Salary Linked Parking Charges

polarbear79

I work in a hospital. The parking is run by a private company.
The charge for the permit (not the actual daily parking charges) is linked to salary.
The per annum difference between the lowest and highest salary bracket is £155.

My question is, is this really legal? How is it justifiable, as it is ostensibly a form of tax?
I don't get charged more for a banana or a cinema ticket based on what I earn for a living.

If it is legal then can someone give a cogent argument as to why it is fair?

Many thanks

Quentin

As posted in your other thread, this will be your employer's (the NHS Trust) arrangement and nothing to do with the private company managing the car park.


Presumably this tiered charges system which is in place with other NHS Trusts was agreed with the relevant unions?

Undervalued

polarbear79 wrote: »

I don't get charged more for a banana or a cinema ticket based on what I earn for a living.

Maybe not but you could do and it would be perfectly legal!

An OAP, a student or the unemployed may well get charged less to use, for example, the local swimming pool. Same pool, same water but again, perfectly legal.

Generally a supplier or an employer can discriminate in any way they like except for the handful of reasons prohibited by law (race, gender, sexual orientation etc).

engineer_amy

As already stated, as long as its not discriminatory to one of the protected characteristics, then its perfectly legal.


I don't think its fair, but there is no legal requirement for an employer to be fair.


I wouldn't like to be charged more as say a Doctor than a cleaner if we were both getting/using exactly the same service. If a car is parked in a single space for 10 hours per day, 260 days per year, why does it matter who owns the car and what they get paid? If I was paying £155 per year more than someone else, I would be expecting some additional perks, such as reserved parking or a space closer to the hospital!!

sangie595

polarbear79 wrote: »

If it is legal then can someone give a cogent argument as to why it is fair?

As others have said, it is legal. And I doubt anyone could give you an argument that you would consider cogent, because the very nature of the question suggests that you do not see any fairness in it. But speaking personally, I think it is fair to subsidise staff who don't earn very much.

DKLS

If you think of the range of NHS salaries from say 16k to 500k. Should a consultant pay the same as a care assistant to park?

If you don't think thats fair don't get caught speeding in Finland or Switzerland the fines are directly linked to your salary.

TELLIT01

The greatest discount is offered to those on the lowest income. That seems fair to me.

getmore4less

That's the way to look at it poorer people get subsidized parking.

In some hospital it also relates to the area you can park so the top bods pay more but get a allocated space or get to park nearer the door.

TBagpuss

It doesn't seem unfair to me.

Think of it as what proportion of your total income you have to pay to park at work. If you earn £20,000 a year and have to pay £200 a year to park, it costs you 0.01% of your income. If you earn £100,000 then even if it costs you £355 a year to park you are paying a much smaller 0.0035% of your income.

Undervalued

TELLIT01 wrote: »

The greatest discount is offered to those on the lowest income. That seems fair to me.

Or, to play devil's advocate, an unfair stealth tax on the higher paid!

agrinnall

DKLS wrote: »

If you don't think thats fair don't get caught speeding in Finland or Switzerland the fines are directly linked to your salary.

Definitely not in Switzerland.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-10960230