Employer jury duty responsibilities

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When an employee gets summoned for jury duty, it can put added stress on the workplace with other staff having to take on extra work. As an employer, you’ll likely want to avoid the inconvenience of releasing an employee for jury duty, however, this may prove to be difficult.

Employers must comply with the legal responsibilities outlined when dealing with an employee who has been summoned for jury duty. Employers who don’t adhere to these responsibilities can face penalties of up to $50,000.

Can you refuse to release an employee for jury duty?
As an employer, you are required to release any employee for jury duty if they have been summoned. It is an offence to act prejudicial to an employee if they have been summoned for jury duty, including threatening their employment or wages.

If your business will face significant hardship with an employee at jury service, then you may be able to request for the employee to be excused. This will require an explanation of the impact jury service will have on your business. A request must be communicated before empanelment (when the jurors have been selected), and making a request does not guarantee that your employee will be excused.

What are the employee’s rights?
When your employee is away on jury duty, this cannot be counted as any other leave other than jury duty leave. An employee’s annual leave and sick leave will be unaffected.

Employers also cannot dismiss their employees for attending jury duty. Most Australian states restrict employers from terminating an employee or detrimentally changing or threatening employment terms because an employee is on jury duty. NSW, for example, considers this a criminal offence where a company can be penalised up to $22,000 and an individual employer can be penalised $5,500 or face 12 months of imprisonment.

Employers also cannot ask an employee to work on a day they are serving as a juror in court or ask them to work additional hours to make up for the time they missed whilst on jury duty.

When an employee is serving jury duty, employers generally must pay permanent employees their usual wages for the first 10 days of service, or pay what is often referred to as ‘make-up pay’. This is the difference between the jury service payment and the employee’s base rate for the ordinary hours they would have worked.

Eligible for the JobKeeper scheme? Here’s what to do now

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Businesses wishing to use the JobKeeper payment scheme may find themselves running into many logistical uncertainties, as claiming the JobKeeper payment scheme can be a complicated and risky process. Here are the steps you need to take now to benefit.

Businesses who have satisfied the eligibility requirements of a minimum 30% reduction in their turnover for at least a month, with a turnover of less than $1 billion a year, will be able to apply for the scheme. This includes sole traders who are actively engaged in the business and are not a permanent employee of any other employer.

To claim JobKeeper payments, eligible employers must:

  1. Register your interest and subscribe for JobKeeper payment updates through the ATO website. before 26 April 2020 through the ATO.
  2. Continue to pay eligible employees at least $1,500 each per fortnight (the first JobKeeper fortnight is from 30 March to 12 April), or make a single combined payment of $3,000 by the end of the month.
  3. Notify eligible employees of your intention to claim JobKeeper payments and confirm that they are not also claiming the payment through another employer.
  4. Provide your nominated employees with the JobKeeper employee nomination notice to complete before the end of April if you intend to claim JobKeeper payment for April.
  5. Enrol for the JobKeeper payment on or after 20 April 2020 through the ATO’s Business Portal. For April JobKeeper payments, this must be done before the end of the month.
  6. Fill out the online form, providing your bank details and whether you will be claiming an entitlement based on business participation, e.g. sole traders.
  7. State number of employees who will be eligible for the first two JobKeeper fortnights (30 March -12 April and 13 April – 26 April).

Receiving JobKeeper payments can put small businesses at risk of cash flow problems due to the requirements of JobKeeper payments. To be eligible, businesses must back pay the minimum $1,500 per fortnight to nominated employees from 30 March 2020, despite JobKeeper reimbursements not being provided until the first week of May. Employers who normally pay employees less than $1,500 each per fortnight (often these are part-time and long-term casual employees) may find themselves in further financial strain for at least a month as the employee wages will likely exceed the amount they would ordinarily pay in wages despite already losing 30% of their turnover.

Employers who apply for the scheme but fail to pay their eligible employees may face penalties up to $126,000 for individual employers, or $630,000 for corporations as a breach of the Fair Work Act. The ATO can also claw back funds (with interest) which it deems to be improperly paid. The scheme also requires monthly reports of current and projected GST turnovers, where eligibility consequences can be imposed for not meeting record keeping requirements.

Efficient website migration

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Having a strong digital presence has now become a basic part of running a business. Business owners are investing time and resources into developing and upgrading their websites. An important thing to remember during this process of website migration is efficiency.

