Press Releases
ACS Urges Consistency in Business Recycling Regulations
ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has responded to a consultation launched by the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) on Consistency in Household and Business Recycling in England, highlighting the impact that new regulations would have on the convenience sector.
As part of the Environment Bill, businesses will be required to separate their waste for collection from 2023. This consultation is seeking views on the:
Read MoreACS: Government Must Act on Commitment to Secure Access to Cash
The Treasury has launched a consultation (1st July), seeking views on how legislation should secure long-term access to cash.
The consultation includes proposals to set a maximum distance that consumers and businesses should have to travel to deposit and access cash without a charge.
Read MoreLocal Shops Urge MPs to Deliver Tougher Penalties for Attacks on Shopworkers in Policing Bill
Local shops are calling on MPs to support new amendments to the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill when it is debated next week.
The new amendments would provide greater protections for shopworkers and address the 40,000 violent attacks in convenience stores last year.
Conservative MP Matt Vickers is proposing tougher penalties for any workers serving the public that are subject to violent attacks. Labour MPs are supporting amendments for specific attacks on shopworkers and shopworkers enforcing age restrictions.
Read MoreACS Backs MPs’ Call for New Employment Bill
ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has welcomed a new report from the Work and Pensions Committee, urging the Government bring forward the Employment Bill to enhance the rights of workers in the low-paid and gig economy.
The report calls on the Government to develop a strategy for responding to long-term changes in the labour market, looking at wellbeing, skills, technology, and the availability of labour.
Findings from ACS’ 2020 Local Shop Report reveal that convenience stores provide local, flexible and secure jobs for around 412,000 people across the UK.
Read MoreACS: Rates Changes Welcome But Should Not Place More Burdens on Businesses
A new consultation has been launched by HM Treasury, proposing a framework for moving towards three-yearly revaluations of business rates from five-yearly and simplifying the appeals system.
The consultation proposes a number of new requirements on retailers, including:
Read MoreLandmark Home Affairs Committee Report Calls for Urgent Action to Tackle Abuse of Retailers
ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has welcomed a new report from the Home Affairs Committee on violence and abuse towards retail workers, which urges the Government to do more to protect people working in local shops.
The Committee’s Inquiry into violence and abuse against retail workers, chaired by Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP, was launched in December 2020, and took evidence from ACS, USDAW, the BRC, Boots and others during a series of evidence sessions earlier this year.
Read MoreGovernment Confirms Online/TV Ban for HFSS Products as Industry Awaits Clarity on Location Restrictions in Stores
New restrictions on the advertising of products containing high levels of fat, salt or sugar (HFSS) has been announced by the Government this morning (24 June).
Read MoreACS: Cautious Approach Needed to Future Wage Rates
ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) is calling for a cautious approach to increasing the National Living Wage (NLW) and other statutory minimum wage rates in 2022/23 to allow the labour market and economy to recover from the impact of the pandemic.
Informed by ACS’ National Living Wage Survey 2021, ACS’ submission recommends that the Low Pay Commission (LPC) should consider extending the timetable for NLW reaching two-thirds of median earnings by 2024, which is currently projected to be £10.33.
Findings from ACS’ National Living Wage Survey 2021 show that:
Read MoreACS Encourages Local Shops to Get Involved in Loneliness Awareness Week
Taking place between 14th - 18th June, Loneliness Awareness Week aims to encourage people to continue to reach out and support those who may be feeling lonely, even as lockdowns lift and to reinforce the importance of social connections.
Read MoreACS: Government Announces New Watchdog to Protect Workers’ Rights
ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has welcomed an announcement from the Government on the launch of a new watchdog which aims to protect workers’ rights in the UK.
At present, responsibility for tackling modern slavery, enforcing the minimum wage and protecting agency workers is currently spread across three separate bodies.
The introduction of the new watchdog will see the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority, the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate and HMRC’s National Minimum Wage Enforcement combined to create a single enforcement body.
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