Last week LAMMA held their show at the NEC in Birmingham and was a great success. It even saw a young County Tyrone man, Daniel Broderick, win the 2023 Young Engineer Award.
This week it is the turn of BTME to showcase what is new in the turfgrass maintenance industry, including the latest machines that have come to market.
A lot of Irish groundsmen and machinery dealers travel to Harrogate each year to attend BTME. The timing of BTME suits groundsmen very well as it is that time when they are looking to upgrade some of their machinery. They will be finding out about the latest models and innovations on show and of course they will be bargaining for the best deal possible.
With all that spending power from groundsmen and greenkeepers, shows like BTME offer opportunities for dealers to make sales. They are also places to make your presence felt. You will be making contact with potential new customers. It is important for them to be able to visit your stand so that they can talk to your sales reps and also to see, in real life, what machines you have on display.
The big question with attending these shows is ‘Is it be worth it?’ For the smaller dealer, renting out floor space at big exhibitions like BTME can be off-putting. You also have to take into account the meal and accommodation costs for your staff over the period of the show. The biggest dilemma one faces is if your competitors are exhibiting then you should be as well. It is all about weighing up the advantages over the disadvantages before deciding what to do. Some dealers opt to exhibit every second year so as to spread the costs of exhibiting over the two years. Some of the bigger companies have gone for this option.
While on the subject of costs, last week, Ireland’s hospitals saw record numbers of patients arrive on their doorsteps, especially in the Emergency Departments. Most of the patients were complaining of flu and respiratory related illnesses.
I’m sure this had an effect on your business as some of your employees didn’t escape catching these illnesses or even Covid. It is bad enough having staff shortages, due to illness, but some of you may be also paying them while they are out sick.
The Ifac, Ireland’s farming, food and agribusiness specialist professional services firm, is advising employers to make sure their records are kept in order when it comes to employee sick leave and to budget for the additional payroll costs for the new statutory sick pay.
New legislation, which came into effect on 1 January 2023, aims to improve the rights of employees who currently do not receive sick pay from their employer and/or are not entitled to illness benefits from the Department of Social Protection.
The Sick Leave Act requires employers to provide employees with up to three days of statutory sick pay in 2023, rising to ten days per annum by 2026.
To be eligible, employees must have worked for the employer for a minimum of 13 weeks and obtain a medical certificate. Employees who require additional sick leave after the statutory sick pay period expires may qualify for illness benefit from the Department of Social Protection if they have paid the necessary PRSI contributions.
Under the new legislation, the minimum standard of statutory sick pay that employers must provide is set at 70% of the employee’s wage, subject to a daily maximum threshold of €110. The Act does not prevent employers from offering more attractive sick pay benefits.
Employers who do not already provide paid sick leave will need to budget for the additional payroll costs of complying with the new legislation, while those who do provide paid sick leave should check how their existing employee contracts may be affected.
