No shifts & tax credits?

anewloginapparently

Question for my girlfriend...

She works 30 p/w for a hotel and recieves approximately £50 a week in tax credits.

The thing is at the moment the hotel aren't giving her any hours as they don't have enough guests staying due to the time of year. They've told her that she's not needed again til approximately Valentines day when trade starts to pick up again.

As she's not getting any hours at the moment she's not getting paid but her tax credits almost cover her rent so she can live off savings until she gets shifts again.

I'm a bit worried for her though incase HMRC find out she hasn't worked any hours for 4 weeks and stop her tax credits.

Is this likely to happen? And if so what other options are open to her? Can she claim JSA for the weeks where there is no shifts for her at the hotel?

karenx

Is it child tax credits or working tax credits? If its just working tax credits she needs to inform them she is not earning as you must be working 30 hours or more to qualify
She cannot claim jsa as that's for people activly seeking full time work, and she is not

ceridwen

Well...actually....I think the above post was a moralistic viewpoint - rather than a factual one.

i would think your girlfriend CAN actually claim JSA. She would be looking for work (well - if shes got any sense - as we presume she has...) and the knowledge that there "might" be a job to take on at some point in the future is neither here nor there.

In actual fact - if I were your girlfriend - I wouldnt rely on the hotel keeping their promise to take her on again later in the year. Promises often get broken for one reason or another.

So - in her position - I would be heading off to DWP and saying I was redundant and applying for JSA. (NB: She would be wisest to go armed with a letter from the hotel saying that her services are no longer required - so its clear she hasnt resigned.). I would then be looking for another job anyway.

bestpud

I'm pretty sure she'd need to actually leave her place of work to claim JSA (you have to for IS anyway) and if she did it herself, she may be sanctioned.

She would need them to make her redundant.

But in that case they may not re-employ her in February and if she can't find work, she will be in a worse position financially.

She definitely needs to let tax credits know she is not working any hours and she may have to repay some, but looking at these links she may be ok for a period of four weeks after her hours drop:

http://www.litrg.org.uk/news/latest.cfm?id=686

http://www.moneywise.co.uk/everyday-money/work-business/article/2009/03/18/alternative-to-redundancy

She only has four weeks to notify them of changes, or it could cost her dearly, so she needs to get a shift on with that really.

If it were me I'd give ACAS a call to ask about employment rights - she would ideally have her contract in front of her so she can answer any questions:

http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=1461

She needs to find out if she can temporarily claim JSA as her hours have dropped below 16. I have no idea whether she can or not.

dookar

bestpud wrote: »

She needs to find out if she can temporarily claim JSA as her hours have dropped below 16. I have no idea whether she can or not.

Potentially, it can get pretty complex and could depend on whether this is a normal, seasonal occurrence and whether a pattern of work can be established etc.

If, however, it can be demonstrated that she has been temporarily stopped or laid off (ie has the work ceased due to temporary industrial conditions/downturns?) then not only can she claim JSA but the rules regarding availability will be relaxed (no need to sign a jobseeker's agreement etc).

This is something that will need a formal decision so I recommend the OPs girlfriend makes the claim, only way to find out.

anewloginapparently

All sounds pretty grim for my girlfriend.

Her contract just states that she works "full-time hours" and not how many a week it should be. However she has worked with them since March last year and has always been given between 30 and 37 usually until this 4 week shutdown in January. For one of the weeks she got holiday pay but the other 3 are unpaid, is there any recourse for her to say with the tax credits people that she has just been on holiday for January?

She was in the hotel yesterday anyway and met the manager who has assured her there will definitely be shifts again from February 6th and she checked the bookings and trade has picked up from then so she'll be back in work then. It's just this next 2.5 weeks that she doesn't have any work.