Minimum wage - Hospitality

LNL

Tower Hamlets argues late-night levy is necessary to pay £330,000 police bill

29-Feb-2016 By Emily Sutherland

Tower Hamlets has become the latest London borough to consult on introducing a late-night levy.

Casual Dining

National living wage 'could be positive for pubs'

25-Feb-2016 By Nicholas Robinson

Pubs can thrive under the national living wage (NLW) when it comes into force on 1 April, two operators have said, despite dire warnings from other trade leaders who say otherwise.

Greene King Leisure Tracker

Dry January 'having less impact'; licensees hopeful of positive Budget

24-Feb-2016 By Oli Gross

Fewer than half of British adults (49%) are aware of the Government’s Budget in March, but those who are have high expectations for change, according to this month’s Greene King Leisure Spend Tracker.

Reader Survey

National Living Wage: Last chance to voice your views on survey

24-Feb-2016 By Mike Berry

The new National Living Wage (NLW) comes into force on 1 April and will provide a huge challenge for the pub trade.

National living wage

Younger staff or fewer opening days: Licensees mull national living wage options

10-Feb-2016 By Oli Gross

National living wage requirements are fast approaching, and for many pubs “something’s got to give” as licensees weigh up their options to compensate for extra costs. Oli Gross spoke to pubs up and down the country to discover the industry’s plans and...

National Living Wage

Operators split over impact of living wage

05-Feb-2016 By Emily Sutherland

Operators remain split over the impact of the national living wage (NLW) with less than two months to go until the new minimum pay rate comes into force.

National Minimum Wage

Pub named and shamed for failing to pay minimum wage

05-Feb-2016 By Oli Gross

A pub has been listed as one of 92 employers named and shamed for not paying workers national minimum wage.

Wetherspoon reports rise in like-for-like sales

20-Jan-2016 By Emily Sutherland

Pub giant Wetherspoons has revealed like-for-like sales were up 2.8% in the 25 weeks leading up to 17 January and a 3.3% rise in the last 12 weeks.

Government survey

National living wage will make 70% of employees 'more positive'

18-Jan-2016 By Oli Gross

More than 70% of workers will feel more positive after the introduction of national living wage (NLW), according to new Government research.

Comment

Wetherspoons founder hits out on VAT: 'It's the maths, stupid'

07-Jan-2016 By Tim Martin

Despite leaving the VAT Club, Tim Martin speaks out in typically forthright fashion on the tax burden of the pub trade.

city news

Implementing National Living Wage 'toughest in low-paying northern cities'

05-Jan-2016 By MC Allegra FS

Implementing the new National Living Wage (NLW) will be toughest in lower-paying city regions such as Sheffield, Nottingham and Birmingham, where over a quarter of all employees will be affected by 2020, according to new analysis published by the Resolution...

CBI report

National Living Wage: Companies plan fewer staff and higher prices

22-Dec-2015 By M&C Allegra

A new report by the CBI has highlighted concerns about skills shortages and the National Living wage as the key challenges for the sector going into 2016.

MA300 club

MA300 members to debate NLW at Nottingham event

15-Dec-2015 By Mike Berry

The new national living wage is set to have a big impact on the trade in 2016, and the next MA300 business club will host a debate on the topic.

Demolition

Licensee who named pub after deceased daughter hits out at bulldozing plans

11-Dec-2015 By Emily Sutherland

A Camden publican who named his pub in honour of his daughter after she died has hit out against plans to demolish it to make way for the High Speed 2 rail project (HS2).

Legislation

National Living Wage: Government urges employers to be prepared

07-Dec-2015 By Ben Winstanley

Pubs have been told to prepare early for the introduction of the new National Living Wage on 1 April 2016 following a government survey which found fewer than half of businesses were ready.

Editorial

Time to raise our game across the pub board

03-Dec-2015 By Ed Bedington

The Chancellor’s decision not to extend rate relief for a further year was a nice kick in the teeth for the trade, and just in time for Christmas too!

Analysis

The National Living Wage: the story so far

20-Nov-2015 By Emily Sutherland

Chancellor George Osborne caught the industry off-guard earlier this year when he announced a new national living wage (NLW) of £7.20 per hour for workers aged 25 or over from April 2016, rising to £9 by 2020. Pub operators have been crunching the numbers...

wages

Bar work tops list of those not getting living wage

02-Nov-2015 By Emily Sutherland

Bar work has topped the list of professions failing to pay a living wage, with 90% of bar staff not paid enough to reach an ‘acceptable standard of living.’

Chefs could lose over £2k a year due to tax credit cuts

30-Oct-2015 By Daniel Woolfson

Certain chefs could lose more than £2,000 in tax credits a year under George Osborne’s proposed cuts, according to a new report.

National Minimum Wage

Pub operators failing to pay minimum wage named and shamed

22-Oct-2015 By Oli Gross

Three pub operators have been named and shamed on a list of companies neglecting National Minimum Wage requirements.

National living wage 'to cost hospitality sector £13.2m by 2020'

16-Oct-2015 By MC Allegra FS

The hospitality and leisure sector will be hit with a £13.2m increase in wages by 2020 when the national living wage (NLW) comes into force.

National Living Wage

Time to pay more than just respect to workers

16-Oct-2015 By Ed Bedington

The thorny issue of wages is rarely out of the headlines these days. But before we dive into the debate head first, I would urge caution.

BBPA chair: accept living wage - or face intervention

15-Oct-2015 By MC Allegra FS

Jonathan Neame, the chairman of the British Beer and Pub Association, has urged the sector to embrace the challenges of the national living wage or face further legislation.

