Latest news with #CharlieMullins
Telegraph
01-07-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Why Labour's plan to expose everyone's pay is bad news
When Pimlico Plumbers' staff revealed their salaries to each other for a reality TV show in 2012, it turned things upside had assumed people doing the same jobs would be paid the same, but that wasn't the case at all. The exercise revealed pay discrepancies of up to £9,000. To restore order, managing director Charlie Mullins had to reluctantly agree to foot the bill for pay rises. 'It cost me a few quid once people found out what their colleagues were making. I had to put more money into the wages pot, and we did uncover some huge pay differences between people doing similar jobs. There was even a spectacular resignation from one guy who didn't get a pay rise,' recalls Mullins, who sold the business in 2021 and launched home repairs service WeFix last year. This social experiment may be about to take place in workplaces across Britain. Labour may force employers to publish salary bands, and make pay information available to employees. The idea is that by requiring employers to be more open about pay structures, salary ranges, and progression criteria, it becomes easier to identify and correct inequalities where people are doing the same or similar jobs. But this could have side effects, experts suggest, such as forcing business owners to hand out pay rises they can't afford, sparking resentment among colleagues and even pushing down high earners' salaries. Mullins believes salary transparency laws are really about the Government 'meddling' in how businesses are run. 'I'm all for transparency,' he says. 'But this government has no clue about running a business, so they should leave well alone.' Nearly half of employers now anticipate they will have to stump up for unexpected pay rises as a result of the Government's proposed changes, with 60pc expecting more requests for pay negotiations, according to a survey by HR and financial advisory WTW. Nyree Ambarchian, who runs communications agency Jack & Grace, introduced a transparent pay system in 2022. But she hadn't anticipated that this would lead to the company paying some of its staff more. She had to offer a higher salary to a prospective employee to match her previous one, but that had a knock-on effect. 'It wasn't just that person we needed to worry about, because we already employed somebody at exactly the same level,' she adds. 'So in making that hiring decision, the real cost to us wasn't just the extra that new person was looking for, but also the uplift in an existing member's pay.' Wages getting pushed up like this is an added burden for small businesses that are already feeling a huge crunch. From April this year, employers began paying National Insurance contributions at a higher rate of 15pc, starting at a lower threshold, while the minimum wage for those aged over 21 was increased. Environmental consultancy Tyler Grange introduced a fully transparent salary structure last year for its 85 employees. As a result of the process, the company had to give out a number of additional pay rises, says managing director Jon Berry. 'It was often as an inconsequential result of someone joining us from another organisation or because we'd needed to attract a key recruit within a highly competitive market,' Berry explains. He says that introducing salary transparency cost the business around £30,000. Despite the unscheduled pay rises, Berry believes going transparent has made the recruitment process more streamlined as salary expectations are clear. Current team members know what they need to do to get promoted and what future salaries might look like. In Ambarchian's case, the agency conducts yearly reviews and has funds put aside for when unique situations arise. Mullins says of his experiment: 'At times I wished I'd never given the go-ahead for the project, but things settled down after a few weeks, and I think once everything was out in the open, the company was better for the transparency. People stopped being suspicious of how much their mate at the next desk was making.' Lost talent and lower wages Yet, having transparent salaries can cause confusion and create resentment if bosses don't properly communicate, says Justine Woolf, of Innecto Reward Consulting. For example, an employer can publicise that a role falls into a certain salary bracket, but employees don't always understand why they are paid an exact amount within the band, and are frustrated when they don't move up. 