Overview

When

you

start

work

your

employer

should

tell

you

how

much

you

’ll

be

paid

and

how

often

They

should

also

tell

you

the

day

or

date

you

’ll

be

paid

for

example

each

Friday

or

the

last

day

of

the

month

how

you

’ll

be

paid

for

example

cash

cheque

or

bank

transfer

If

you

’re

an

employee

or

worker

not

a

contractor

or

freelancer

you

have

the

right

to

a

payslip

which

shows

your

earnings

before

and

after

any

deductions

the

amount

of

any

deductions

that

may

change

each

time

you

’re

paid

for

example

tax

and

National

Insurance

the

number

of

hours

you

worked

if

your

pay

varies

depending

on

time

worked

You

might

need

to

know

how

to

work

out

your

weekly

pay

if

you

have

to

claim

payments

for

redundancy

or

compensation

from

your

employer

Part

time

workers

If

you

’re

a

part

time

worker

you

must

get

at

least

the

same

hourly

pay

rate

as

a

full

time

worker

doing

a

similar

job

Working

out

your

pay

Knowing

how

to

work

out

your

weekly

pay

is

important

because

it

’s

used

to

work

out

how

much

you

should

get

for

redundancy

pay

and

pay

during

time

off

for

job

hunting

if

you

’re

made

redundant

pay

during

your

notice

period

when

leaving

a

job

holiday

pay

guarantee

pay

for

work

you

get

this

if

your

employer

can

not

provide

you

with

work

but

your

contract

says

they

have

to

pay

you

anyway

compensation

awarded

by

Employment

Tribunals

What

you

’re

entitled

to

depends

on

your

work

status

You

do

not

need

to

calculate

your

weekly

pay

if

you

’re

paid

weekly

and

your

pay

does

not

vary

If

your

pay

varies

or

you

’re

not

paid

weekly

you

have

to

use

a

week

period

for

working

it

out

The

week

period

You

can

work

out

your

weekly

pay

by

getting

an

average

figure

for

a

week

period

The

particular

weeks

you

use

varies

depending

on

what

you

’re

calculating

your

pay

for

Redundancy

Use

the

weeks

up

to

the

day

you

got

your

redundancy

notice

to

work

out

your

pay

Notice

pay

Use

the

weeks

up

to

the

first

day

of

the

notice

period

to

work

out

what

your

notice

pay

should

be

Paid

annual

leave

Work

this

out

using

the

weeks

leading

up

to

your

holiday

Guarantee

payments

Use

the

weeks

leading

up

to

when

your

payment

is

due

If

you

no

longer

work

for

that

employer

use

the

last

weeks

of

your

employment

with

them

If

you

’ve

worked

for

your

employer

for

less

than

weeks

you

should

be

allowed

to

calculate

your

average

weekly

pay

using

the

number

of

hours

you

would

have

worked

the

hours

of

other

workers

doing

a

similar

job

for

your

employer

Working

out

your

weekly

figure

Add

up

the

total

amount

of

pay

for

the

period

and

divide

it

by

to

get

the

weekly

figure

You

do

this

even

if

you

’ve

had

to

use

a

period

of

more

than

weeks

You

can

also

include

bonuses

Overtime

You

can

include

overtime

in

your

calculations

if

your

contract

says

your

employer

has

to

pay

it

Work

done

for

a

previous

employer

You

can

include

pay

for

work

done

for

a

previous

employer

if

you

’re

calculating

your

average

weekly

pay

and

you

did

not

have

a

gap

in

employment

when

you

changed

jobs

Get

help

with

the

calculations

You

can

get

help

to

calculate

a

week

’s

pay

from

Acas

Advisory

Conciliation

and

Arbitration

Service

or

Citizens

Advice

Pay

calculations

if

you

work

shifts

or

get

bonuses

If

your

pay

or

working

hours

vary

from

week

to

week

the

calculations

for

working

out

your

weekly

pay

are

more

complicated

Bonuses

and

commission

Your

pay

could

vary

depending

on

the

amount

of

work

you

do

because

of

bonuses

commission

piece

work

you

’re

paid

by

the

amount

of

work

you

do

rather

than

by

the

hour

The

week

period

If

you

get

bonuses

commission

or

piece

work

you

’ll

need

to

work

out

your

average

hourly

rate

over

a

week

period

to

work

out

your

weekly

pay

Add

up

your

total

pay

for

the

weeks

first

You

can

include

overtime

and

bonuses

There

are

special

calculations

for

bonuses

Quarterly

bonuses

You

can

include

a

proportion

of

your

quarterly

bonuses

in

your

calculations

Divide

the

bonus

amount

by

the

number

of

weeks

in

a

quarter

of

a

year

Multiply

this

figure

by

the

number

of

weeks

your

pay

is

averaged

across

Annual

bonuses

If