When shifting from one website host to another, poor planning can lead to longer periods of downtime for your current website. Losing online customers can damage brand reputation and lower your website’s SEO rankings.
Consider following these tips to help you migrate to a different host more efficiently, and minimize downtime.

Careful cancellation
If you cancel your current plan with your website host, it is likely that it will be immediate. This means there is potential for you to lose all the customer data and all the content on the website. Before moving your website host, ensure that you have carefully weighed your options and have selected the host that is right for you.

Backup your files
Your existing host provider should have a feature within their control panel that allows you to back up your data. To make the migration process easy, consider selecting a hosting provider that has the same web-based technology as your current hosting provider. This makes restoring your backed up data faster and easier.
The data will download as a compressed set of files. It is important not to decompress any of the files to ensure that the new host is able to receive them in the compressed form for it to process.

Transferring files
The control panel for the new host should allow you to restore backup. In this setting, select the full-site backup files that you downloaded earlier. When all the information has been transferred, ensure that the database is working properly. Backup files cannot have any information related to usernames, passwords or other permissions, as this has to be manually entered into the new web hosting provider’s interface.

Update your domain
At this stage, a copy of all your site files have been added into your new host. However, your domain, or your website name, still points to your old host. To update this, switch your DNS nameservers that you may get from your new host. Detailed instructions on how to change it can be found on your new provider’s website.

After these steps, it is important to test the website and have it running for a few days to ensure that all the features are working properly. Once confident, you can then cancel the old hosting plan. While this is more time consuming, it avoids the cost of losing a customer that clicks on your website when it is down, and minimises the risk of data loss and major site fixes.

Effective job advertising

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With such a large number of varied job ads online and in print, if you want to attract the best people you have to make your ad stand out. It is also very important to properly convey your workplace culture in the ad so that you do not have to waste time interviewing inappropriate candidates.

Great job ads are appealing but also honest. If you oversell the job, your new employee will quickly become disappointed. If you undersell, you may reduce the scope or quality of applicants applying.

Make sure to write ads in a way that clearly reflect the personality of your business and conveys a message to your applicants about the type of person that will suit the role. Getting someone who is a good personality fit for your company is equally as important as getting someone with the right skillset. If your ad is reflective of your company, applicants will be in a better position to judge whether or not they should apply.

Include a detailed list of duties that the role entails and the types of skills and qualifications that you are looking for. A little attention to detail in the description can save you a lot of time when it comes to sorting resumes and interviewing candidates. To capture the attention of job seekers attract the right person, ensure your listing includes:

  • Job title, description, required experience and benefits.
  • Your business’ story, for the applicant to get a feel for your company’s culture.
  • Language that highlights the positive aspects of the opportunity.
  • Instructions on how to apply and how further communication will be handled.

To give you job posting high visibility for job seekers, post your listing on multiple online platforms. Advertise the job to a careers page on your website, LinkedIn and job boards like Jora and Seek. You may have to pay for certain job boards so research the site that suits your business’ needs before posting.

Easy ways to start your investing journey

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There are a lot of options when it comes to investing, but often people are daunted by the prospect. A lack of accessible information, misconceptions about investment opportunities and fear of losing money are often reasons people opt out of investing.

Investing can be as easy as a savings account separate from the account that is used for spending, in which a percentage of monthly income can go into. If there are adequate funds, consider investing in real estate for passive income. With real estate values growing over time, on top of earning rental income during ownership, there will be an opportunity to sell later on at a higher price.

Diversifying investment portfolios can seem overwhelming, but all that it takes is putting money into multiple investment avenues. This can be in shares or managed funds with a financial advisor, investments with different rates of return, or in startups or cryptocurrency.

These avenues of investment can still be a lot to take in for individuals, so financial advisors are always a good option for those looking for a little more of an expert opinion on the issue.

Downsizer Contributions – What Are They?

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If you are aged 65 years or older, you are currently able to make downsizer contributions of up to $300,000 into your superannuation fund from the sale of your main residence (as of 1 July 2018).

The Federal Budget recently announced that the age limit for downsizer contribution payments will be reduced from 65 to 60 once the relevant legislation has been passed.

This means that you can increase your super fund’s balance without impacting on your contribution caps (as it is not a non-concessional contribution), and this contribution can still be made even if your superannuation balance exceeds $1.6 million. It does however count towards your transfer balance cap, which is currently set at $1.6 million (increasing to $1.7 million for most people on 1 July 2021).