'Say the salary band for a role is £30,000 to £50,000. The market rate for your job might be £35,000, but a high performer in the same band might earn £45,000. Employers don't always clearly explain the difference. This can lead to a feeling of unfairness,' says Woolf. In the US, where 15 of its 50 states have mandated some form of salary disclosure, organisations have lost talent, and wages of some high earners have actually fallen. For example, a law in California introduced in 2010 requiring municipal salaries to be posted online led to a 7pc drop in salaries for top managers, and a 75pc increase in the resignation rate, according to the US National Bureau of Economic Research. For others it could mean their salaries increase at a slower rate. In 2006, Denmark began requiring companies to be transparent about pay bands, leading to a reduction in the gender pay gap – at the expense of salary increases for men. High performers can also be impacted when salary transparency prompts an employer to pay two people a similar rate to avoid conflict, even if one deserves more, according to a study published in Nature Human Behaviour, a journal. 'People could become demotivated if they feel, 'I've put in all that effort, and I've got very little return in terms of internal movement. Am I really valued for my contribution?'' says Woolf. 'And that's when people will start to think about going elsewhere.' Lee Holmes, chief of NFINOX Global, which has transparent salary bands, predicts that the rise of salary transparency will spotlight the disproportionate number of people in the finance industry earning unexplainably high salaries. It could see many of them jump ship to protect those large figures, rather than risk a pay cut. London-based Holmes believes that transparency shouldn't hold genuinely high performers back. Companies which set salary bands and make them known across the company should still reward people based on what they've achieved rather than what a salary band dictates, he says. He has suffered from this himself, he adds. 'I was once doing a job that encompassed four or five different roles, and when I asked for more money to reflect that, I was told that my job title was linked to a certain salary, and that was it.' He left that role not long after. Holmes' observation overall is that it is often the most vocal people who end up on higher pay, whereas those who quietly get on with their job often don't get recognised. 'I do think that once [salary transparency] comes out these people will get found out, and if they do, then great,' he says. 'It creates a better working environment for everyone else.'
NZ Herald
07-06-2025
- Business
- NZ Herald
Are the super-rich leaving London? Tax reforms could spur wealth exodus
Oligarchs, exiled leaders, hedge fund managers and high net worth locals have coexisted in a city where old and new money collide. That may start to change. Not long after the Labour Party swept to power last summer, Charlie Mullins, a British entrepreneur who made his millions in plumbing, packed
Washington Post
31-05-2025
- Business
- Washington Post
Are the super-rich leaving London? Tax reforms could spur wealth exodus.
LONDON — Not long after the Labour Party swept to power last summer, Charlie Mullins, a British entrepreneur who made his millions in plumbing, packed up and left. 'Britain's just not a good place to do business anymore,' Mullins said in an interview, during a brief stopover in a country he now calls his former home. He now splits his time between two sun-soaked destinations: Spain and Dubai.
Daily Mail
11-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Britain's richest plumber Charlie Mullins blasts new American owners of his former firm after they axed popular apprenticeship scheme
Former Pimlico Plumbers boss Charlie Mullins has lambasted the maintenance firm's new American owner after they axed the UK company's popular apprenticeship scheme, as countless trainees were on the verge of qualifying. Mr Mullins, himself a former apprentice plumber, founded Pimlico in 1979 before growing the company into a £50million-a-year plumbing, heating and electrical services giant. The 72-year-old eventually sold the London firm to the tune of £140million to Neighborly, which is owned by private equity firm KKR, in 2021. But now he has hit out at the firm's new bosses for their recent move to get rid of their apprenticeship programme, which has trained more than a thousand youngsters since it first launched. Mr Mullins has since revealed he regrets handing over the reigns of the company to the US private equity firm and has offered to fund a legal case by the 16 apprentices who are losing their jobs. Trainees, some of whom were just months away from the point they should have become fully qualified, were offered just half a week's pay for each year of employment, MailOnline has been told - with one saying they'd received just £700. Fabio, a 20-year-old plumbing and heating engineer, revealed he was just months away from completing his scheme when he was laid off. He said Pimlico offered him half a week's pay for each year he had been with them, which would have amounted to between £600 and £700. 'We were working one day when we got a text and were told that our jobs were at risk,' he said. 