you

get

an

annual

bonus

here

’s

what

you

need

to

do

Divide

the

bonus

amount

by

the

number

of

weeks

in

a

year

Multiply

this

by

Hourly

rate

Work

out

the

average

hourly

rate

by

dividing

the

total

amount

you

earned

in

week

period

by

the

number

of

hours

you

worked

Weekly

rate

Multiply

your

hourly

rate

by

the

average

number

of

hours

you

worked

each

week

in

the

week

period

to

get

your

weekly

rate

Shift

or

rota

work

Your

week

’s

pay

will

be

the

average

number

of

hours

you

work

at

an

average

pay

rate

over

a

week

period

Get

help

with

the

calculations

You

can

get

help

to

calculate

a

week

’s

pay

from

Acas

Advisory

Conciliation

and

Arbitration

Service

or

Citizens

Advice

Performance

related

pay

Your

employer

should

base

your

performance

related

pay

on

clear

measurable

targets

they

should

tell

you

about

these

There

are

main

types

of

performance

pay

short

term

schemes

like

bonus

payments

or

sales

commission

long

term

schemes

like

company

shares

Non

payment

of

bonuses

or

commission

If

you

do

not

get

a

bonus

or

commission

you

’re

owed

and

you

think

there

’s

been

a

mistake

speak

to

your

employer

to

see

if

there

’s

been

a

misunderstanding

ask

them

set

out

in

writing

how

they

’ve

calculated

your

pay

keep

copies

of

any

letters

and

notes

of

any

meetings

If

a

bonus

or

commission

is

included

in

your

contract

non

payment

is

a

breach

of

contract

You

can

get

help

with

making

a

complaint

Non

payment

of

bonuses

may

also

be

covered

legally

under

unlawful

deductions

from

wages

for

example

you

’re

entitled

to

payment

but

it

has

not

been

given

unlawful

discrimination

your

employer

must

not

discriminate

against

particular

groups

for

example

giving

smaller

bonuses

to

women

You

can

get

advice

from

Acas

Advisory

Conciliation

and

Arbitration

Service

Citizens

Advice

or

your

trade

union

representative

Deductions

from

your

pay

Your

employer

is

not

allowed

to

make

deductions

unless

it

’s

required

or

allowed

by

law

for

example

National

Insurance

income

tax

or

student

loan

repayments

you

agree

in

writing

your

contract

says

they

can

there

’s

a

statutory

payment

due

to

a

public

authority

you

have

not

worked

due

to

taking

part

in

a

strike

or

industrial

action

there

’s

been

an

earlier

overpayment

of

wages

or

expenses

it

’s

a

result

of

a

court

order

A

deduction

can

not

normally

reduce

your

pay

below

the

National

Minimum

Wage

even

if

you

agree

to

it

except

if

the

deduction

is

for

tax

or

National

Insurance

something

you

’ve

done

and

your

contract

says

you

’re

liable

for

it

for

example

a

shortfall

in

your

till

if

you

work

in

a

shop

repayment

of

a

loan

or

advance

of

wages

repayment

of

an

accidental

overpayment

of

wages

buying

shares

or

share

options

in

the

business

accommodation

provided

by

your

employer

your

own

use

for

example

union

subscriptions

or

pension

contributions

If

you

work

in

retail

for

example

shops

restaurants

Your

employer

can

not

take

more

than

from

your

gross

pay

pay

before

tax

and

National

Insurance

each

pay

period

to

cover

any

shortfalls

If

you

have

not

been

paid

in

full

Speak

to

your

employer

first

to

try

to

sort

out

the

problem

informally

If

this

does

not

work

talk

to

Acas

Advisory

Conciliation

and

Arbitration

Service

Citizens

Advice

or

your

trade

union

representative

You

have

the

right

to

go

to

an

Employment

Tribunal

to

get

your

money

If

you

leave

your

job

Check

your

contract

to

see

if

your

employer

is

allowed

to

withhold

your

pay

Normally

you

’re

entitled

to

be

paid

everything

you

’ve

earned

up

to

the

point

you

finish

If

you

’re

forced

to

resign

because

your

employer

refuses

to

pay

you

you

may

be

able

to

make

a

constructive

dismissal

claim

in

an

Employment

Tribunal


Overview

Industrial

action

is

when

workers

go

on

strike

take

other

action

like

refusing

to

do

overtime

known

as

action

short

of

a

strike

Sometimes

an

employer

may

stop

their

workers

from

working

or

coming

back

to

work

during

a

dispute

This

is

called

a

lock

out

Calling

industrial

action

Industrial

action

happens

when

trade

union

members

are

in

a

dispute

with

their

employers

that

ca

n’t

be

solved

through

negotiations

A

trade

