Cuts in pay

Stressed2themax

Can anyone give me some advice on the following

I work in a Northern Ireland based company supplying the construction industry. We have over 50 employees but none of us have ever had a contract. My employer now wants to reduce the working week down to 25 hours across the board. This would obviously mean a substantial reduction in wages for everyone.

I understand that times are hard and everyone has had to make sacrifices but surely he can't force us to agree with this?:(

Jarndyce

Firstly, be clear that you do have a contract, even though it may not be written down. So your contracted hours are what you have been working up to now (assuming these have been regular hours).

So the next question is - can they change your hours? The answer is yes. They should give you contractual notice (but from what you say that may be unlikely). So you could either resign at that point and claim constructive dismissal, or stay and refuse to agree the change, but then you are likely to find yourself dismissed, and I suspect that you would be unlikely to gain any meaningful outcome from any claim in the circumstances.

So the realistic options are to stay and accept the change, or to look for another job.

Catherine_Johnson_2

I'd guess it might be better, whatever the legal side of things, to accept shorter hours (hopefully only for the short term) rather than lose your job? Because, I presume that would be the alternative.

McKneff

I agree with CJ, if there are only so many hours available then just less than half of all the emplyees would be out of a job, maybe
including yourself.

Maybe all of them in fact, if the company had to make say 20 people redundant and had to pay redundancy pay to all of them, they may end up insolvent and so everybody loses their jobs.

Stressed2themax

I am paid a monthly salary the majority of the staff are paid hourly. I think the intention is for their hours to be cut as apposed to their rate of pay. If my employer insists on me taking a %age
reduction in wages can I request that my hours be cut by the same %age?

sheslookinhot

Stressed2themax wrote: »

I am paid a monthly salary the majority of the staff are paid hourly. I think the intention is for their hours to be cut as apposed to their rate of pay. If my employer insists on me taking a %age
reduction in wages can I request that my hours be cut by the same %age?

I am sure that your reduction weould be pro-rata hours reduction / salary reduction.