'Everyone was really stressed out about it and been rushing to try and sort other work. No one in my college or anyone I've spoken to have heard of anything like this happening before.' Twenty-two-year-old Luke, who is also set to begin with WeFix in June, revealed he had only two months left before he was due to finish his apprenticeship when the possibility of redundancies were announced by Pimlico in April. 'I was actually on annual leave the day they scheduled the in office meeting to let everyone know, but I did receive a phone call from my manager after the meeting had finished,' he said. 'It was definitely a shock,' he added: 'It wasn't a good situation but what I've ever really done is just to try and make the best out of a bad situation, and turn a negative into a positive.' The apprentice, who had been working for Pimlico for three years described the situation as 'frustrating' as he was only a couple months away from sitting his final exam. He said he was mainly concerned from a 'financial' perspective as he had completed over 75 percent of his apprenticeship, meaning under government guidance he would still be able to complete his qualification without an employer. Explaining his worries and fears, he added: 'It was more from a financial standpoint and for future building that I did go out and seek employment.' Describing the moment, the redundancies were confirmed on May 2, he said: 'It wasn't as bad as it was when I received the initial news of the proposed redundancy because, I naturally decided okay I'm going to set plans for my future. 'I knew where I stood. I think the more worrying part of the whole situation was not knowing whether you were are being made redundant or not. When you kind of didn't know whether you were coming or going, that was a bit stressful.' Reflecting on his decision to apply to WeFix, he said: 'it's a suiting company. They work in the areas that I've always been used to, and I just saw it as why would I apply anywhere else? 'It was just probably going to be the best fit for me.' Apprentices were first told they were at risk of losing their jobs during a meeting in April. Afterwards a document later circulated largely laying blame on 'increased operating costs' resulting from the increase to National Insurance contributions and the minimum wage. It also cited high energy costs and business rates, as well as the UK's downgraded GDP growth forecast from 1.7 per cent to 1 per cent. 'In summary, current economic conditions, government policy changes, and increased operating costs are all impacting Pimlico financially, hence the proposal to close the apprenticeship programme,' the document stated. Mr Mullins left school aged 15 with no qualifications before becoming an apprentice and starting his own business from a Pimlico estate agent's basement. The company became known for providing services London's rich and famous it went on to boast annual sales of £50million. Glitzy clients have included Liam Gallagher, Daniel Craig, Dame Helen Mirren, Joanna Lumley, Jonathan Ross and Chelsea footballers. He has now set up a new home services company, WeFix, and taken on several of the apprentices who were made redundant. Mr Mullins accused Pimlico's new American owners of 'greed' and 'destroying youngsters' futures'. 'This is all about bottom line. And I'm sure that there will be a saving for them, but the future loss will be colossal. 'Without my apprenticeship there would have be no Pimlico and a lot of the guys we took on have gone on to run their own businesses too. So I've always been a big advocate for apprenticeships. 'It's damaging to them as a business and damaging to the apprentices who have put all this time and effort in.' The entrepreneur disputed the claim by management that they had been forced to lay off the apprentices due to rising costs. 'They say it's because NI and the minimum wage have gone up. I'm not disputing that it makes things harder but you don't necessarily cut down on people who are already in the company, particularly when many are towards the end of their programme. 'These people are the company's future. It's also demoralised a lot of other staff, some of whom encouraged their relatives to join up who are now being laid off. 'We took on apprentices within our first year of operation in 1979 and over 1,200 have gone through it. We're not in a position to take all 16 of them on but we're only taking a few. Mr Mullins has previously insisted it was a mistake to sell Pimlico to Neighborly, and repeated this claim today. 'I had other buyers but I picked them on the basis that they were the biggest, so I thought they would be a good outfit. I think this is about preparing the company for a sale. 'I wouldn't have sold it to them if I'd have known this was going to happen. I've learned in business now that many of these American companies aren't interested in anything apart from the bottom line. 'If these people want to get together and take legal action I will happily finance that.'