Living wage will cause "difficult staffing decisions"

14-Oct-2015 By Oli Gross

Many pubs will have to make tough decisions concerning staffing and jobs because of escalating pay levels and the introduction of the new national living wage (NLW).

The National Living Wage will lead to more pub closures

09-Oct-2015 By William Lees-Jones

When George Osborne announced the introduction of the National Living Wage in July he surprised everybody. It came out of the blue and was a shameless political coup from a recently-elected government aimed at scoring points over other political parties.

Training

Fuller’s to match Living Wage as part of training pledge

09-Oct-2015 By MC Allegra FS

Fuller’s has announced it will offer a payrise for any team member on one of its development programmes, which will equal the first stage of the National Living Wage.

Scottish drink drive legislation 'negatively impacting' trade

16-Sep-2015 By MC Allegra FS

The change in drink driving legislation is negatively impacting Scotland’s hospitality trade according to a report from the Scottish Licensed Trade Association (SLTA).

Craft Beer Co founder says claims chain underpaid bar staff are 'entirely wrong'

15-Sep-2015 By Emily Sutherland

Craft Beer Co founder and managing director Martin Hayes has rubbished online rumours that the bar chain failed to pay a member of staff the minimum wage.

Prices, and when to put them up - the big issue in the trade

15-Sep-2015 By Kate Nicholls

Pricing - it has been the number one topic of discussion amongst the retailers I have met over the past week.

Living Wage

Govt warns living wage will be 'robustly enforced'

18-Aug-2015 By Emily Sutherland

The government has warned businesses that the new living wage will be ‘as robustly enforced as the national minimum wage’, with the HMRC given an increased budget of £13.2 million to help investigate offenders and deal with complaints.

Finance

Poll shows 70% of operators fear living wage rollout

17-Aug-2015 By MC Allegra FS

The planned introduction of a new national living wage (NLW) for the over-25s continues to generate a mixed response across the sector, with more than 70% of operators in the UK’s eating and drinking-out market believing it will have a negative impact...

Wages

Lancashire pub named and shamed for not paying minimum wage

04-Aug-2015 By Emily Sutherland

A Lancashire pub has been named and shamed for failing to pay employees the national minimum wage.

City news

M&B share price slides following living wage announcement

22-Jul-2015 By M&C Allegra

Mitchells & Butlers has seen its share price slide since the announcement that a National Living Wage will be introduced.

Analysis

'Lack of input' on living wage

15-Jul-2015 By Emily Sutherland

The Budget last week threw up an unexpected change to pay packets at pubs. Emily Sutherland finds out what sector bosses think of the implementation of a living wage — which has been introduced after no consultation with the industry.

Compulsory living wage strikes fear into licensees

15-Jul-2015 By Emily Sutherland

Added costs could see job losses across the UK, industry claim.

Living wage or just a new minimum wage?

15-Jul-2015 By Ed Bedington

As ever, when it comes to government and fiscal matters, they give with one hand and take away with the other.

Wages

Report reveals average wage £6.75 in pubs

10-Jul-2015 By Oli Gross

The average hourly wage in the pub and restaurant sector is currently £6.75, according to research from Fourth Hospitality.

Why it would pay to pay the living wage

25-Jun-2015 By Ed Bedington

There’s been an increased focus in recent months on making the trade more appealing as a career, and so it was refreshing to read the story of the Prospect Inn in Exeter.

Pubs urged to pay staff living wage

25-Jun-2015 By Mike Berry

A Devon licensee who is paying her staff the living wage has called on other pubs to help change the trade’s reputation as a low-pay sector.

GENERAL ELECTION

Lib Dems call for planning permission for pub conversions

15-Apr-2015 By Ellie Bothwell

The Liberal Democrats Party has pledged to introduce legislation to ensure planning permission is required to convert a pub into an alternative use.

General Election

Greens call for £6.7bn ‘unhealthy food tax’

15-Apr-2015 By James Wallin

The Green Party has pledged to introduce an ‘unhealthy food tax’ as part of its general election manifesto, which it expects would raise £6.7bn a year.

general election

Tories confirm business rates review to 'back small firms'

14-Apr-2015 By Ellie Bothwell

Prime Minister David Cameron has confirmed that the business rates review will “back small firms” by ensuring there is clearer billing, better communication and a more efficient appeal system.

general election

Labour manifesto: Miliband pledges £8 minimum wage

13-Apr-2015 By Ellie Bothwell

Labour leader Ed Miliband has announced that the national minimum wage will increase from £6.50 to more than £8 by October 2019 if the party wins the general election.

Pub minimum wage 'offenders' hit back

01-Apr-2015 By Noli Dinkovski

Pub operators on the Government’s latest National Minimum Wage ‘name and shame’ list express anger and concern. Noli Dinkovski reports

Pub minimum wage offenders named and shamed

24-Mar-2015 By Ellie Bothwell

Scottish leisure operator G1 Group and a number of pubs have been named and shamed by the Government in a list of employers who failed to pay their workers minimum wage.

Budget 2015: Publicans give lukewarm response

24-Mar-2015 By Helen Gilbert

Licensees have given last week’s Budget a lukewarm reception with a number claiming the headline-grabbing cut in beer duty was unhelpful and support in other areas would have been more welcome.

Minimum wage to rise by 3% to £6.70

17-Mar-2015 By Ellie Bothwell

The National Minimum Wage will increase by 20p an hour to £6.70 from October, the Government has announced.

Challenges of a lease

11-Mar-2015 By Jessica Mason

Carmel Daly-Fletcher, BII Licensee of the Year 1998, has been widely recognised as being one of the top pub managers in the country. But when she made the transition from manager to leaseholder, even with her first-class credentials, she found it a challenging...