Can travel schemes that operate for low-paid workers be legal and ethical?
If the scheme is legal and increases workers’ take-home pay, especially that of low-paid workers, then it is clearly ethical. Such schemes are benefiting low-paid workers, not exploiting them. It is also worth noting that the agency workers that are members of such schemes will be employed under a contract of employment, which gives them equal employment rights to those of permanent employees. This is something that is high on the agenda for the UK government, trade unions and employers alike. Protecting the worker is at the core of national minimum wage legislation. Some schemes have already been reviewed in this area by both HMRC and national minimum wage specialists, and have been approved accordingly. Are travel schemes operated by umbrella companies legal? In some cases they are. It depends on how much information the umbrella company disclosed to HMRC as part of its procedures for obtaining its tax-free dispensation. But HMRC will always scrutinise more closely, and are more like
