Anyone familiar with Employment Law and Employees rights?

[El Gamo]

I'm doing some research about my work place,anyone know anything about these areas? Also, anyone know much about London Weighting? The extra £££ that are added on if you live in London. Is it a legal requirement or is it the employer's discretion? Any help would be appreciated immensly

[X]

Not blowing my trumpet or anything, but I do know my stuff about this .... what do you want to know?

[El Gamo]

How do you know about this? I would like to know what an employees rights are in EVERY work place,where I can find the information,and London Weighting, and whether this is a legal requirement or not.

[X]

I sort of do employment law for a living, that's how I know.

You can look up the legal stuff on the government website

Website of the UK government : Directgov

but the original legal text is pretty hard for people to decipher. You can go to a library and get out some books on employment law, you can speak to a Citizen's Advice Bureau, or you can speak to the HR people at your work (unless you actually want tp pay to see a good lawyer or see a bad one via 'no win no fee')

.. and unfortunately, it is not a legal requirement to pay London Weighting. The reason some companies pay it is because they have flat wage structures that they do not want to break. They appreciate that the cost of living in London is higher, so they pay people a London Weighting allowance to make up the total, but also that they can then take away if people leave London.

The added benefit is also usually that people's overtime or pension contributions are calculated without any London Allowance monies being countable. So they save a lot of money too.

I doubt you would be able to really find out what an employee's rights are in every workplace (if it was that easy, we wouldn't need so many scumbag lawyers) - this is because UK employment law is predicated on a long history of legal activity, great swathes of civil precedence which then pass to statute, imposition of EU Directives (and then susequent national legislation underneath that) etc. Not to mention the numerous Working Rule Agreements, Staff Councils and Associations, Trade Union Agreements, Comapny policies and plain custom and practice that may apply totally differently to different companies... all of which may be equally as binding as any law.

It sounds to me like to have a gripe about London Weighting .... is there anything specific I can help you with? I actually do know my stuff on this.

[El Gamo]

Yeah,some people at work only earn a little above average wage. Average wage is for unskilled jobs right?This ia a dam skilled job. And also, is there any legislation in place which means a person is entitled to concessions on travel>? Could you find me a good link which gives me information about London Weighting please?

[El Gamo]

Also,our company is moving to more central London,which is a HUGE move in terms of travel,some people only live 5 minutes away,and the move could mean up to 1 hour travel:can pay be increased on these grounds? There must be somethig in place for when a company moves locations?

[X]

Hi Gamo - I've been away for a few days so sorry for not replying sooner.

I'll try and take your questions in order:

- there is nothing set down in law about average wages. We have a national minimum wage in the UK, (HERE: http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Employment/Employees/Pay/DG_10027201)
This applies to all jobs, assuming you are over 21 and in full time employment, so there are no further grade requirements (ie a certain wage for a certain job, or more for another etc)

- The average wage in the Uk is about £26,000 a year, but this really has nothing to do with legislation, this is driven by a free market supply and demand economy. A few years ago, plumbers were earning more than junior doctors simply because there was a shortage of plumbers .... nothing to do with the relative worthiness of the jobs.

- There is no legislation in place which says that people should be entitled to travel concessions. People essentially choose where they live and companies should not have to take thr cost risk on this (just because I live further away than you do, why should I get more money just for that?)

- When a company moves locations, there are no specific protections in place for employees, other than the usual unfair dismissal rights etc which are in place. If a person is vital to an organisation, then the company will pay them what it takes to keep them, if they are replaceable (have no scarece skills or specialist knowledge) then they can just hire someone new who lives nearer. Sorry! You may be entitled to redundancy on the grounds that you can;t actually get to work or that it is now economically not worth your while .... but that is the employee's problem, not the company's.

[El Gamo]

No worries my man. Thanks alot! Get back to my pm too if you get the chance. I'll post more ffedback later but things don't look so good thus far So other than the minimum wage,there is NO other legislation in place and everything appears to be up to the employers discretion? Great!

[X]

Well, they are not allowed to just fire you, or discriminate against you,and they have to formally 'consult' with you ... but basically as long as they donlt fail to follow their procedures, they can do pretty much what they like with relocation/compensation, london weighting I'm afraid.

