Staff at Johnston Press are being invited to join a nationwide cycle to work scheme in return for sacrificing part of their next year’s salary.

The newspaper publisher has circulated a memo to employees about the move, which it says is part of an effort to encourage green travel, boost employee wellness and provide an additional benefit to staff.

JP workers across the UK are being offered the chance to take part in the scheme, which will see them sacrifice a portion of their salary in return for a year’s subsidised bike hire.

Under the scheme, the cost of which is due to repay itself over the course of a year, eligible employees can hire a bike and safety equipment up to a total value of £1,000 for 12 months.

The memo said: “Salary sacrificing reduces your tax and national insurance contributions thus enabling you to hire a bike and accessories at a reduced cost.

“At the end of this period, you may be offered the opportunity to purchase the bike and equipment by paying a fair market value.”

The memo said employees have two months to register for the initiative from 21 June and if successful, it will run again in 2011.

It adds the bicycles must be used by staff to help them commute to work.

Johnston Press company secretary Peter McCall said: “The advantage of structuring this as a salary sacrifice scheme is that it allows employees to reduce their income tax and national insurance contributions.

“We hope that the scheme will have health benefits for employees who opt in as well as some environmental benefits.”

But one JP worker who asked not to be named said: “I can’t believe the cheek of it. The company is trying to sell itself as a green company and then asking the staff to pay for it.

“The reasons we’re given for being saddled with a pay cut are just laughable.

“It’s great that JP thinks that we’re turned on by reducing tax and national insurance contributions, but our bosses must take us for muppets if they think we’re prepared to cut our disposable income to help in pedalling their green credentials.

“It’s not enough that they’ve made shedloads of cutbacks over the last few years, now they’re actually going to start charging us to come to work.”

The scheme will be administered by Cyclescheme, which has more than 1,600 bike shops in its network.

Comments

Robin Morgan (24/06/2010 08:20:45)
The only response to JP on this is…’on yer bike’.

Mike (24/06/2010 08:46:45)
I cannot quite believe what I’ve just read … then again, it is JP. Yet another stamp in the face of poorly paid, overworked journalists.

Major Eyeswater (24/06/2010 08:56:43)
I’m sure the incentive to “be green” and cycle to work will be a winner for those centralised to sub hubs many miles from their homes.
I love the term “sacrificing part of their salary”, though.
I get all sorts of benefits for sacrificing my salary every month – electricity, car, food….

Cyclist (24/06/2010 09:00:03)
How exactly is this “stamping on the face” of the staff?
JP is offering a scheme where its staff get tax relief on a new bike. If you don’t want to join, then don’t.
No one is charging you to go to work!
Loads of companies all over the country offer this scheme and many staff of those who don’t would be delighted if they did.
In case you don’t believe me, here’s one of the most popular schemes: http://www.evanscycles.com/ride2work

keen cyclist (24/06/2010 09:13:48)
This is a great scheme and I can’t beleive some of the negative commetns on here.
If you want a bike join up and spread the cost over 12 months at the end of which you will go back to your original salary. If you don’t want a bike don’t join. SIMPLES.

outofit (24/06/2010 09:23:32)
Do they really think people are going to fall for this claptrap?
I always knew JP were run by a motley collection of incompetants but this latest bit of tomfoolery just shows how low their collective IQ is.

Publish (24/06/2010 09:28:56)
We’ve been doing this scheme for a couple of years now. It is a good way to get a new bike out of salary virtually before any tax is paid. In effect the company holds title to the bike for 12 months after which you pay a peppercorn payment to take title.
It really works, gets some tax back and allows employees to spread the cost of an expensive bike over a year with no detrement to the employer. I can’t see what there is to be negative about.

Twiki (24/06/2010 09:35:56)
Of course, reducing your salary means JP has to pay out less when the next round of redundancies comes along…

hacker (24/06/2010 09:42:53)
This is one of the rare occasions when JP is being unfairly dissed. A crap company, but a great scheme. The cycle to work scheme allows you to save around 40% on the cost of buying a bike, and you pay for it over the course of a year, with the payments coming out of your salary. They have the same scheme at my work – it is brilliant. This is a really poor HTFP story. Makes it sound like its a JP wheeze – it is a national scheme.

