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Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Understanding Child Labor

In America, Child labor is strictly prohibited which means children under the age of 18 years cannot be employed. While this holds good for organizations not to employee children, there are several children who deliver newspaper every day, who sell magazines at the stations, who help parents at their farm. Do these activities come under the scanner? We need to be very specific and clear in defining what entails child labor.

Legislation has been fairly clear on explaining further and making certain allowances for children to be allowed to work only in certain areas and under specific conditions.

If the child has a found a job and it requires him to drive a motor vehicle, it would be a problem with quite a few jurisdictions that have very clear boundaries and limits to defining what is allowable and what is not.

Children need to be over 16 years of age to be able to qualify to apply for a driving license. The child labor laws also prohibit children below 16 years of age in most of the states to take up jobs that involve driving motor vehicle. So under both counts minors would have to wait to become 17 years old to be able to take up the job and the license.

The child labor laws are laid down detailing the conditions, the situations and the kinds of jobs along with timelines that the children can be engaged in legally and also specifies where they cannot be engaged. Children for example may not be allowed to serve in any public place beyond office hours and definitely not on night shifts.

All the states are very diligent and take extra care to ensure the labor laws are complied with. Children cannot be employed to work at nights and work continuously beyond 8 hours. The conditions at place of work have to be conducive for children to be employed.

The child protection legislations are explicit in detailing and guiding managements not to employ children where there is a chance of likely danger to the safety of the child or the situations are likely to be dangerous to his health. Children therefore cannot be made to work near fire, explosives, water or climb up on roof tops to work etc.

Should your require more information about the laws in a particular state, you could check the government website or contact a local employment attorney.

Hiring a Criminal Defense Lawyer for Drug Charges

Probably one of the most serious cases that anyone could face is drug charges. In many countries, the consequences of being proven guilty of this crime are no joke, which includes paying hefty fines, jail time and of course, a permanent mark on the criminal record. Aside from this, being convicted for this case would definitely affect the reputation of a person significantly, reducing good opportunities that he could take. That is why, when facing this serious kind of charges, it is very important to be represented by a good criminal defense lawyer.

Lawyers are professionals who can represent people who are facing drug charges offense or defense. They are expert individuals who are well trained and experienced in handling this kind of circumstances. Being professionals who have dedicated their lives studying laws and court systems, they are well knowledgeable about the ins and outs of these kinds of charges.

Hiring a criminal defense lawyer from a good criminal law firm is very essential in order for a person charged with drug cases to have their rights protected. If a person is properly represented, he would be guided carefully on the proper process. This would prevent you from saying things that can push you deeper into conviction, and this is true even if the person being charged is innocent of the crime.

Aside from this, being properly represented in facing drug charges increases the chance of positive outcome. Lawyers have a wide connection in different kinds of fields, allowing you to gather necessary evidence that would be needed for the progress of the case. The more evidence and data are gathered, the better the chances of having a stronger case for the defense.

Since the role the lawyers would play in the case is very crucial, you should be sure that you would be making the proper choice in selecting the attorney who will represent you. You should be sure that he has a wide experience in the field and know exactly how to get you out of the case with the best deal possible.

You should also select someone who has a good personality, someone you would be willing to entrust your life and future to. The relationship between the lawyer and the defendant is very important, as the two needs to cooperate for the progress of the case, getting a lawyer who you would be confident working with would result into greater advantages in the case.

Saturday, December 1, 2012

Special Tax Rules For Minor's Income

Special tax rules are in place for income received by those less than 18 years of age (minors). The main intention of these rules is to discourage parents from diverting their income to their children.

Minors who are residents of Australia but do not earn more than $1,667 in 2007-08 do not have to lodge a tax return. This is because the low income tax offset of $750 offsets the tax payable on income less than $1,667. If the minor's taxable income is less than $48,750, they will get the low income tax offset. The maximum tax offset of $750 applies if their taxable income is $30,000 or less. This amount is reduced by four cents for each dollar over $30,000.

For those that do need to lodge a return, under the special rules for minors, there are 3 possible scenarios that may apply:

1. the child has only excepted income

2. the child has both excepted and eligible income

3. the child has only eligible income

Excepted income refers to income that is generated through the minor's own efforts and includes income from sources such as employment, Centrelink benefits, compensation, income from deceased estates, their own business or partnership that they were involved in and any income that is generated from the investment of these and other excepted income. Excepted income should be reported at Item A1 on your tax return.

Eligible income is defined as income that is received by the minor but not as a result of their personal efforts. It could be interest that is earned on birthday money that was invested or proceeds from a family trust distribution.

Any excepted income that is earned by a minor is taxed at the same marginal rates as all other Australian taxpayers. However, eligible income is taxed at a higher rate.

Where a minor has both excepted and eligible income the amounts are reported separately and the tax owing on those amounts is calculated separately.

At The Quinn Group, our team of professional accountants is able to provide advice to businesses and individuals on a range of accounting and tax related issues. To speak with one of our professionals regarding this or any other tax query that you may have please contact The Quinn Group on 1300 QUINNS or click here to submit an online enquiry.

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Grievance Software and Labor Unions - Moving Forward

More and more local labor unions are showing up on the Internet. At the advent of commercialized Internet well over a decade ago, many labor unions were slow to adopt the new technology. This could be attributed to the fact that many union officials' had successfully managed the business of their respective unions successfully without the use of these technologies. After all, it seemed the Internet brought forth so many technologies that it was almost overwhelming at first.

However, a new trend is moving through labor union organizations in the current decade and it has been hugely successful. More and more local unions are going online and even starting to outsource certain technologies to specialized technological organizations that exclusively service labor union organizations.

