Employment productivity

The reimbursement components of your salary require you to furnish bills before they become tax-exempt. Producing them may be difficult this year. Illustration: Uttam Ghosh/ Rediff.com If you think work from home due to Covid-19 has benefited you by cutting down expenses like daily commutes and eating out, think again. You may end up with a higher income-tax (I-T) bill for the current financial year (2020-21). The reimbursement components of your salary require you to furnish bills before they become tax-exempt. Producing them may be difficult this year. According to Suresh Surana, founder, RSM India: “Reimbursements like motor car, entertainment, conve­yance expenses, etc will be taxable as they are linked to actual expenses incurred while performing your duties.” Take the instance of conveyance allowance. Employees couldn’t move out of their homes to perform their official duties during the lockdown. If they can’t produce documentation, the tax … [Read more...] about Working from home? You may end up paying higher taxes this fiscal

In the southern Spanish city of Seville, the municipal water company has introduced a pilot scheme to produce electricity using methane from fermented oranges. EMASESA, a member of Aqua Publica Europea (European Association of Public Water Operators), aims to achieve energy self-sufficiency for its EDAR Copero Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) in the city, an existing facility that already generates electricity from organic matter. The plan is to put surplus electricity into the grid by 2023. "The project started as a result of EMASESA's interest in achieving energy self-sufficiency in the urban wastewater treatment process," the company's CEO, Jaime Palop, told DW. EMASESA aims to achieve energy self-sufficiency at its EDAR Copero wastewater treatment plant Oranges not only fruit In this way, facilities such as the Copero WWTP, which consumed around 13 GWh/year in 2020, achieved levels of self-sufficiency close to 95%, the CEO said.  "The Copero WWTP, due to its … [Read more...] about Spain: Why Seville oranges are the new green

SINGAPORE: Do something the court of public opinion judges as reprehensible and you can count on being “CSI-ed”. It’s become par for the course if your actions are caught on camera and posted online. The recent incident at a Caltex petrol station involving a BMW driver and an elderly pump attendant made it clear that this has become the standard trope. The incident went viral over the weekend after a Facebook user posted an account of what happened at the Tampines Avenue 8 petrol station. According to her, the driver of a BMW Series 5 vehicle had refused to pay S$135 for his petrol because he said he had only asked for S$10 worth. The elderly pump attendant calmly informed the cashier to let the customer pay S$10 and he would personally absorb the rest of the cost, she said in her Facebook post. Netizens incensed by the driver’s actions condemned him, with many slamming him in the comments section of the post. Some even volunteered to pay the S$125 on behalf of the … [Read more...] about Commentary: Is online vigilantism the best way to exact social justice?

KUALA LUMPUR: These days, mornings start at 7am for Mohd Adli Yahya, 56, and his son, Luqman Shariff Mohd Adli, 21. The two of them then head to the supermarket at 8am to purchase ingredients such as chicken, onions and spices for their ayam percik catering business, under Mohd Adli's food establishment Autism Cafe Project. To accommodate senior citizens and people with disabilities, several supermarkets and hypermarkets are opening earlier than their usual hours shortly after Malaysia's movement control order (MCO) was put in place on Mar 18. This allows Luqman, who is on the autism spectrum, to shop at ease before the rest of the customers arrive and form a long queue at the entrance. “There aren't many people during this time, so social distancing isn't an issue. And even if we were to enter a crowded place, he’s been slowly learning," Mohd Adli told CNA. Once the shopping is done, the father and son go home and start preparing the chicken. Although Luqman's … [Read more...] about New social norms, disruption to routines: Trying times for autistic community as Malaysia enters COVID-19 recovery phase

WASHINGTON, DC: The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits fell last week, but the pace of decline has stalled amid a second wave of layoffs as companies battle weak demand and fractured supply chains, supporting views that the economy faces a long and difficult recovery from the COVID-19 recession. The Labor Department's weekly jobless claims report on Thursday (Jun 18), the most timely data on the economy's health, sketched a picture of a distressed labour market even though employers hired a record 2.5 million workers in May as businesses reopened after shuttering in mid-March to slow the spread of COVID-19. At least 29 million people are collecting unemployment checks. Stubbornly high joblessness could stifle the nascent signs of economic recovery that had been flagged by a record jump in retail sales in May and a sharp rebound in permits for future home construction. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell told lawmakers this week that "significant uncertainty … [Read more...] about US labour market improvement stalling amid second wave of layoffs