for the payroll industry in the last few years.
For your clients, processing auto enrolment can be time consuming, frustrating and costly.
With 750,000 employers reaching their staging date in 2017, bureaus will see a real spike in potential clients.
These small employers will certainly want help from bureaus to comply with their auto enrolment duties.
This is the perfect platform to help clients and offer a new service that clients will pay for.
While adopting or switching payroll software can be a daunting prospect, it can be worth it for the long term survival of your bureau.
Take some time to find software that will improve efficiencies for your bureau.
Increasing your productivity allows you to process more clients in less time.
The administrative time it takes to process payroll and auto enrolment is an area bureaus can look to improve.
Certain payroll providers have made real head way in terms of automation. Others have done little to change or update the functionality of their payroll programme.
Good quality payroll software technology will automate the repetitive and time consuming payroll tasks.
Once you make a short list of a couple of potential providers, compare the automation functionality of each one and the decision making process will be a lot easier.
There will be significant time savings to using an automated system and it will allow bureaus to make their payroll clients more profitable.
Another key area to look at with regards to productivity is API functionality.
This direct integration allows payroll software and various pension providers to communicate or talk directly to each other, which is a similar concept to RTI.
Integration between payroll systems and pension schemes is a crucial part of saving time for each client, each pay period.
Bureaus who harness API technology will reduce errors and reduce the time spent submitting their clients files to the pension provider.
Both NEST and Smart Pension have released API functionality to connect to payroll software providers.
Other leading pension providers are due to release similar API tools in 2017 to help speed up the data submission process for customers.
Recently the escalating cost of software systems has been very topical in the accounting and financial industry.
Worryingly, many software providers are increasing prices dramatically each year with little reason or consideration for their bureau clients. These out of control overheads can be financially crippling for your bureau.
Some bureaus continue to use the same payroll systems despite increasing costs, additional charges for payroll or auto enrolment features (such as payslips, AE communications, etc.) and poor support.
These on-going price hikes, along with the aftermath of BREXIT, could put a real strain on your bureau. Reducing your software overheads will be one of the major components to remaining profitable.
Be aware that payroll and auto enrolment software does not have to be as costly as you think.
Be clever and ensure your chosen payroll software does not have any unnecessary or extraordinary prices. Furthermore, auto enrolment should definitely be included in your bureau package at no additional charge.
Speaking of prices, the price you charge for your payroll services is one of the most important business decisions you will make.
Setting a price too high or too low could impact on your bureau’s growth.
Especially when we look at auto enrolment, bureaus need to get their pricing strategy right.
It is important that you utilise a good pricing model that makes it feasible for bureaus to offer AE service that clients will be willing to pay for.
Ahead of the new tax year, you may wish to re-evaluate your current pricing strategy to ensure you are profitable.
To help with this, we have put together an auto enrolment guide – Three simple but effective Auto Enrolment pricing plans
We also have a number of essential resources on our website that can help you increase revenue by offering auto enrolment as a service, including free and on demand auto enrolment webinars, and a number of auto enrolment guides.
There are a lot of payroll bureaus who are unhappy with their current payroll software provider.
Many avoid even thinking about the problem as there is a perception that switching payroll provider can be tricky, stressful and time consuming.
Increasing prices, lack of basic features and poor customer support are three of the main reasons we hear why bureaus would consider switching provider. Obviously the more a bureau pays for the payroll software, the less profit they can make.
If your current provider charges high fees, lacks basic automation or provides poor support, then now is the time to switch payroll provider.
Switching is not painful, as long as your choose the right payroll provider!!
Deciding to make the switch can be a positive and worthwhile exercise, especially when you look at your profit margin.
If the payroll provider has a good reputation with clients and is well established, then you can be assured you are on a better path to success.
For bureaus BrightPay offers fantastic value for money. The BrightPay 2017/18 bureau licence is just £229 + VAT which includes unlimited employers, unlimited employees, free auto enrolment functionality plus customer support.
As BrightPay is competitively priced, it allows bureaus to increase revenue and profit for their business. We try to make it as easy as possible for you to help your clients achieve compliance, while saving you both time and money.
We are working closely with the Pensions Regulator and the major automatic enrolment pension providers to ensure BrightPay provides you with a user-friendly and automated payroll solution.
Going back to what Laura mentioned earlier about the employment law, Bright Contracts is our sister product which is a software solution to easily create employment contracts and staff handbooks.
The Bright Contracts licence also includes unlimited employers, unlimited employees, free support, and online HR templates and documents.
So now I am going to pass you over to Ann Tighe who will give you a quick look at just how easy auto enrolment can be with BrightPay.
Please just bear in mind that this is just a very quick look at the AE side of the software. We do run online demos on a daily basis, so if you would like a more in depth demo, or a demo of the payroll, BrightPay Cloud or Bright Contracts please just let us know and we can arrange this for you.
Thanks Ann.
Thanks for that Ann…
Before we get to the questions, I would just like to say that our next webinar is on Tuesday 21st March, where we will discuss The Do's and Dont's of Offering Auto Enrolment as a Service. We will include a link to this in our follow up email later today.
What are the economic consequences of Brexit?
The economic impact of Brexit is difficult to accurately assess more than I have mentioned throughout the presentation. However, the strong consensus suggests that Brexit will negatively impact the British economy, at least in the short-term.
Has the UK already left the European Union?
No. Until the UK formally withdraws from the EU, the UK remains a full Member, with all of its existing rights and obligations. Negotiations cannot commence until the UK Prime Minister has formally notified the European Council of the it’s intention to leave. The Prime Minister has said that she intends to do so before the end of March this year. The withdrawal agreement will likely set out a specific date on which the exit will be official.
How long will it take for the UK to actually leave?
No country has voted to leave the EU before, so there’s no precedent to judge by. But in theory, it’s supposed to be completed within two years. In this time the UK will negotiate with the other 27 EU members. Until then, the UK remains an EU member, with all the rights and privileges associated with that.
What will happen to the Common Travel Area?
There is no immediate change to the Common Travel Area. People can still travel as normal between the UK and other EU countries.
What will happen to EU citizens in the UK, and UK citizens in the rest of the EU?
The rights of UK citizens to live and work in the EU, and of EU citizens to live and work in the UK, will depend on the negotiations. If the UK were to remain part of the Single Market – including the free movement of people – there would be little change. If the UK is not part of this, then there might be future controls on movement between the UK and the EU. While it is not certain, it is unlikely that current citizens living in the UK or the rest of the EU would be forced to leave. The measures would likely apply to future movement.
Will there be a second referendum or an alternative to leaving the EU?
No. The country voted to leave the EU and it is the duty of the Government and Parliament to make sure we do just that.
What is Article 50 and why do we need to trigger it?
The rules for exiting the EU are set out in Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union. This is the only lawful route for withdrawal from the EU under the Treaties. The Prime Minister has made clear the Government’s intention to trigger Article 50 no later than the end of March 2017.
Will the UK remain a member of the Single Market?
The government are not seeking membership of the Single Market. They will prioritise getting the freest and most frictionless trade as possible between the UK and the EU. Instead, they will look for a new strategic partnership with the EU, including a Free Trade Agreement and a new customs agreement.
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/589191/The_United_Kingdoms_exit_from_and_partnership_with_the_EU_Web.pdf