One such movement is the outsourcing of grievance tracking software. There are a handful of software vendors which unions contract with in order to efficiently file and track union grievances. These vendors have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on building this grievance software so the unions won't have to and to ensure the data integrity of union members. The unions utilize this Internet grievance system offered by the software vendor and never have to manage any "in-house" hardware or software.

The web-based grievance tracking tools allow the unions to automate the grievance process from step 1 through arbitration. The unions can even scan and upload all relevant grievance documents and attach them directly to each individual grievance. Typically, in these web-based systems, multiple users are allowed to access the grievance database with their own unique User ID and Password. Also, different users are given different levels of control, ranging from a "system administrator" to a "read only" user.

Research your own grievance software and see if it compares to: http://www.griev.com/

Dubai Jobs - The Impact of Labor Laws

Finding the perfect job in Dubai can offer its own set of unique challenges. The UAE has not been immune to the global economic crisis and competition for available jobs is stiff. In addition, labor laws in the UAE can be confusing and seem to be in a constant flux. By educating themselves on the basics of UAE labor law, employees can avoid many common pitfalls that may arise during their time working in Dubai.

Rights that job seekers take for granted in their home country may not necessarily apply in Dubai. For example, there are no anti-discrimination laws in effect and employers can request anything from a certain nationality or age group to a certain appearance. There is also no minimum wage. An employee's nationality is often a determining factor in the amount of pay offered, with Europeans and Arabs on the higher end of the scale and Asians on the lower end. Because changing jobs in Dubai is not a straightforward process, it is a common (although illegal) practice for some employers to hold employee passports as security against absconding.

An expatriate's right to live and work in the UAE is tied to their sponsor, in this case the employer. Once a job seeker is hired, an employment contract will be signed. The contract is either fixed term or unlimited term. A fixed term contract means that there is a specified start date and end date. The contract cannot exceed three years, but can be renewed. Unlimited term contracts list a start date but are open-ended. They may be terminated by mutual consent or by either party giving 30 days notice. A new employee may undergo a probationary period of not more than six months. During this time the employee can be dismissed without reason or notice and he or she will not be entitled to any end of service benefits. Contracts may also include a competitive clause which states an employee cannot work for a competitor for up to two years.

Once a contract is signed the employee is legally bound to fulfill it. While laws regarding sponsorship have eased, allowing employees some movement between jobs if certain conditions are fulfilled, it still can be a challenging process. In most cases, in order to transfer to a new job the employee must complete one full year of service at their current position and obtain an NOC (No Objection Certificate) from their current employer. The NOC states that the employer releases the employee from any contractual obligations. If an employee's work permit is cancelled without the NOC, a six month ban will be issued against the employee.

This means that while they can reenter the UAE on a visit visa during the ban, they will not be issued a new work permit for six months. There are certain categories of workers who are exempt from these rules, including employees of government departments and Free Zone areas (such as Dubai Media City, Knowledge Village, and Internet City). Free Zone workers are not under an individual company's sponsorship, but under the sponsorship of the entire Free Zone area itself. As such, they can transfer to a new job within the same Free Zone without an NOC. Employees sponsored by their spouses also have greater freedom of movement between jobs.

While Dubai offers an exciting, multi-cultural work environment coupled with tax free income, employees do need to be aware of how job regulations can affect them. The government of Dubai is currently reviewing labor laws, particularly the six month ban rule, in light of the current global economy. Changes giving workers more rights and greater flexibility to move from one job to another may be on the horizon.

Business Re-Structuring

There are a range of reasons that business owners may need to consider re-structuring their business. If:

* Your business is experiencing cash flow problems;

* Your creditors are demanding payment of outstanding accounts and threatening legal action;

* You're finding it hard to remain within your overdraft limit;

* Your bank is making demands;

* You have inherited company liabilities as a result of personal guarantees provided;

* You are unable to make payments to the ATO on time

Then you may need to look at restructuring your business as a method of getting it back on its feet and heading in the right direction.

Taking action to get a distressed business back on track is generally the best option for all involved. Following a comprehensive independent review of the business, if it is deemed that restructuring is a viable option the next step is to determine which particular restructuring components best suit the individual situation. Some possible options include restructuring the business, the disposal of some divisions/assets that are not performing well or possible refinancing.

The range of areas that a business restructure can affect reach far and wide. Such areas can include control of the business, asset protection planning, capital gains tax, stamp duty, income tax, GST, land tax, payroll tax, estate planning and succession issues. Depending on the individual situation this can have either be a positive or a negative effect.

Specific examples include that if a sole trader or partnership decides to incorporate, under certain conditions, they may be eligible to deduct, over five years, costs incurred by them in relation to the incorporation such as legal, search or lodgement fees. On the flip side, another entity may be liable for stamp duty on the transfer of assets, capital gains tax and possible loss of tax benefits that the current business structure is eligible for.

It is said there are two types of expertise that are required in order to implement a successful restructure, traditional and contemporary. A knowledge of traditional legal and accounting practices is necessary in order to address areas such as taxation, the rights and shares of owners and the ownership of various types of assets.

Additionally, an up-to-date, working knowledge of the modern business arena is needed to aid the development of modern business models, as well as to improve workflow management and online business and leverage with third parties. This contemporary expertise assists many businesses to operate cheaper, faster and better than their competitors.

As has been demonstrated, there are many issues to be aware of when looking to restructure a business, which is why it is extremely important to enlist the help of professional lawyers and accountants.

At The Quinn Group the highly qualified team of both accountants and lawyers are well equipped to assist you with your business restructuring needs. Having all your needs met by one firm ensures timely and cost effective solutions for you business. Contact us on 1300 QUINNS or click here to email your enquiry.