New measures have come into force today banning the use of exclusivity clauses in zero hour employment contracts.

The ban on these contracts, which prevent employees from working for another employer even though they themselves do not guarantee any hours of work, became law through the government’s Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Bill.

The Low Pay Commission, the body which advises the government on minimum wage, has recommended an increase to the current national minimum wage by 3% from £6.50 to £6.70. The increase, if accepted by the government, would come into effect in October 2015.

ACS chief executive, James Lowman, said: “With inflation running at 0.5% and many prices in store going down, this cost increase will be another challenge for convenience stores particularly for those trying to take on more staff and grow their business.

Financial Secretary to the Treasury, David Gauke MP, and the Minister responsible for business rates addressed the All Party Small Shops Group today in Westminster to discuss business rates in light of the Chancellor’s announcements in last week’s Autumn Financial Statement.

ACS has responded to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills’ (BIS) consultation on how to prevent avoidance of the exclusivity clause ban in zero-hours contracts.

The government’s Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Bill recently introduced a provision to ban the use of exclusivity clauses. An exclusivity clause in a zero hours contract is when the employer prevents the individual from working for someone else, even though they themselves do not guarantee any hours of work.

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has responded to the Work and Pensions Select Committee into the auto enrolment pension scheme, raising concerns about the impact of the plans on the smallest businesses and their staff.

The auto-enrolment process will see most convenience stores begin to enroll their staff in June 2015. Under the new law all staff must be automatically enrolled in a pension when commencing employment. Under the scheme employers will be required to pay 1% (rising to 3% by 2018) of the employees annual salary into the pension scheme.