The downsizer contributions scheme can only be accessed once, so it can only apply when you sell or dispose of one home, including selling a part interest in a home. It is a one-time deal essentially and is not a tax-deductible amount.

You can however make multiple downsizer contributions from the proceeds of a single sale, but the total of the contributions cannot exceed $300,000 less than any other downsizer contributions that you have made.

You and your spouse can (in certain circumstances) both make downsizer contributions from the sale of the home even if the house was only owned by one of you, provided you both meet all the requirements.

These contributions will also come into account for determining whether or not you are eligible to receive the age pension.

If you would like more information on how to proceed with downsizer contributions, are looking to sell your home and wanting to continue with downsizer contributions from the sale, or just looking for guidance, we can help. Come speak with us.

Don’t Forget To Declare All Investment Income In Your Return!

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If you’ve made a major investment in the last financial year, any income made from it will need to be included on your tax return.

Any income earned from investments and asses must be declared in your tax return. This may include amounts from interest, dividends, rental income, managed investment trust credits, crypto assets and capital gains. Whether you receive it directly or via distributions for a partnership or a trust, this income needs to be declared.

If you, for example, hold the assets that earn the investment income jointly (with another person), it is assumed that the asset’s income is divided equally between you, unless it can be proven that the asset is held in unequal proportions.

Six items must be declared in your tax return as income this financial year, including the following:

Interest Income

Interest income includes:

  • interest you earn from financial institution accounts and term deposits
  • interest you earn from any other source, including penalty interest you receive on an investment
  • interest you earn from children’s savings accounts if you
    • open or operate an account for a child and the funds in the account belong to you
    • spent or use the funds in the account
  • interest we pay or credit to you – for example, interest on early payments, interest on overpayments and delayed refunds
  • ife insurance bonuses (you may be entitled to a tax offset equal to 30% of any bonus amounts you include in your income)
  • interest from foreign sources (you can claim a foreign income tax offset for any tax paid on this income).

Dividends

Dividend income may come from a:

  • listed investment company,
  • public trading trust,
  • corporate unit trust, or a
  • corporate limited partnership (in the form of a distribution).

Some dividends may have imputations or franking credits attached. The franked amount and the franking credit must be declared if you receive franking credits on your dividends. If a company pays or credits you with dividends that have been franked, you’ll generally claim a franking tax offset.

Rental Property Income

You must declare the full (gross) amount of any rent and rent-related payments you receive. This includes amounts you receive from overseas properties. You must work out and declare the monetary value if you receive goods and services instead of rent.

It’s best to consult with a tax adviser to avoid making mistakes involving rental property. This is usually a major red flag area for the ATO, so don’t hesitate to ask for help to avoid compliance issues or declaring for things you shouldn’t.

Managed Investment Trusts

You must show any income or credits you receive from any trust investment product in your tax return. This includes income or credits from a:

  • cash management trust
  • money market trust
  • mortgage trust
  • unit trust
  • managed fund – such as a property trust, share trust, equity trust, growth trust, imputation trust or balanced trust.

Crypto Asset Income

You must declare rewards received for staking crypto assets (often in the form of additional tokens from holding the original tokens. The money value of the additional tokens needs to be calculated and then converted into Australian dollars at the time they were received. These are reported in ‘other income’ in the tax return.

If you receive crypto via airdrop, this is income when you receive them based on the money value of the already established tokens. Occasionally, some crypto projects ‘airdrop’ new tokens to existing holders to increase the supply. Whatever amount is received needs to be converted into Australian dollars and declared as other income.

Capital Gains

Any capital gains that are made when you sell or dispose of capital assets must be declared. This may include investment property, shares or crypto assets. The capital gain is the difference between:

  • Your asset’s cost base (what you paid for it)
  • Your capital proceeds (the amount you receive for it)

Report capital gains and capital losses in your tax return. You can offset any allowable capital losses against your capital gains to work out your net capital gain or loss. You pay tax on a net capital gain. If you have a net capital loss, you can retain the loss to offset capital gains in future years.

To avoid any issues with your tax return this financial year, especially involving investment-related income, start your tax journey with us today. We can help uncomplicate the process for you.

Don’t delay new business ideas

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Many business owners have exciting ideas about where the future might take their company. These ideas may be concerning new products, internal improvements or new market segments.

It is, however, an unfortunate fact that the execution of these exciting plans often gets delayed. In the process, the growth of your firm is slowed.