[X]

Incidentally, I thought I'd give you a five minute management lesson .... hope it turns out useful over your lifetime.

Lesson 1

A turkey was chatting with a bull.

'I would love to be able to get to the top of that tree' sighed the
turkey,' but I haven't got the energy.'
'Well, why don't you nibble on some of my droppings?' replied the bull.
They're packed with nutrients.'

The turkey pecked at a lump of dung, and found it actually gave him
enough strength to reach the lowest branch of the tree.

The next day, after eating some more dung, he reached the second branch.

Finally after a fourth night, the turkey was proudly perched at the top
of the tree.

He was promptly spotted by a farmer, who shot him out of the tree.


Moral of the story:
Bull Shit might get you to the top, but it won't keep you there..



Lesson 2:

A man is getting into the shower just as his wife is finishing up her
shower, when the doorbell rings.

The wife quickly wraps herself in a towel and runs downstairs.

When she opens the door, there stands Bob, the next-door neighbour.

Before she says a word, Bob says, 'I'll give you $800 to drop that
towel.'


After thinking for a moment, the woman drops her towel and stands naked
in front of Bob, after a few seconds, Bob hands her $800 and leaves.


The woman wraps back up in the towel and goes back upstairs.

When she gets to the bathroom, her husband asks, 'Who was that?'

'It was Bob the next door neighbour,' she replies.

'Great,' the husband says, 'did he say anything about the $800 he owes
me?'


Moral of the story:

If you share critical information pertaining to credit and risk with
your
shareholders in time, you may be in a position to prevent avoidable
exposure.



Lesson 3:

A priest offered a Nun a lift.

She got in and crossed her legs, forcing her gown to reveal a leg.

The priest nearly had an accident.

After controlling the car, he stealthily slid his hand up her leg.

The nun said, 'Father, remember Psalm 129?'

The priest removed his hand. But, changing gears, he let his hand slide
up her leg again.
The nun once again said, 'Father, remember Psalm 129?'

The priest apologised 'Sorry sister but the flesh is weak.'

Arriving at the convent, the nun sighed heavily and went on her way.

On his arrival at the church, the priest rushed to look up Psalm 129. It
said, 'Go forth and seek, further up, you will find glory.'

Moral of the story:
If you are not well informed in your job, you might miss a great
opportunity.


Lesson 4:

A sales rep, an administration clerk, and the manager are walking to
lunch when they find an antique oil lamp.

They rub it and a Genie comes out.
The Genie says, 'I'll give each of you just one wish.'
'Me first! Me first!' says the admin clerk. 'I want to be in the
Bahamas , driving a speedboat, without a care in the world.'
Puff! She's gone.

'Me next! Me next!' says the sales rep. 'I want to be in Hawaii ,
relaxing on the beach with my personal masseuse, an endless supply of Pina
Coladas and the love of my life.'

Puff! He's gone.

'OK, you're up,' the Genie says to the manager.
The manager says, 'I want those two back in the office after lunch.'


Moral of the story:
Always let your boss have the first say.


Lesson 5

A little bird was flying south for the winter. It was so cold the bird
froze and fell to the ground into a large field.

While he was lying there, a cow came by and dropped some dung on him.

As the frozen bird lay there in the pile of cow dung, he began to
realize how warm he was.

The dung was actually thawing him out!

He lay there all warm and happy, and soon began to sing for joy.
A passing cat heard the bird singing and came to investigate.

Following the sound, the cat discovered the bird under the pile of cow
dung, and promptly dug him out and ate him.


Morals of the story:
(1) Not everyone who shits on you is your enemy.

(2) Not everyone who gets you out of shit is your
friend.

(3) And when you're in deep shit, it's best to keep
your mouth shut!



...AND THUS ENDS X's FIVE MINUTE MANAGEMENT COURSE ... use it wisely, O my brothers.

[Shamrock]

Acas - How can we help?

I was Chairperson of the Union in my work place for about 5 years... During that time ACAS was an inavluable resource to me... it may be of help to you

[X]

What Union was it, Shamrock?

[Shamrock]

What Union was it, Shamrock?

PCS (Public and Commercial Services Union)