6 | Aycliffe Today Business
WORK-PLACED
PENSIONS ON
HORIZON
Whether you like it or not, work-placed
pensions are just around the corner, and
businesses of all shapes and sizes will be
made to fall in line.
The Government scheme was launched in
October 2012 with a five-and-a-half-year
rolling out period, meaning companies
must automatically enrol employees into
pension schemes.
It means employers must contribute
towards them, although workers are
entitled to opt-out.
Morrisons were one of the most highprofile big companies to take it in their
stride and many others have since
followed suit.
But for those small and medium sized
enterprises out there, don’t be fooled in
thinking it won’t get to you.
There’s a staging period and at present
the Government have staged medium
employers who have between 50 and 249
staff to be on board between April this
year and April 2015.
But it will also come to small employers
– firms with five to 49 employees, and
they’re due to be staged after June 2015.
So even though that is some 18 months
down the line, it will soon creep up, and
the Government will fine firms who don’t
enrol.
At Russell Mercer Financial Services,
we’re fully-equipped and licensed to help
businesses of all sizes, using well-known
pension companies such as Agon and
Scottish Life.
We’re financial advisors as well as
mortgage and insurance brokers, and
have been in business since 1990. We’ve
been based on Aycliffe Business Park for
the last eight years.
Any businesses out there who’d like to
know more about work-placed pensions
can get in touch with us for a no-obligation
chat as a good starting point and we can
take it from there.
Russell Mercer
Russell Mercer Financial Services
Tel: 01325 308811
BOSS HOPES INTER-TRADING
WILL TREBLE BUSINESS
An ambitious entrepreneur is
hoping to treble her turnover
by inter-trading with one of
Aycliffe Business Park’s biggest
companies.
Lisa Fleming is the regional director for
the national company Water Cooler World,
with her partner Wayne Fleming heading
up a North-East franchise they bought in
August 2012.
The company, based on Aycliffe Business
Park, now look after more than 50
businesses in the North East, from
Northallerton to Newcastle, supplying
water and hot drinks through bottles and
machines.
The majority of her water coolers are
manufactured by fellow Aycliffe firm Ebac,
who produce more than 100,000 units a
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