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June 2015 NEWSLETTER
Load Shedding And Your Employees
Note:  Our labour laws are complex and the penalties for getting them wrong are serious – what is set out below is of necessity just an overview of the legal situation so take full advice on your particular circumstances.

We are getting used to load shedding and it almost certainly is going to be around for several years. Business is already feeling the effects of time disruptions and a major area of concern is how you deal with your workforce in this testing period. A good place to start is with current labour law.
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A Perfect Storm Brewing For Our Economy? El Nino Is Coming Back 
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“Forewarned is forearmed” (wise old proverb)

Recent research has quantified the impact El Nino has on the global economy. In some parts of the world (for example U.S.A.) it has positive effects on the economy. In other parts it reduces growth, increases food and oil prices and inflation. South Africa unfortunately falls into the second category. 

Not only does it have adverse economic implications but the El Nino of 2009-2010 caused food prices to rise rapidly which was one of the catalysts that contributed to the Arab Spring in 2011. 

 
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Updates – UIF, BEE, SARS And Cyber Crime 
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Some timely updates on topics we have covered previously - 


Canned: The UIF Tax Holiday

In his February Budget speech, the Minister of Finance announced a one year reduction in UIF (Unemployment Insurance Fund) payments from a monthly maximum of R148.92 individual deduction to R10 per individual. This was to reduce the R72 billion surplus sitting in the fund. This would have put R15 billion back into consumers’ and businesses’ pockets (the employer matches the individual’s contribution to UIF).

The proposal has been withdrawn, at least for the moment, “to allow more time for consultation”.

This is a pity as a UIF tax holiday would have helped counteract the impact of the income tax increase also announced in the February speech.
 
How Broad Based Is Black Economic Empowerment Going To Be? Ownership Element Plan Ditched 
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The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) released new sector codes early in May. Although a detailed handbook of how to implement the codes is still outstanding, there were some welcome clarifications such as businesses with existing scorecards can keep these to 30 October 2015.

What was surprising was the DTI clarification concerning the ownership element. 
 
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SARS Exceeds Its Collection Target – But Expect More Tax Increases 
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With much fanfare SARS announced recently that it had exceeded its 2014-2015 collection targets by R7.4 billion. The reason for the fanfare was SARS has had bad press of late – resignations of key officials, investigation of a rogue spy unit set up by SARS – and pundits were predicting that SARS would not be able to keep up its high performance standards.
 
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Beware Cyber Crime: It’s Getting Worse 
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In the first quarter of 2015, the number of cyber-attacks doubled over 2014. The message is clear – cyber criminals are getting more sophisticated (for example, one of their new weapons resides in your hardware which makes traditional anti-virus techniques ineffective) and are stepping up their activities.
 
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Your Tax Deadlines For June  
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There are only run-of-the-mill deadlines this month.
 







Disclaimer

The information provided herein should not be used or relied on as professional advice. No liability can be accepted for any errors or omissions nor for any loss or damage arising from reliance upon any information herein. Always contact your professional adviser for specific and detailed advice.

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