Once again UKIP steals the headlines by stepping where angels fear to tread. Taking the matter down to a lower level than the board room I remember the early years of my business where around 3/4 of the staff were female. Several years later the trend had reversed itself . There was no particular reason for this swing, it was a matter of the most suited people coming forward for vacancies . Everything has run very smoothly and the only issue was WC designation based on numbers – I kid you not !

But back to the point – is it better or worse for a business to have to hire on basis of quotas , whatever the nature of the quota ? My feeling is that it is a very bad idea as it distorts the labour market and could lead to poor decision making. Perhaps the key is to ensure the “minorities” are given better access to education to improve their chances or perhaps the answer lies elsewhere.

Where do you stand ?

I have just emerged from my money laundering audit , which wasn’t a problem in itself, but opened my eyes a wee bit more to how the rules are arrived at and policed. This was followed by a request from the bank to one my charities for an update of identities for “know your client”. Fasten your seatbelts and reach for the single malt or valium.

The form was designed by a half wit who clearly has no idea of commercial or not-for-profit reality and is designed for both charities and SMEs alike. For example, I need to provide proof of the charity’s address by supplying a utility bill. As it is registered to ym house and I pay all the bills this is not possible.

Next , each trustee has to present themselves at a branch of the bank. This is an issue as this large Scottish bank has no branches in England (perhaps 2 or 3 commercial centres) so we have to present to the parent company bank. No guessing please, that’s not fair.  This requires 4 trips by four people – great for the environment.

I have to present a picutre ID and proof of address. My driving licence has both, but no, this is not good enough. So I print off my bank statement (I am on paperless) but the jobsworth (pleasant and friendly but slavish following dumb rules)  at the branch tells me they cannot certify it becasue I printed it off. So they print one off again. I am informed that policy is not to verify identities for other parties but “they will do it” . I advise them that the the letter from the bank tells me to go to the parent company branches to do it.

I then hand over a form to be signed for National Lottery , for another charity of whch I am a trustee and they tell me that the bank policy is not to sign such forms nor to verify identity. Then they go into a tailspin when they realise it is 2 charities I have come for. enter the manager. “Hello Mr Younger” says manager to myself. “Hello” I reply, being a politish sort of chap on a good day. Clerk explains the imagined problem. Manager approves it with a wave of the hand ‘cos it’s Mr Younger.

What this shows is:-

All these trips and extra pieces of paper drive a coach and horses through the Carbon Footprint  bull**** we are fed on a daily basis

Banks are running scared of vague and unhelpful rules so cobble together prcodures that are inefficient at best and miss the point at worst

They do not follow their own procedures when it suits them not do so so.

My final observation for now is that as a reseller of online ID checks I know that this could all be done online and furthernore I have banked with this outfit for over 25 years so they know fine well who I am and simply cross check to their computer that my account has rasied no suspicions or problems

 On happy note you can look forward to impending chnages in the rules. How do I know ? A wee birdie told me . Will life be easier or harder for you as a result ? What do you reckon …..

So the CIPd have found that 3 – 4% of contracts are zero hours. Nice catchy headline but perhaps this is progress and without such contracts these workers would have zero prospects at all. It also means that around 96% of people are not on such contracts but does the CIPD moan that it is harming many employees whose businesses are up against the wall and are struggling with fixed wage bills?

They further claim that 14% of these workers can’t fund a basic living. Calculator please… .that’s 0.56% of workers. Not pleasant for those concerned but not a headline

Our noble, august and ancient profession makes much use of self employed contractors for book keeping, many of whom come in to work as and when required, some juggling between firms. It can be quite lucrative and convenient for many of them – do we hear them howling with complaints ? Does the system work well for all concerned.

So, CIPD, don’t make a song and dance out of somethggn that is what I would like to define as “progress”. And another thing…. these people aren’t slaves, they are free to find other work.

We hear lots about credit unions, which are aimed at individuals and involve small sums. I have been running an interest free loan fund for 17 years that suppports new and existing local businesses. We borrow from people with a charitable yearning and each loan has 2 guarantors. It`s a great way for corporations to rehabilitate themselves in the public eye.We have saved numerous jobs and firms as well as creating jobs

How come I  am not hearing this on the news ? Am I the only person doing this?