Occasionally, very occasionally, the industry seems to suffer from a lack of communication, total disinterest or a general malaise, especially when there are things on the horizon that set out to fundamentally alter the way the Window Industry works.
Over the last couple of months the GGF, direct and through its FENSA subsidiary, have communicated to all their members/registered companies about the impending desire by government to change the tax collection methods in the industry. This call was first taken up by the Construction Industry Media, and followed by press releases from the Get Britain Building organisation and the GGF. They have all been pushing the message to anyone that would listen, the need to sign up to register objections to the proposed changes via the No 10 Web site.
These new tax changes are said by the government paper to affect some 250,000 – 900,000 individuals.
Going by the number of respondents to the petition on the No 10 web site, less than 1,800 people seem to be interested.
The conclusions we get from that are:
No one actually cares.
No one actually reads anything from their trade representatives.
No one takes their trade media out of its poly bag when it arrives.
No one believes that the No. 10 petition site has any relevance.
People believe as they are already signed up for ‘The Construction Industry Scheme (CIS)’ on self employment it doesn’t affect them.
Or there is just a general malaise, and they have to accept the way the world is changing around them.
The government paper on the subject is full of the usual spin, and contradictions. It tries to say one thing then clouds the issues with double meanings. Slide into law something low key and leave the real meaning to later.
Trying to paraphrase some of it and how it might affect the Window Industry:
Self-employed, even those that are registered via the CIS scheme, will no longer mean just that. Tax & NIC will have to be collected by the Window Company on behalf on the Window Installer unless certain criteria are met. I have tried to outline them in a Window Industry context.
The contractor will in future be seen as self employed for tax purposes only when:
1 the contractor supplies ALL the plant – (in the window industry) tools and van – (corporate identity?).
2 the contractor is responsible for all the costs with the client (customer), they would have to buy the frames in, with the final balance going into their own bank account. (Everest & Anglian will love that).
3 they do not have continuity of work with one company, which in itself would imply regular employment (they would need to be seen to work for more than 1 company).
4 they pay the wages, i.e. Main Installers pays his own mate (presumably by PAYE).
In other words if the proposal goes through all window fitters could in effect finish up on the books, with pay and conditions similar to all other employees. Just think of all the tools window companies will have to start buying – fitters will probably no longer be able to offset them against tax. Then there is the holiday pay, then the pay for sitting around because they can’t get to site because of the weather. So on and so on.
The real surprise is that no one seems overly concerned about these changes to the status of the industry and that all the trade press in recent months has failed to get the message over.
Or is it that everyone is so busy chasing the next order they haven’t had the time to register the information?
Guest post by Ian McDougall
Fenestration News
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