One of the most common reasons that there is so often a delay in the execution of new ideas is limited time. Time is one of the most precious resources that a business owner has, and like all precious resources it is valuable because it is limited. If you have an idea that you think will make a significant improvement to your business, then you should make scheduled time in your week to work on it.

It is also advisable to discuss the idea with some of your staff members, and seek their advice on how you might be able to make your vision a reality.

Don’t Copy/Paste Your Tax Return From Last Year

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Due to the impacts of COVID-19, how Australians claim work-related expenses on their tax returns every other year is sure to be different this year. The ATO is warning Australians that they will be watching what is claimed and how the impacts of COVID-19 are reflected in tax returns.

During the 2020 tax return season, up to 8.5 million Australians claimed nearly $19.4 billion in work-related expenses, with new trends and figures of claims reflected in their returns.

Expenses in the 2021 tax return season are expected to reflect the changing nature of how Australians work, given the ongoing impact of COVID-19 is still being felt by workers.

In 2020, the value of car and travel-related expenses decreased by nearly 5.5% (as a result of lockdowns, office closures and the pandemic). There was a slight increase of up to 2.6% in terms of clothing expenses (in part a result of frontline workers’ first time needs for items such as hand sanitiser and face masks so that they could continue doing their jobs.

As an example, though working from home claims are expected to rise in this year’s tax returns, the ATO would not expect to see a marked increase in claims for travelling between worksites, laundering uniforms or business trips in those same returns for someone who was predominantly based at home, and not working out and about.

Though some work-related expenses may still be the same this year, the ATO is warning against simply copy-pasting tax returns from previous years, as without significant evidence or record of the claim, you may find yourself in legal difficulties.

So how can you ensure that you’re doing the right thing when making claims on your tax return? Knowing exactly how COVID-19 may have affected what exactly you can claim on your tax return is a good starting point.

As a result of COVID-19, the ATO introduced the temporary shortcut method to quickly calculate the expenses of working from home at an all-inclusive rate of 80 cents per hour for every hour that you work from home. All you need to do is multiply the hours worked at home by 80 cents, keeping a record such as a timesheet, roster, or diary entry showing the hours you worked.

Personal protective equipment that you may have purchased for use at work, paid for by you and not reimbursed by your work, can be claimed as a work-related expense on your tax return. These items could include gloves, face masks, sanitiser or anti-bacterial spray but must be linked back to use at your workplace. You must have a record to support the claim, but this can be done simply with a purchase receipt.

Similarly, with the marked decrease in the value of work-related expenses for cars, travel, non-PPE clothing, and self-education due to the introduction of travel restrictions and limits on the number of people who could gather in groups, tax returns are expected to reflect your claims regarding these amounts. If you are working from home due to COVID-19 but need to travel to the regular office sometimes, you will not be allowed to claim the cost of travel from home to work in this instance as these are private expenses.

If you are unsure about any of the expenses that you are looking to claim on your tax return this year or are concerned about claiming for the wrong expenses, you can come and speak with us for clarification on what you can and cannot claim on your tax return this year.

Doing market research for your business

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Market research is key to developing relevant and effective business strategies as it helps you understand your industry, customers, competitors and market trends. Undertaking both primary and secondary market research can allow you to boost your business’ success if you utilise the information to improve your product/service and marketing strategies.

There are a variety of sources you can use to begin your research. To research areas such as your customers, competitors, industry and location, you can conduct primary research through things like:

  • Surveys (postal, online or face-to-face).
  • Focus groups.
  • Customer feedback.
  • Interviews (face-to-face, written or online).
  • Product testing with potential consumers.
  • Observation.

Meanwhile, useful secondary research can be conducted through:

  • Census data.
  • News reports.
  • Academic journals and research.
  • Legal documents.
  • Australian Bureau of Statistics.
  • Social media and websites.
  • Industry and trade publications.

Before conducting an extensive examination, it is important to prepare and plan how you will undertake the research. It is useful to define your objectives prior to starting research to help you successfully gather the data you need. As well as this, identify the best research methods for your goals and whether you will conduct the research yourself or if you will want to use a professional company. It is also important to consider the time frame and appropriate budget for your research.

When conducting research questions and strategies, make sure that you are open-minded and don’t let your preconceived opinions or preferences affect your tactics. Having a predicted outcome in mind whilst gathering information can often affect the results to match your opinions which can be misleading. To avoid this, prepare for unexpected results and create all-rounded questions and gather data from a range of sources.