Overtime rate query...

[ianheyburn]

I have worked for my employer for the last 6 years and over the last 4 and a half years of those I have worked a lot of overtime.

My remuneration from the company is of 2 parts; I receive an annual salary and in addition an annual shift allowance of £4800.00 (as I work 12 hour days & night shifts). My company was acquired in February 2008 and approximately 6 months or so ago my 'new' line manager called me into a very brief meeting and told me that throughout my entire employment history with the company that any overtime I had worked had been calculated at the wrong hourly rate. She said that it had been calculated as an hourly sum against my salary AND shift allowance when in actual fact the hourly rate should have been calculated against my salary ONLY. Since that point my overtime rate has reduced by nearly £2.50 per hour despite none of this having been confirmed to me at all in writing. There are 12 people in total who work the same shift pattern as myself and only 3 of us have been given this news and had their overtime rate adjusted downwards, the rest have not.

During my interview for this job I clearly remember being told that overtime WOULD be calculated against my salary AND shift allowance but that the shift allowance would NOT be utilised in the calculation of any annual bonus I may become entitled to.

I contacted my HR team and said that I would like to query this whole matter, confidentially with them and not involving my own line management (in whom I have very little faith). They replied that they would do so but then the following day emailed me repeating what my line manager said 6 months ago (i.e. outlining the apparent 'error') and told me to refer any further queries I had in regards to the matter back to my line manager!

I wonder if there's any advice or suggestions anyone could give me about this please?

 

[ccp consultancy]

Why have you waited 6 months prior to raising this as a concern. You will need a TUPE expert to confirm - but I am sure that you have left it too long to now query this.

Your pay should have been protected - if you were paid at this rate for 4 years with the previous company, and it is documented that this is the correct rate then you should still have been paid that with the new company

 

[ianheyburn]

Why have you waited 6 months prior to raising this as a concern. You will need a TUPE expert to confirm - but I am sure that you have left it too long to now query this.

To be honest with you I hadn't even noticed the adjustment until now on my pay slip. Moreover, it's only from chatting to my colleagues and comparing payslips recently that I've discovered only 3 of 12 are affected - I thought everyone in my team had had a similar chat with the line manager I mention but it transpires they did not.

 

[ccp consultancy]

I would suggest that you get all your documentation together and write formally to the HR department to try and resolve this

If you would like assistance then drop me a line - either PM or [email protected]

Thanks
Clare