Feel utterly defeated

Hi Thanks for this its really helpful, i will have a look at the link you sent

From how I understand it I think it is legal because I am on an hourly pay rate rather than a yearly salary. I think thats how they get round it. 

Hi,
Is this a school or a college? I'm a fully qualified and experienced Payroll Manager and having spent 8 years previously doing payroll for a college. I can assure that is not the correct way to do term-time pay.

School and college hours are annualised and if you are term-time only then your contract should be 0.748 (39 weeks out of 52.143 weeks). So, say if the full time salary is, say, £16500.00 per year, then the monthly salary would be: 16500.00 * .748 / 12, or £1028.50 per month. 

It looks like you are 32hrs per week, therefore a 0.647 contract. Is this what they have said?

More information about support staff pay can be found here neu.org.uk/.../support-staff-employment-rights

HTH

Thanks Roy. I will look into getting some help from the Citizens Advice

Yes I have been paid pro rata for most of my career, as thats how Teaching assistants usually get paid. The difference with this job, and what tehy should have explained to me before I started, is that most pro rata jobs calculate over a 12 month period and then minus off the money you would have earned during the school holidays. This one (and they didnt tell me this before I started) only calculates from your start date till the end of the school year so because I started in April and the school holidays start next month I am almost being deducted more than I am earnig if that makes sene

If theyd told me that in advance I wouldnt have taken the job

Hi, the money doesn’t sound good, from reading through your post you state that ‘we’ also have Universal Credit and you then said in a later answer that your wage is calculated over things like the Summer Holidays when I take it, you may not work due to family commitments.  I’m not a tax expert but maybe you are being paid Pro rata, I drove a school coach for a long time, school is in for 40 weeks per year, my wage was paid over 52 weeks, the 40 week wage is spread over the non working weeks. You may also be on emergency tax if you haven’t worked for a while, You will get this back. Also your Universal Credit could be taken into the equation. I had a problem in the past, The Citizens Advice Bureau had a lot of people who are accountants or solicitors and  give free advice. It is worth looking into.

Shardovan said:

All very demoralising, and as you say when you've jumped through the hoops of 'normalcy' to the best of yuor ability, it must feel almost wilfully cruel (except that it will of course just be employer apathy about anything to assist your quality of life, not something vindictive but might as well be)

This is so true, exactly how I feel

Unions worse than useless. Called them up and all they seemed intrested in was going through my earnings to make sure I was paying them the right membership fees. Then when theyd done all that they told me they couldnt help me beacuse the problem started less than 4 weeks after I joined the union. apparently thats a rule in the small print that they dont advertise. I have long suspected that, post Thatcher, unions have become a big con and this is confirmation

Thank you, It does help to vent on here and certainly helps to talk to people who understand 

Zazious said:

We're here with you when you need us.

Thank you, I love this forum. Its such a supportive place

Yes I have put in a formal grievance to the college. Just cant cope with the process of meetings and going through it all while still trying to cope with doing my job

No the summer holidays havnt happened yet so they are basically deducting the money I would have earned over the coming summer if I had worked it

Its very dishonest but technically legal

They deduct what you would have earned? Doesn't even make sense and zip never heard of such a thing.

Were you working for them over the summer holidays? 

I smell a rat in their behaviour.

That's not even legal. £600 takes you way below the minimum wage. 

Also not legal for your boss to ignore OH and deny your reasonable adjustments.

Try going to citizen's advice about both.

Sorry you're going through this Billy.

He sounds like a typical boss, arrogant and lies without caring how it's going to affect the people who keep the business going.

Can you write to him, strongly, telling him how you feel and how you have a family to support? 

Or could you go higher? To the company directors, see if they can step in at this point.

Keep cool man, this is a hurdle, but you can get over it. We're here with you when you need us.

Sorry it's been such a rough time for you Billy, I really hope that with some kind of union advocacy on your side you can get at least some of the reasonable adjustments made. The pay situation sounds horrendous, I'm surprised they can get away with that kind of sleight of hand. All very demoralising, and as you say when you've jumped through the hoops of 'normalcy' to the best of yuor ability, it must feel almost wilfully cruel (except that it will of course just be employer apathy about anything to assist your quality of life, not something vindictive but might as well be). I really hope things improve, you deserve better treatment that this Billy - goes without saying. Hopefully venting a bit is therapeutic for now even as the issues remain in play. 

Yes that is true but its calculated in such a way that they minus the wages I would have earned over the summer holidays off my wage so Im almost losing more than im earning if that makes sense

None of this was properly explained to me before I started

Sadly they dont help if the problems start before you become a member

Even unision, which I joined before starting this job, wont help me. I called them up and they told me they have a rule in the small print that you have to be a member for 4 weeks before any problems start for them to help you. I joined the week before I started my job

If you haven't already, join a union. They are on your side and will help. There should already be a rep at your place but if not, as a starting point, look at the NEU and contact your local offices. They will be able to find you a rep.

I dont know how old you are...

What is the UK Minimum Wage for 2023? As of 1 April, 2023, the UK minimum wage has increased. As of this moment, the National Living Wage will consist of an hourly rate of £10.42. Additionally, the rate for 21-22 year olds will be £10.18, for 18-20 year olds £7.49 and for 16-17 year olds it will be £5.28.

Right first of all don't quit immediately, get an advocate a NT on your side to go through every last document they through your way and to look into every loop hole. Then get 3rd party help with the asking for adjustments. I wish I knew how to legally stand up for myself in employment back in the day but instead I left feeling bullied and it was nigh impossible to get my foot back in the door with another job since. If I could do it all again I'd fight it tooth and nail, they might not like it if I had stood my ground but they would damn well have had to to respect it.

F**k sake; that's Peanuts.

Especially being so close to London.

They're obviously having a laugh.