Hank (24/06/2010 09:44:07)
I can’t believe the negative comments on this story. Are you guys so cynical that you can’t engage brain any more. This is a scheme that enables employees to get a bike tax free. Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.

CoachD (24/06/2010 09:58:55)
My son lives and works in London and through his Company he took advantage of this scheme several years ago. He cycles to his job in central London and now takes part in cycle races throughout the UK. He has the advantage of course by being employed by a Company who have shower facilities – not sure I’d like to work at JP with someone who had cycled several miles to work in this weather!!!!!!

Davy gravy (24/06/2010 10:01:23)
The Cyclists are right I’m afraid. Cycle to Work is a Government scheme which enables you to buy a bike in a tax efficient way – meaning the portion of your salary which is used to buy the bike is tax exempt. You don’t even have to pay up front – the employer lends you the money, interest free, and then takes it back from your salary over 12 months.
I’m not susprised the JP worker didn’t want to be named – he or she looks foolish. If that’s an example of his or her ability to grasp a simple concept and then explain it accurately then JP’s decision about which reporter to lose next should be an easy one…..

Missing something (24/06/2010 10:03:50)
Both the positive and negative comments have missed something here. I agree it sounds like a great scheme but reporters and photographers at the bottom of the corporate ladder are paid SOOOOO little that even the slightly reduction in salary is not even worth contemplating. It’s just not worth it. I struggled by on an average reporter’s salary for several years and all I did was run up debt as it was impossible to live within my means without taking a second job. Taking a pay cut to buy a bike worth up to £1,000 was never going to happen. You can get something decent from Halford’s for £100!!!

localhack (24/06/2010 10:36:37)
@Missingsomething I think you can choose which bike you want – if you wanted to effectively get the tax break on a £250 bike, you could.
Interesting point about the showers though – companies which implement this scheme are also expected to provide those kind of facilities. Can’t see JP forking out to install showers somehow. But then, as it doesn’t employ any journalists, nobody would use them in any case – or take up the scheme, for that matter.

Paul (24/06/2010 10:48:15)
We asked at our (non-JP) paper to join this scheme but were told the setup costs would be too high. If you don’t want to join, you don’t have to do.

Mr_Osato (24/06/2010 11:12:07)
and JP presumably won’t have a problem with reporters pedalling off to do a death knock by cycle then, or will they have to fund a car too?

Chopper Harris (24/06/2010 11:14:52)
According to a spokesman, this is a wheely good idea

Penny Farthing (24/06/2010 11:18:22)
If the workers are unhappy about this, why don’t they hold a Raleigh?

Chris Boardman (24/06/2010 11:20:29)
I hope that this doesn’t end up with employees saddled with a bike they don’t want

Cyclepath (24/06/2010 11:37:57)
stop peddling this nonsense!

Mrs Wiggins (24/06/2010 11:40:52)
There’s always someone prepared to put a spoke in it isn’t there!!!!

Bike Tyson (24/06/2010 11:48:35)
I think this scheme is a great idea – so it’s another kick in the teeth for JP’s BMeX-employees

pwc (24/06/2010 11:58:51)
@twiki you are guilty of a mistruth. There is no impact on gross salary. It’s a deduction before tax.

Twiki (24/06/2010 12:03:43)
@pwc Erm no. Your redundancy payout (if it’s enhanced) is based on your salary so you would get less if you accept a pay-cut for the bike scheme.
It’s the same with childcare vouchers

Kol Kurtz (24/06/2010 12:07:25)
For God’s sake. The scheme in question is a Government one and is used by thousands of companies all over the country.
The negative comments left on here by the same old curmudgeonly, bitter and twisted old hacks whose careers stalled decades ago just typifies the kind of ludite, backward thinking naysaying that holds the profession back.
I bet the same people moaning are the same that want to go on strike over Atex even though it’s already been instituted. Please, please get a grip you boring, bitter little men.