Daily Mail
07-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Britain's richest plumber Charlie Mullins reveals he's considering a UK return from his tax exile in Spain so he can become a Reform councillor
Charlie Mullins has been inspired by Reform's success in the local elections to renew his plans to return to the UK to stand as a councillor for the party. Britain's richest plumber, who made £145million when he sold Pimlico Plumbers in 2021, is currently sunning himself in Spain and Dubai after fleeing Britain to avoid Labour 's 'tax grab'. The 72-year-old insists he is 'loving life' abroad but would 'undoubtedly' consider coming back to contest a local council election in his native South London. He would also be interested in standing in a by-election for the Commons if one was declared. Mr Mullins, a prominent Reform UK supporter, said he was encouraged by the party's success in local elections across parts of England last week. The poll on May 1 saw Nigel Farage 's party win more than 650 council seats and seize control of 10 councils as Labour and the Tories suffered a grim night. 'The more Reform progress the more I want to get involved with them, and I'd undoubtedly consider coming back for a by-election or to run for a council seat,' he told MailOnline. 'Ideally it would be the area I come from in south-east London, so Bermondsey, Lambeth or Southwark. The business is in Lambeth so it would make sense to be a councillor there. 'It's become run down like many places but if you come from there you know what it takes to get things moving again - they need people who know what it takes to start a business. I have an apartment in Westminster so I'd be happy to try there but I'd imagine that would be harder.' The next local council elections are on May 7, 2026, while a by-elections will only take place if an MP's seat becomes vacant before the next general election, which is currently slated for 2029. Mr Mullins previously announced his interest in trying to become a councillor but told MailOnline he had ditched this plan after being threatened with having his OBE withdrawn over a social media attack on Sir Sadiq Khan. The Honours Forfeiture Committee, which is convened on an ad-hoc basis by the Prime Minister and chaired by the Cabinet Secretary, first accused Mr Mullins of 'bringing the honours system into disrepute' in September over comments dating back to 2022. They said they were 'minded to recommend to His Majesty that your OBE be revoked', citing a controversial X post he made about the Mayor of London as well as allegedly offensive jokes made online and in person. 'I didn't bother to run for a council because I had this threat of Labour trying to take my OBE away from me,' Mr Mullins said. 'So that's why I stepped away from it at that particular time. I wanted to keep away from it. 'But when their lawyers put their evidence through it was absolutely rubbish and about a few things I had put on TV or Twitter.' Mr Mullins and his partner, Malak, currently split their time between a stunning villa in the Costa del Sol and Dubai, where the entrepreneur is currently planning to buy a property. He has always denied wanting to 'run away' from tax and points out that he has been 'paying millions into the system for 50 years'. 'I'm happy to pay and contribute but I'm not happy about the money being wasted,' he said. 'More and more people are leaving the UK. I'm in Dubai at the moment and meeting people who aren't big business people but realise they can be miles better off. 'These local election results show it's no longer a two-horse race and Reform needs to be taken seriously. 'If Nigel Farage comes in I'll be back in the UK tomorrow. I don't think Labour will last their full term.' Mr Mullins recently gave MailOnline an exclusive tour of his sumptuous villa in Mijas Costa, just up the road from Marbella. The four-storey property boasts ensuite bedrooms on each floor, as well as a pool, a rooftop currently being converted into a bar area and a basement games room. The businessman, who heads up a family of 11 grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren, also owns a seven seater Land Rover for when 'the kids are in town.' In 2023, Mr Mullins was suspended from X - formerly Twitter - after he wrote 'someone should kill' Mr Khan in a discussion about ULEZ. He was told in March that no action would be taken after he pledged to undertake 'gender sensitivity and diversity training'. Despite the case having been dropped, he has previously blasted Sir Keir for what he insisted was a politically motivated attack sparked by him leaving the UK in anger at the PM's policies. A Government spokesperson said at the time: 'Claims that the Forfeiture Committee is politically motivated are completely unfounded and inaccurate.
