Unbearable work situation

[Fuzzgin]

Couldn't reach the union today. My rep sent their full timer a text this morning. (Best way to reach her apparently,she's always out)

 

Been trying to pin down a personnel manager with confirmation of one of the pay days I've been told it will be paid and all I got back was "who told you?"

 

Anyway, I'll keep trying tomorrow. Out of the office all afternoon.

[papasmurf1cx]

Sorry to hear your your problems.... I wonder if your Union Rep is off arranging strike action !!!!!!!

 

It just struck me that Reps should be there for their members and yours wasn't.... when you need him / her .

[Fuzzgin]

I don't know why she hasn't got back to my local rep. Didn't today either. I'm in Unison and we're not on strike. Also a bit chaotic at the moment as we're moving offices. Added to that I was out of the office all afternoon. Phone and PC access will be limited tomorrow due to the move although that shouldn't stop the union person texting the local rep.

 

Getting stressed now. I owe council tax and I can't afford to pay it. Not if I want to eat.

[Fuzzgin]

Finally got hold of the union woman today. She wrote an e-mail to the senior manager of HR (same one I e-mailed) and sent me a copy of his reply. He said that it was intended for July's pay but not guaranteed. I wrote back to the union person saying that we'd already been told that but it was still vague and I was experiencing urgent cash flow problems. I got her out of office.

 

I get my next pay on July 28th and have less than £100 to live on. I owe £86 in council tax (to the same organisation) and work want to send me on a course that I'll have to pay upfront and claim back to get to. So that leaves me with small change to survive for a month. Does anyone have any advice? Please?

[papasmurf1cx]

Sorry to hear this... not much of an employer if I am honest... but anyway have you tried this http://www.dwp.gov.uk/publications/specialist-guides/technical-guidance/sb16-a-guide-to-the-social/crisis-loans/

 

Might tide you over if given.

[hhh_88873]

Unfortunatelt regarding the crisis loan I think you will find that you have to be in receipt of a recognised benefit in order to receive a crisis loan.

 

My suggestion would be contact the council and arrange a delay in payment due to extreme hardship.

 

Then postpone the course you are due to go on, for the same reason. (Although Im shocked to hear they expect you to pay for a course yourself, am I correct in thinking that it is a work course for the purposes of the business? if so you should defo not be paying for it full stop)

 

Then push your union to get this resolved. After all you are in the right and the dragging of the feet by the employer is out of order.

 

The employer, if proved to owe money CAN arrange what is called a CHAPS direct payment to your account. Its not cheap, thats why employers hae having to do it, but there is that method open to them if you can push them hard enough and show that they are causing you excessive hardship ans stress in you life.

[Atlas01]

If you have it in black and white that your backpay was due on xxx date then the council will simply have to pay you if you lodge a grievance asking for an immediate payment (they would be on a continuous breach of contract until they do so) and have no position to defend themselves. Council's do have the ability to pay on the day when pressured, they don't advertise it though

 

 

I would however check their has not been an agreement or communication coming from the council that this is being held back again which is possible.

 

In addition if your being sent on a work related course your paying for then refuse to go until your paid, i'd even refuse to pay full stop as others have said

 

NJC green book T&C's

 

==============================

 

3.2 Employees attending or undertaking required training are entitled to payment of normal earnings; all prescribed fees and other relevant expenses arising. Employees are also entitled to paid leave for the purpose of sitting for required examinations. When attending training courses outside contracted daily hours, part-time employees should be paid on the same basis as fulltime employees.

 

(Assistance for other forms of learning, for example that directed at individual development, will be locally determined). Some training can be very expensive and authorities may require repayment of all or part of the costs incurred should an employee leave the authority before a reasonable time period has expired. The authority's policy in this regard should be made explicit.

 

13.1 Employees necessarily incurring additional expense in the course of their work in respect of travel, meals or overnight accommodation will be reimbursed approved expenses, subject to appropriate evidence of expenditure being produced, in accordance with local arrangements.

 

 

============================

 

If you work for a council then they must follow these rules, in a nutshell not only can they not charge you for work related training but they have to re-emburse additional costs also

 

they can only recover if you leave within a set period and then only if they have a policy and usually a signed agreement to this

[Fuzzgin]

Sorry I was a bit vague about the course, it's travel to the course that I have to pay for. It's a considerable distance and so will cost more than I can afford. I already had to pay travel for being out of the office on Thursday and will have to wait until 28th to get that back. By which time I'll be fine as working full time for the last month.

 

They have paid one off payments in the past when my overtime payments (usually the majority of my wages) have gone missing somewhere on the line. Had to have one over the Christmas period.

 

I'm not on any benefits so no crisis loan. The problem with delaying council tax is that I work in the same office as those who process it. Kind of humiliating.

[honeybee13]

Hello there. You have to pay to go on a course??

 

Do you mean you need to pay for it with money that you don't have or that you're expected to pay and claim it back later? Either way I can see it's hard for you.

 

It sounds very odd.

 

My best, HB

[Fuzzgin]

No HB it's the travel I have to pay for. I don't drive so I have to go by bus. It'll cost about £15 but I don't have £15 to spend. I can claim it back but it goes through wages so won't get it until 28th August. By then I'll have a month's full time pay and (I hope) the back pay.

 

I should clarify also I have in writing from several sources that I'm at the new grade. Also we recently went through redundancies and were told if we applied for another job or were matched into an equivalent it MUST be at our current grade or below. The job I was matched into was at the new grade and I checked beforehand if I was suitable for it as I was only being paid at the old grade despite the matched job being my job.

[honeybee13]

Hello again. Is there anyone you can speak to so you can explain that paying the cost of travel is too much for your cash flow? I know all about not seeing the money for 2 months and it may not seem much to them, but they should understand it causes you a problem.

