From Thursday, 1 October 2015 the adult rate of the UK National Minimum Wage (NMW) will rise by 20p from £6.50 to £6.70 per hour, as recommended by the Low Pay Commission (LPC) in March 2015.

With the UK General Election in May, deliberations over EU membership continue to be an important discussion issue. Tony Richman shares his thoughts on the European Union based on his many years of lobbying activities.

Edward Kenneth Philp (Ted) died peacefully at home on 17 March, 2015 just a few weeks after his wife, Doreen, had also passed away. Ted was 89 years old. He and Doreen had been married for over 61 years.

It wasn’t many years ago that computerised management systems for removals companies was considered to be unachievable. There are just too many variables: customers, destinations, types of job, materials, staff. Today, however, there are lots of systems out there all, to a greater or lesser degree, have mastered the problem. The choice of system is largely down to price, usability and what the system will do.

Tom Ansley - Down memory lane; Guy Lundy - Africa rising; Rev Mpho Tutu - Small things can change the world; Reason Global sponsors the FIDI fun run.

The FIDI conference is the biggest single gathering of the moving industry in the world, except IAM. It’s a maelstrom of over 500 people, a logistical nightmare, a commercial cauldron. What is amazing, is that the show ever gets on the road at all. But it does, and its success is a testimony to the dedication of the team at FIDI who work very hard all year to make it that way.

OMNI (Overseas Moving Network International) held its annual conference at the end of March, this time at the stunningly beautiful Victoria Falls in Zambia. Despite OMNI’s reputation for holding extraordinary conferences for its members, many of the delegates agreed that 2015 could well have been the best in the organisation’s 30-year history.

After 50 years in the moving business, Crown Relocations in the UK is blurring the lines between corporate and migrant service. Steve Jordan talked to John Morris to find out how.

All removal companies need to have adequate insurance to protect themselves and their customers if the unthinkable happens. But how can you be sure insurance for your customers’ goods in storage and transit, will pay out if disaster strikes? Dan Reynolds of Reason Global explains how they make sure you have the right cover in place.

Worldwide Movers Africa have informed us that:

Commenting on the result of the General Election and its implications for the UK’s housing market, the chairman of the Conveyancing Association Eddie Goldsmith said:

The British Association of Removers (BAR) has announced the finalists for The Commercial Mover of the Year 2015 competition (CMotY).

News from Europe

Cyclist safety: a two-way process!

White and Company has recently taken delivery of two new MAN road trains.

Lisa Bailey, CRP and Emily Ptak have accepted new roles at AIReS’ West Coast Regional Office in Huntington Beach, CA, having previously spent years working with corporate clients and transferees at AIReS’ Central Regional Office in Pittsburgh, PA.

The IAM Regional Meeting in Belfast, Northern Ireland, U.K. is coming up quickly, from May 18-20.

The UK Supreme Court has quashed the government’s ineffective plans to cut illegal levels of air pollution in Britain and ordered it to deliver new proposals by the end of 2015.