union

can

only

call

for

industrial

action

if

a

majority

of

its

members

involved

support

it

in

a

properly

organised

postal

vote

called

a

ballot

Before

organising

a

ballot

a

union

must

decide

which

members

affected

by

a

dispute

it

wants

to

ask

to

take

industrial

action

It

must

tell

all

members

entitled

to

vote

and

the

employer

what

the

ballot

results

were

A

trade

union

calls

industrial

action

by

telling

members

and

the

employer

when

and

how

this

action

will

be

taken

This

should

be

done

by

a

trade

union

official

or

committee

that

has

the

legal

right

to

do

so

Your

voting

paper

must

have

said

who

this

is

Taking

part

in

industrial

action

your

rights

If

you

’re

a

trade

union

member

you

have

the

right

to

vote

before

your

union

asks

you

to

take

industrial

action

You

do

n’t

have

to

take

part

in

industrial

action

and

ca

n’t

be

disciplined

by

your

union

if

you

do

n’t

If

you

do

get

excluded

or

expelled

from

your

union

you

can

complain

to

an

employment

tribunal

Secondary

action

It

’s

against

the

law

to

take

part

in

secondary

action

going

on

strike

in

sympathy

with

people

who

work

for

a

different

employer

Holding

a

ballot

Your

union

must

have

a

vote

a

ballot

that

’s

properly

organised

according

to

legal

rules

Properly

organised

ballots

A

ballot

for

industrial

action

must

be

supervised

by

a

qualified

independent

person

a

scrutineer

often

someone

from

an

organisation

like

the

Electoral

Reform

Society

appointed

by

the

union

if

over

members

are

being

balloted

be

held

before

the

union

asks

members

to

take

or

continue

taking

action

be

open

to

all

members

the

union

wants

to

take

action

be

a

postal

ballot

where

members

vote

by

marking

a

box

on

a

voting

paper

and

return

it

in

a

prepaid

envelope

include

information

on

what

the

ballot

is

about

and

where

to

post

your

vote

The

union

must

tell

everyone

entitled

to

vote

how

many

people

voted

the

number

of

yes

votes

no

votes

or

spoiled

papers

as

soon

as

it

can

after

the

ballot

It

must

also

give

the

employer

one

week

’s

notice

of

the

start

of

the

ballot

and

tell

them

the

result

as

soon

as

possible

once

it

’s

available

There

’s

practical

guidance

on

these

rules

in

the

code

of

practice

on

industrial

action

ballots

Questions

on

the

voting

paper

When

you

’re

balloted

your

voting

paper

must

ask

whether

you

want

to

take

part

in

either

or

both

strike

action

action

short

of

a

strike

The

union

can

only

call

on

members

to

take

action

if

a

majority

of

members

who

voted

were

in

favour

of

that

particular

action

If

both

questions

are

asked

on

the

ballot

paper

and

members

vote

yes

to

both

the

union

can

decide

what

industrial

action

to

take

Complaining

about

ballots

You

can

apply

for

a

court

order

if

your

union

breaks

the

rules

on

industrial

action

ballots

You

can

take

legal

advice

before

doing

this

The

court

may

order

the

union

not

to

organise

action

if

it

decides

a

ballot

was

n’t

held

according

to

the

rules

You

can

apply

for

a

temporary

injunction

that

tells

the

union

not

to

call

industrial

action

if

your

case

ca

n’t

be

heard

in

court

straight

away

If

the

union

does

n’t

do

what

the

court

says

you

can

ask

them

to

declare

the

union

to

be

in

contempt

of

court

and

the

union

can

be

fined

Your

employment

rights

during

industrial

action

You

have

the

right

to

take

industrial

action

and

you

ca

n’t

be

legally

forced

to

stay

at

or

go

back

to

work

unless

a

ballot

was

n’t

organised

properly

If

you

take

industrial

action

you

’ll

probably

have

broken

be

in

breach

of

your

employment

contract

and

your

employer

is

unlikely

to

pay

for

the

work

you

did

n’t

do

when

you

took

industrial

action

can

sue

you

for

breaking

your

contract

this

does

n’t

happen

often

Taking

industrial

action

does

n’t

usually

mean

that

your

employer

will

say

you

’ve

broken

your

period

of

continuous

employment

with

them

This

begins

when

you

start

working

for

your

employer

and

ends

on

the

day

your

employer

uses

to

calculate

your

length

of

service

However

if

you

take

industrial

action

your

employer

will

reduce

your

length

of

service

with

them

by

the

number

of

days

you

were

on

strike

