FRAMEWORK BRIEF. Salary Sacrifice & Employee Benefits

Transcription

1 FRAMEWORK BRIEF Salary Sacrifice & Employee Benefits

2 FRAMEWORK OVERVIEW HealthTrust Europe (HTE) placed a contract notice reference 2013/S on 28 th November 2013 in the Official Journal of the European Union seeking expressions of interest for the provision of Salary Sacrifice and Employee Benefits ( OJEU Notice ). Potential contractors were invited to tender for the provision of Salary Sacrifice and Employee Benefits on 2 nd April HTE evaluated and selected effective, capable contractors to enter into a multi-contractor framework agreement in order to provide Salary Sacrifice and Employee Benefits to beneficiaries. The framework is to allow for employers to provide Salary Sacrifice and Employee Services to their employees. This is in the form of an agreement between the employer and the employee whereby the terms of employment are varied in order to reduce the employee s entitlement to cash pay. This sacrifice of cash entitlement is usually made in return for some form of non-cash benefit. Salary sacrifice can be financially beneficial for both the employer and employee. The employer can benefit from savings on the tax and NICs payable for any employee but it will depend on the pay and non-cash benefits that make up the salary sacrifice arrangement. The employer s key responsibility will be to make sure that they pay and deduct the right amount of tax and NICs for the cash and benefits provided. The framework agreement duration is two years with the option to extend for a 12 month period, plus a further 12 month period thereafter (at the discretion of HTE). The commencement date of this contract is 1 st August 2014 until 31 st July The maximum expiry date for this framework agreement is 31 st July Free to access Direct award/direct call-off No requirement for mini competition Compliant route to market Tailored Service Level Agreements (SLAs) Free implementation and project management Page 1 of 6

3 SERVICES INCLUDED Childcare Vouchers Childcare vouchers can be used as payment for all registered childcare establishments including day nurseries, child-minders, au pairs, out of school clubs and holiday clubs. These are for children between the ages of 0 years to 16 years. The vouchers are available for up to a limit of 55 per week or 243 per month (as at February 2008). They are exempt from National Insurance Contributions for employers and exempt from Tax and National Insurance for employees. The Childcare voucher company will administer the scheme as a salary sacrifice scheme on behalf of the Authority s employee in accordance with HM Revenue and Customs guidelines and regulations, whereby, employees will formally agree to a reduction to their taxable salary and instead receive that amount (equivalent to the reduction) in childcare vouchers. Cycle to Work Cycle to Work is currently the UK's fastest growing employee benefit. The employer purchases the bike and equipment and leases it to the employee on a fixed hire rate as a salary sacrifice scheme. Employees get to choose from hundreds of different makes and models of bikes. There is the opportunity to save up to 47% off the price of a new bike or accessories. This scheme resolves issues with parking and employees get to keep fit and healthy. It's also an easy scheme to manage, with free set up, full administration, and dedicated project managers to help with implementation. Workplace Car Parking The Workplace Car Parking scheme allows employees to make considerable savings off their daily parking costs. The company pays the cost of parking up-front for a year and reclaims the money from the employees gross salary on a monthly basis. Employers can expect to see improved retention, punctuality and wellbeing of employees by potentially making it easier to get to work. It potentially reduces costs if your business is already providing assistance to employees with parking fees by replacing an existing scheme. Vehicle Leasing This scheme enables the employee to drive a brand new car over a 2 or 3 year period for a low monthly cost and includes scheduled servicing, general maintenance, replacement tyres and exhausts, road tax, motor insurance, accident management as well as breakdown and recovery services. Employees can select from 1,000 s of new cars to suit their individual needs and budget. There is on-going promotion of the scheme via regular employee road shows and marketing literature Mobile Phones (New) This is a brand new scheme available via the HTE framework where the employee can choose from a wide range of handsets and accessories including smartphones. Employees are able to obtain brand new products, but pay them off over the period of the contract, making the items much more affordable. There is no credit checking, and the products are provided at a discount to the employee. The employees make savings through reduced National Insurance and NHS Pension Scheme contributions (if a member of the NHS Pension Scheme) and can also save on an element of tax on the value of the product. These are usually designed to meet a variety of needs and budgets. Page 2 of 6

4 IT Equipment (New) This is a brand new scheme available via the HTE framework where the employee can choose from a wide range IT equipment including tablets, games consoles and smart TVs. Employees are able to obtain brand new products, but pay them off over the period of the contract, making the items much more affordable. There is no credit checking, and the products are provided at a discount to the employee. The employees make savings through reduced National Insurance and NHS Pension Scheme contributions (if a member of the NHS Pension Scheme) and can also save on an element of tax on the value of the product. These are usually designed to meet a variety of needs and budgets. Bus to Work The employee can make use of an annual bus pass which, is paid for by the employer and then deducted from the employees monthly gross pay over a 12-month period. All suppliers should be able to offer flexibility for the employee to use any public bus company without limitations that go beyond HMRC guidance. Employers can expect to see improved retention, punctuality and wellbeing of employees by potentially making it easier to get to work. Professional Subscriptions (NEW) This scheme allows employees to pay for their Professional Subscriptions by deducting the monthly fee from their monthly gross pay over an agreed period. A list of professional subscriptions that are able to benefit from tax relief is available by following this link Managed Service An online portal which can be accessed via the internet, the beneficiary s extranet and also has a helpdesk facility. Employees should be able to select which salary sacrifice schemes they wish. The portal should provide them with a level of clarity with regards to savings and whether they will receive any extra added benefits by entering into such schemes. Employee Benefits (NEW) The employee benefits area of the platform should formally allow, firstly, employers to bespoke any additional benefits and packages to fit their individual organisation; and secondly, enable employees to choose how their benefits package is made up. Employees will be able to select from a wide range of benefits. An indicative list of the type of benefits that employees will have access to is below: Private Healthcare Private Dental Care Gym Membership Life Insurance Shopping Vouchers including retail discount cards Restaurant Discount Cards i.e. Taste Card, Gourmet Society Discount Card etc. Holidays/Travel Legal Services Pensions Page 3 of 6