Tom (24/06/2010 12:18:37)
Hang on – £1,000 off your salary for 12 months access to a bike? That doesn’t sound like a good deal to me, unless the price of bikes has risen

pwc (24/06/2010 13:06:14)
@twiki. Erm yes. Redundancy is based on gross salary. This scheme is a deduction before tax. It has no impact on the gross figure.

Fearful for future (24/06/2010 13:40:39)
Having been made redundant, I no longer work in newspapers. But my ex-colleagues – or those few that are left – write and phone in local cafes and libraries, and carry around huge rucksacks with their laptops, notebooks, mobile, video camera etc. I can imagine how easy it would be for them and their photographic colleagues to cycle round a large area all day. It’s not as if they have an office to return to for a rest and back massage!

Sutler (24/06/2010 14:00:16)
JP should stick to doing what they do really well – running newspapers. Leave cycling to the professionals.

Newt (24/06/2010 16:05:00)
I am a JP employee and when I saw this e-mail notice I was pleased. I would like the chance to cycle to work and get a bike at lower tax than I would pay in the shops. I plan to do my homework on what is on offer and I will probably opt for a lower cost bike – just because you can spend up to £1,000 doesn’t mean you have to. Lots of businesses take advantage of this government scheme and it is a good opportunity for those who want to take part. It’s true, reporters probably shouldn’t cycle to deathknocks, but I’m sure their news desks will have some common sense and let them have the time to get the bus or (if they can) take a pool car. There are a lot of people who work in newspapers who could benefit from this, not just journalists.

dontyaluvit (24/06/2010 16:05:05)
The comments are nothing to to do with cycling and everything to do with the incredibly low morale in JP.
The so-called bitter hacks can at least recall a time when JP papers served their community well, instead of turning the few remaining reporters into underpaid jacks (and jills) of all trades and master (and mistresses) of none.
New recruits think crap is normal (eg dropping press releases on to pages unchanged) because they don’t know any better.
Plenty of them think JP stinks too, not just the older hacks. But they need the jobs like everyone else.
Let’s hope things get better.
Everything goes in cycles.

Tax Guy (24/06/2010 16:21:51)
@pwc – you are wrong there. Salary sacrifice DOES affect gross pay. There are ways to mitigate the impact on other things such as payrises, redundancy pay, etc etc sure but the starting point is that the employee agrees to a legal change to their pay with such schemes.
My advice to you pwc is to stick to commenting on things you know something about.

aspokesmansaid (24/06/2010 18:45:07)
so much fuss about bikes. what about the spineless middle managers on JP who need to start doing a decent day’s practical work instead of swanning around massaging their immense egos at free lunches and demanding more and more of vastly reduced staff.
Most have forgotten what it’s like to do some proper work on the word factory floor.

Spokes-person (25/06/2010 10:24:11)
I think JP staff would be less inclined to be cynical about this idea if the company didn’t expect staff in Scarborough and Sunderland, etc, to travel to a subbing hub in Sheffield. Rather difficult on a bicycle in motorway traffic!!

Chris (25/06/2010 12:46:07)
This brilliant scheme enables people to buy bikes at a significantly cheaper price than they would otherwise pay and has been running successfully across the country for years. I lobbied unsuccessfully for it to be brought into my paper (a JP title) a couple of years ago, so I’m delighted it’s finally come in (although I gave up and bought a new bike in the end, so it’s of little use to me now, sadly). It’s ridiculous to link this scheme with JP’s generally scandalous treatment of its staff, it’s actually a rare and welcome plus.
Also, I’m pretty sure it doesn’t affect redundancy etc. I get childcare vouchers (a similar government scheme) and they are listed as deductions – my gross amount is the same as it would be without them. When you think about it, why should it make any difference? JP are paying out the same monthly amount in salary with or without the schemes, they just alter who the money is paid to and the amount which is taxable.

Old cynic (25/06/2010 14:10:07)
There are now scores of former journalists (especially subs) travelling everywhere by taxi. Unfortunately, they’re driving them for a living….

Biter (25/06/2010 14:10:37)
Somebody pick me up i’m ROFLing at this one.