Welcome to 2021! I hope you had a rejuvenating festive season and that you are feeling rested and ready for the year ahead.
The start of the year has not been what many had hoped for. I am sure we all wished that 2021 would bring an end to this deadly Corona lurgy but, alas no, the infections and death rates continue to increase, not only in South Africa but all around the world. All we can do is sanitize, wear our masks, and create safe working environments for ourselves, our families, and our employees.
Please ensure that you have an OHS plan in place to protect everyone, you owe it to yourself and your family and your team employees. By now we all know people that have succumbed to the virus its now names behind the numbers. The long-awaited vaccine? I am not holding my breath that this will be around in the 1st half of the year, but I hope I am proven wrong.
On the business front there is no reason to panic. In 2020 we all had good practice in surviving. If you are reading this mail it means you survived, do not throw in the towel now, rather improve on what you did well and focus on cutting the unneeded expenses.
Time to perform a health check on your business:
The UIF / TERS allowance is officially over so we hope that the Government devises a new form of business assistance to assist both individuals and businesses. We know that there are “reduced hours UIF benefits” in the pipeline but the Department of Labour has not yet published the rules on how this will work. We will keep you posted.
B-BBEE remote offsite verification's will at this stage continue until 31 Jan 2021. Your B-BBEE certificate is a good tool for opening doors in your company – you cannot afford to be without one. If you have taken your eye off your B-BBEE process, we can do an UNVERIFIED AUDIT, a GAP ANALYSIS or a STRATEGIC PLAN for your company to bring you back inline.
EMPLOYMENT EQUITY reports should be submitted to the Department of labour- failure to submit could result in a punitive fine for your company. Do you need help with Employment Equity? We have expert Consultants that can assist you.
WORKPLACE SKILLS PLANS and ANNUAL TRAINING REPORTS are due to the Department of Labour- failure to submit could result in a punitive fine for your company. Do you need help with Skills Development? We have expert Consultants that can assist you.
New COVID-19 OHS REGULATIONS need to be in place, or the Department of Labour could fine or close your business. If you are worried, or do not have a plan, we can send our OHS Department in to assist you.
HR – A vital part of your business in tough times, ensure that your company policies and procedures are up to date and if you are retrenching ensure that you adhere to the Department of Labour regulations if you need help, we have expert Consultants that can assist you.
SARS year end submissions will shortly be due.
With Elon Musk topping the charts for a time as the richest person in the world during the pandemic, and he owns a motor vehicle company, Tesla, which has 18% market share in global EV sales. There is no reason why you cannot survive. Think outside of the box, reinvent the box, and make it happen. It is never easy, but you can do it.
I wish all our customers, suppliers, friends and employees good health, happiness, and prosperity for the year ahead. Let us have compassion for all those around us in 2021, its turbulent times, kind words go a long way in times like these.
We are here for you!
Be safe - take care and let us make it happen in 2021.
Sincerely
Hilton Johnson
CEO – Compliance Hub