Travelling time

Ali1802

Hi all

I'm hoping someone can help me understand the laws regarding travelling time, I work as a community carer on a zero hour contract. I don't get paid any mileage, only 20p an hour for travelling. I don't get paid travelling time, I literally get paid for the time I'm in a persons house.

We are often not given adequate travelling time, if there is 20 minutes needed for a journey we are more often than not given 10 minutes. When I questioned this I was told they could only give me either 10 minutes or 35 minutes between calls, not the actual time that was needed.

I asked a colleague about this, they told me that if I was given the appropriate time they would have to pay me for my traveling time. I spoke to ACAS, they told me that I should be getting minimum wage for all my travelling time, apart from the first and last journey obviously.

Colleagues are adamant that they don't need to pay for this and what they are doing is acceptable, I just don't understand what if anything I can do?

Many thanks

Alison

elsien

If you don't get paid for travel time, does that take your hourly rate overall to below minimum wage? If so, then I don't think it's legal. It depends how much you get paid for the time you are on calls - you need to work out your overall hours including travel and see what that comes to as an hourly rate.
If you're paid enough per call that even with travel time it averages as above minimum wage, then I think they can do it.
(Not sure I've explained it particularly well.)

Southend1

Are you a member of a union? If not you should join one sharpish. You're likely to need them sooner rather than later, it doesn't sound like you have a good employer. You would also be able to get advice on issues like this.

Ali1802

Thank you for your replies, I'm actually leaving the company on Sunday, I have so far worked out 6 weeks (adding up how many hours I am out for work including travelling, dividing how much I'm being paid to get my true hourly rate) there are quite a number of occasions when it is below NMW and other times when it isn't.

I imagine that the next step is to approach ACAS again? However with work giving inadequate travelling time I want to work out point to point travelling time as I know that will again change the calculations I have come up with

getmore4less

You need to do the calculation over a pay period.

If still below NMW report them to HMRC they look after min wage issues.