Received this great Article from my Northern Gold Coast Chamber of Commerce on 10th February and couldn’t wait to get it out there – this is a must read…

It’s a common and legitimate sport for business owners to complain about government being out of touch and obsessed with regulation. But occasionally governments even the federal government, do produce good things, like the Department of Innovation’s new guide for small business contracts titled Contracts Made Simple which can be downloaded by clicking the link below.
http://www.business.gov.au/BusinessTopics/Independentcontractors/Documents/IndependentcontractsmadesimpleNovember2010.pdf

The reason this guide is potentially so important to small businesses is the principle that ‘knowledge is power‘. Always remember a contract is between two equal parties. For the majority of small businesses the hardest word to learn to say is NO.

Small business people can often be confused by contracts or overawed by legal terms. They’ll often take a job, ignore the contract risks and hope nothing goes wrong. But if people use the government guide they’ll have reliable facts upon which to better judge contracts. They will be more confident and prepared to negotiate to change contracts so that the contracts are balanced and protect their interests.

The guide, put together by the Department of Innovation, advises how to avoid being screwed over as an independent contractor, legitimising advice that has been offered by private organisations for years. When the information comes from the government people are more likely to take it as the truth.

For too long, confronted with all sorts of evidence of unfair contracts, business owners have taken the view that this is simply a part of running a business and that you can’t expect fairness. It’s certainly the position many solicitors take when they write contracts which are totally one sided. These are designed to exclusively protect the interests of their clients at the expense of the other party. Small business people are prey to this. They become victims because they rarely have the financial muscle to afford countervailing legal advice.

This is where the new government contract guide is helpful and also possibly quite powerful. The new contract guide is logically laid out and uses refreshingly clear, non-legalistic language. It also goes through all the basic items that a contract should sensibly contain, rather than providing a generic contract template.

For example, it covers descriptions of indemnity, intellectual property and confidentiality issues, payment and performance expectations, exclusivity and restraint of trade and – most importantly – contract termination and dispute resolution procedures. It looks at associated laws that the contract must be factored around, including workers compensation, taxation, superannuation, anti-discrimination and collective bargaining under the Trade Practices Act. It also gives a sensible description of Personal Services Income tax law. But more broadly it helps foster a better overall business environment.

Shared with you by – Maureen Millar

Jim’s Bookkeeping Northern Gold Coast (Helensvale QLD 4121)

Maureen Millar is the owner of Jim’s Bookkeeping Northern Gold Coast and she supports small business’ in Helensvale and across the Northside of the Gold Coast. To find out more about Maureen, visit her profile page at http://www.jimsbookkeepingbrisbane.com/maureen-millar.html or request her free report to discover “How to Stabilise & Grow Your Business in 7 Easy Steps“