5 FRAMEWORK SUPPLIERS Workstream Supplier Contract Reference HEC - Z351 Childcare Vouchers Vehicle Leasing Cycle to Work Workplace Car Parking Professional Subscriptions IT Equipment (Including Tablets) Mobile Phones Bus to Work P&MM Ltd HEC - Z352 HEC - Z353 Sodexo Motivation Solution Ltd HEC - Z354 HEC - Z355 LeaseDrive Ltd HEC - Z356 HEC - Z357 TuskerDirect Ltd HEC - Z358 Cyclescheme Ltd HEC - Z359 HEC - Z360 Halfords Ltd HEC - Z361 P&MM Ltd HEC - Z362 HEC - Z363 Wheelies Direct Cycle Solutions Ltd HEC - Z364 RSM Risk Assurance Services LLP HEC - Z365 HEC - Z366 RSM Risk Assurance Services LLP HEC - Z367 HEC - Z368 Academia Ltd HEC - Z369 HEC - Z370 Let's Connect IT Solutions ltd HEC - Z371 HEC - Z372 Academia Ltd HEC - Z373 HEC - Z374 Let's Connect IT Solutions ltd HEC - Z375 HEC - Z376 RSM Risk Assurance Services LLP HEC - Z377 HEC - Z378 Employee Benefits P&MM Ltd HEC - Z379 P&MM Ltd HEC - Z380 Managed Services HEC - Z381 Page 4 of 6

6 KEY BENEFITS Savings Compliance The Employer and employee can both make a saving in National Insurance Contributions (NICs). Employers can save 13.8% of the amount sacrificed in NICS, while employees will save between 2% and 12% of the amount they sacrifice, depending upon their earnings. The employer can deduct pension contributions from their tax bill in the same way as salary payments. We use our own Frameworks procured through an OJEU compliant procedure by Category Specialists that support Authorities and Suppliers to continually build relationships and increase compliance. HealthTrust Europe will provide support during and after the selection process which also includes finalising tailored Service Level Agreements to meet the customers needs. Sustainability Mediation All Providers were scored appropriately on their sustainability policy; taking in to account Environmental, Social and Economic impacts of the service they were able to provide. Providers awarded to the Vehicle Leasing work stream were assessed on their whether they were able to supply energy efficient cars. HTE provides free on-going support to mediate, remedy and resolve critical issues as required or to lead further initiatives. We understand that the job isn t complete at award and will work with you to develop your compliance, also ensuring your organization is striving towards best practice and best value. Page 5 of 6

7 ACCESS TO THE FRAMEWORK The framework is free to access and can be accessed via Direct Award. The customer is not required to run a mini competition under the framework agreement to market test their service. The customer can award directly from the framework agreement to a supplier or they can choose to run a selection process. The selection process for market testing shall be advised on a customer by customer basis as and when a requirement is identified. Customers will identify those contractors from the framework agreement, whose skill-set most closely matches their requirement, and invite them to the selection process, please note that there is no requirement to invite all the contractors under the framework agreement to the selection process. The criteria below shall form the basis of the selection criteria to appoint a supplier under the framework agreement. The customer can develop their own sub criteria under the main quality criteria listed below and advise the suppliers of these in advance of the selection process. Please note that the customer is not required to use all the criteria listed below. As price is a fixed element within this tender the Selection process will only take into account the quality aspect. Direct Award Selection Process Criteria Weighting Range Experience Proven effective delivery of the proposition 0% - 100% Relationships The availability of the right people with the right qualifications it is expected that people working on 0% - 100% this proposition will attend Customer presentations Implementation and Service Delivery Ensure smooth Transition and roll out of any contract on the direct award of 0% - 100% this framework. Added Value Over and above the Specification what additional value can you deliver in what areas 0% - 100% Compliance - compliant with all rules, HMRC regulations and legislation 0% - 100% Following the selection process, the customer and the successful contractor shall enter into a contract. Contract award will be made and formalised via a call off contract which will contain details of the score of work, planned activities, timetable, assumptions and dependencies as well as constraints and the associated performance measures. These elements combined with the framework agreement itself (containing legal terms and conditions and the relevant appendices) will constitute the complete contract for that particular appointment. Page 6 of 6

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