Premier Carewaiting, Kammil Education and Dilligent Care Services have been named as three social care agencies who must pay homecare workers more than £10,000 that they are owed in backpay, as it was discovered that they were in breach of wage rules, at an employment tribunal. Back in 2016, trade union Unison represented ten care workers, who stated that they were paid below the minimum wage rate by the businesses, who contracted them to work for Haringey Council. According to the union, the care workers were not paid for the hours that were spent travelling to clients’ houses, even though staff were required to move from home to home to complete their jobs. The union asserted that this resulted in the care workers earning less than half the legal minimum hourly rate during a standard 14-hour day.
The tribunal ruled that travelling and waiting time of up to 60 minutes between appointments should be treated as working time, and should be paid accordingly.
The three agencies have now been instructed to pay each employee an average settlement of approximately £10,000. This equates to nine months’ work and annual leave that the businesses failed to pay their staff during this period. Personnel today reported that Dave Prentis, the general secretary at Unison, stated:
“This is a major victory for these dedicated workers who dared take on their employers. Their long struggle is nothing short of heroic.
It is time the skills and experience of care staff were respected instead of them being underpaid and undervalued. The pandemic has proven just how vital they are in looking after the most vulnerable in society and keeping the care system running.
These are the very same care staff who were applauded during the lockdown. They should not have to work in a system that breeds such awful treatment.
This ruling sends a message to other care bosses that it’s completely unacceptable to pay staff illegal poverty wages. The government too must get tougher with employers so there’s an end to these law-breaking practices.”
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National Minimum Wage guidance updated for seafarers 2 October 2020
National Minimum Wage guidance has been updated to reflect the extended protection to guarantee National Minimum Wage that is to be applied to hours worked for maritime workers in a bid will ensure fair pay for over 10,000 maritime workers across the country.
From 1 October 2020 National Minimum Wage (Offshore Employment) (Amendment) Order 2020 brings in a change to legislation that will ensure that seafarers are given pay protection equivalent to every other sector.
Guidance has been updated and for workers aged 25 and over, the UK’s national minimum wage is set at £8.72 per hour.
Maritime Minister Robert Courts said:
“This country’s rich maritime history is built upon its extraordinary workers, ensuring a fair wage for our seafarers, especially the hundreds of thousands who have kept this country going through the pandemic, means that the UK workers are not priced out of jobs by employers.
This is just the start – our Maritime 2050 strategy clearly sets the vison to see fairer global maritime”
This announcement builds on the UK government’s established work to protect British maritime workers throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and follows the effective repatriation of 13,000 seafarers from UK shores whose movement was hampered due to closed borders.
In a recent circular from the RMT (Rail, Maritime and Transport) union, General Secretary, Mick Cash wrote:
The Chartered Institute of Payroll Professionals
Payroll: need to know
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