 

Maybe I'm naive, I just wondered if they could advance you some cash or make some arrangement so your travel is paid for in advance, so you don't have to spring out for it?

 

HB x

[Fuzzgin]

I mentioned it to a colleague who was my boss until this reorganisation and is also a union rep (the one who texted the union full timer). She offered to pay for me, but... I don't know. The course is really a symptom not the problem. The fact that the council owes me a lot of money while expecting me to pay out cash upfront is my problem. Being able to afford to eat is a huge problem. Having to go round pleading poverty while the council sits on my money is frankly humiliating.

[honeybee13]

Hi there. Yes, I can understand it's humiliating and it doesn't sound kind or logical on their part.

 

I'm out of ideas for now, but maybe the others have some. You also have Atlas's suggestions.

 

I hope you find a solution.

 

HB x

[Fuzzgin]

HB, that's the way that they are at the minute. This HR manager has an attitude as though I am unworthy of the time he is spending in not answering my queries. The job that they have matched me into is the one I'm doing now but it's the basic hours without the overtime and they're procrastinating on whether there will be any more hours so I won't survive if there aren't. Despite that fact that they were hoping to match someone into the remaining 4 days but she took voluntary redundancy. There used to be 2.2 full time equivalents doing this job and on top of the extra work I shall be expected to join a new department and do their job too. Hence; training. I'm dreading Monday and seriously considering handing in my notice. It's not worth the stress on top of all the health reasons why I chose part time in the first place.

[Atlas01]

Sounds more like you need good financial and debt management advice than employment help to me i'm afraid

 

 

 

"You have the answer to your question, use or use not, there is not try"

Master Yoda

[Fuzzgin]

My employer (a local authority) is closing a lot of offices and many jobs will go. They are trying to escape criticism by stating that there will be no compulsory redundancies and everyone will be redeployed.

 

Problem is that a lot of these offices are in very remote areas and there can be no redeployment opportunities nearby so in effect many of the staff will have no choice but to take redundancy or a job which will involve 1-2 hours travelling each way. That or uprooting families. Many work part time so moving will not be an option as any offer will be on the basis if the same hours they currently have. So effectively in many cases the reduncies will be compulsory in all but name.

 

Can they do this?

[Emmzzi]

Yes, it's quite legal! Slightly misleading but people have the option to move house and choose not to do so.

 

An hour's travel each way isn't considered unreasonable these days. 2 is pushing it...

[Fuzzgin]

2 would be more likely. More possibly. I can't go into more detail as I don't want to give away any identifying details but I'm talking big distances. And is it really reasonable to expect people to move for a few hours a week when they may have another family member to end up unemployed?

[Emmzzi]

No, but the employers job is not to be reasonable, it is to act within the law.

[Fuzzgin]

Hi, I'm on a secondment at work, that's due to end in a few months. This will leave me with only a day a week on a lower grade and my colleagues with no one doing a two person job. I'm telling you this at the start as any complaint I make will be seen to look like sour grapes as I'm losing hours.

 

At the moment I'm full time and my job is to train others to qualification level in my job. We're so short staffed that no training is being done. I'm in one of two merged departments and the other department (also struggling) seems to take priority. I'm working towards about 3 or 4 different changes (major changes) in how we do the job which partially coincide with the job I've been seconded into being deleted. While my job is to train colleagues their availability for training is so sporadic that I have to supervise everything they do on top of the huge workload that I have.

 

Over the last few weeks I've worked through a chest infection and an unexplained rash because I can't take time off. We're so short staffed. Mistakes are happening and rather than do my job I'm constantly correcting mistakes. Mine and others.

 

I've been off sick with stress before and I had to move careers and to the other end of the country to escape the fall out. I don't want to do it again and it would double the burden on others. There's no way however that I can do a job properly that I used to love doing. And yet we face more cuts. Everyone's job is on the line.

 

I have a union and they've told me I must put it in writing to my line manager (based in another office) but I haven't had time to do it yet. I did send a rough draft to the union rep on Friday but it wasn't anything like I wanted to say. At the moment my thoughts are confused.

 

Any other advice?

[Sidewinder]

I think what you have said above sums things up pretty well and should be used as the template for discussion with your employer. If an employee of mine were to set things out in the way you have here then I would be sitting up and taking notice.

 

I would probably go short of a formal complaint at the initial stage and ask for a quiet meeting with your immediate manager to explain that things are being stretched to the point that you are struggling to cope. Hopefully this would lead to an honest evaluation of what can be done to support you (and others) for the good of the business.

 

Of course if it were to not lead to improvements then you would need to consider whether a formal grievance might be appropriate.

[honeybee13]

Hello Fuzzgin.

 

I can't advise you I'm afraid, but I do understand how it feels with unbearable workloads and stress. SW has given you some good pointers there.

 

Hugs, HB

[Emmzzi]

If you are ill, be ill at home and rest. Your job does not require you to be a sticking plaster.

[Fuzzgin]

I already tried to speak to my line manager face to face months ago, she dismissed my worries.

 

Thanks for the replies. Managed to get a couple of days annual leave so I can decide my next step.

[Fuzzgin]

So back for more advice, my manager is off at the moment and we're short staffed in the office where I work. It's really just my base and my job is to supervise regional training as much as to work in my home office.

 

The boss of that office is at the same grade as I am in my secondment. When I'm not seconded she's my boss. At the moment she's not my line manager but she's acting like she is. My boss and I scheduled a meeting to discuss changes which I mentioned earlier but my boss being on holiday the colleague has gone over my head and cancelled it. I can't do my job for interference. Help.