This

is

important

when

working

out

your

pension

and

things

like

statutory

redundancy

pay

Dismissal

for

industrial

action

You

ca

n’t

be

dismissed

for

industrial

action

if

it

’s

called

as

a

result

of

a

properly

organised

ballot

it

’s

about

a

trade

dispute

between

workers

and

their

employer

eg

about

your

terms

and

conditions

a

detailed

notice

about

the

industrial

action

which

is

legally

required

has

been

given

to

the

employer

at

least

days

before

it

begins

You

can

claim

unfair

dismissal

at

an

employment

tribunal

if

you

’re

dismissed

for

taking

industrial

action

at

any

time

within

the

weeks

after

the

action

began

After

weeks

you

can

be

dismissed

if

you

take

industrial

action

and

your

employer

has

tried

to

settle

the

dispute

For

example

your

employer

may

bring

in

advisers

from

Acas

to

help

find

a

solution

When

you

may

be

dismissed

You

could

be

dismissed

for

taking

part

in

industrial

action

if

the

union

has

n’t

held

a

properly

organised

ballot

the

union

has

n’t

given

the

employer

the

correct

notice

for

balloting

members

or

taking

action

the

union

has

n’t

called

its

members

to

take

action

because

they

think

the

dispute

is

settled

or

action

is

called

by

someone

who

does

n’t

have

the

authority

to

do

so

it

’s

in

support

of

workers

taking

action

against

another

employer

otherwise

known

as

sympathy

or

secondary

action

it

’s

in

support

of

only

employing

union

members

otherwise

known

as

a

closed

shop

it

breaks

any

other

parts

of

industrial

action

law

If

you

take

part

in

industrial

action

that

breaks

the

regulations

and

you

’re

dismissed

you

ca

n’t

usually

claim

unfair

dismissal

if

all

employees

taking

part

are

dismissed

as

well

There

’s

more

detail

on

legal

rights

and

protections

in

the

guidance

on

industrial

action

and

the

law

Industrial

action

by

non

union

members

Non

union

members

who

take

part

in

legal

official

industrial

action

have

the

same

rights

as

union

members

not

to

be

dismissed

as

a

result

of

taking

action

Going

on

strike

and

picketing

A

picket

line

is

where

workers

and

union

reps

picketers

or

pickets

stand

outside

a

workplace

to

tell

other

people

why

they

are

striking

Pickets

may

also

ask

people

not

to

do

some

of

their

usual

work

go

into

work

Pickets

must

not

prevent

people

from

going

to

work

or

doing

their

usual

work

if

they

want

to

do

so

The

picketing

code

of

practice

explains

the

rules

around

lawful

picketing

Picketing

and

the

law

It

’s

a

criminal

offence

for

pickets

to

use

threatening

or

abusive

behaviour

to

people

walking

past

or

crossing

the

picket

line

block

people

or

vehicles

trying

to

get

into

the

workplace

which

is

on

strike

called

causing

an

obstruction

by

police

carry

weapons

damage

property

cause

or

threaten

to

cause

a

breach

of

the

peace

try

to

block

roads

near

the

picket

line

called

causing

an

obstruction

to

the

public

highway

try

to

stop

the

police

who

are

outside

the

workplace

from

doing

their

job

You

can

have

legal

action

taken

against

you

if

you

break

the

law

or

encourage

others

to

do

so

when

you

’re

picketing

This

includes

trespassing

trying

to

enter

a

building

without

permission

making

a

noise

nuisance

using

threatening

language

or

offensive

material

libel

or

slander

in

leaflets

banners

placards

chants

or

speeches

If

you

break

a

court

order

banning

you

or

your

trade

union

from

holding

a

picket

you

could

be

open

to

further

legal

action

otherwise

known

as

contempt

of

court

Mass

picketing

Police

have

special

powers

to

stop

a

mass

picket

if

they

think

there

’s

a

danger

of

serious

public

disorder

like

a

riot

serious

damage

to

property

The

Code

of

Practice

on

picketing

says

usually

there

should

be

no

more

than

people

outside

an

entrance

to

a

workplace

If

you

do

n’t

stop

picketing

when

told

do

so

by

police

you

can

be

arrested

Flying

pickets

Flying

pickets

are

groups

of

striking

workers

that

move

from

one

workplace

to

another

to

picket

them

Usually

flying

pickets

are

illegal

you

can

only

join

a

picket

line

at

your

workplace

Trade

union

reps

can

be

on

picket

lines

at

different

workplaces

if

they

’re

responsible

for

organising

workers

in

those

workplaces