Zero Hours Contract Rights?

nad1611

Hi Everyone.
I'm after some information about the rights (or not) of a person being contracted on a zero hrs contract.


To give you some background. My daughter teaches English as a second language to adults, in a privately owned Language School. She works twenty four hours a week on a zero hours contract and has done for well over a year, maybe two. She also does one weekly evening class, but this is only for a couple of months in the year. Her students have an excellent pass rate and it's obvious she's great at her job by the number of people and gifts that's she's given when they leave. The evening class is normally attended by 7-10 people but when she started doing the evening class the other teachers were laughing, because so many students attended they had to move to a different class, so we know she's great at her job and she really loves it.



She does not receive any sick pay, annual leave, nor is she part of a pension.


She has periodically, asked her seniour about the chances of having a permanent contract and despite this seniour speaking enthusiastically on her behalf to the owner of the School, she hasn't been offered a contract. Unfortunately the seniour has now left and advised my daughter that she didn't feel my daughter would get the support and advancement she clearly deserved and her advise to my daughter was to seek alternative employment, which my daughter is now looking into.


Well last week my daughter told us she had put in to increase her hrs to 25hrs, because she believes that that would mean she would get a permanent contract.


Out of the blue this week she has been told that from December her hours won't be increased but actually cut to 15hrs. Obviously she can't survive on that money so will definitely have to leave.


So I'm just wondering, I know zero hours contracts by their very nature are less secure etc, but is there anything here which is challengeable. A friend thought that she should have been entitled to sick pay/annual leave etc, I didn't think she would be. Any help would be great, even if she will ultimately have to leave. Thanks.

Comms69

She is entitled to (by law) both pension and holiday.


(I think she could be entitled to SSP?)


If she's leaving anyway she may as well make some legal threats

sangie595

You clearly already know the answer. Her hours aren't being cut because she's on zero hours.

On zero hours contacts there is entitlement to holiday pay, and entitlement to SSP depend on earnings. Whether she had been appropriately paid either of these we can't say.

And her manager told her the only answer - she is not valued and she has no future there, so she needs to get another job. Nothing is going to change that.

sangie595

Ps. I believe pension enrollment is also based on income - not an expert on this aspect but a quick check indicates that it is.

Ozzuk

Perhaps if not on NMW her holiday pay has been built into her hourly rate?

nad1611

sangie595 wrote: »

You clearly already know the answer. Her hours aren't being cut because she's on zero hours.

What an odd reply? Clearly we didn't know she was entitle to holiday pay or SSP otherwise why am I here asking?

sangie595 wrote: »

And her manager told her the only answer - she is not valued and she has no future there, so she needs to get another job. Nothing is going to change that.

Well it's not really the only answer is it. That wasn't even my question! I already said she is going to leave after the supervisor basically told her that staff aren't valued there, so I didn't really need it repeating. What's the purpose of your response.


Thank you for the information you gave that we can actually use and answers the question I actually asked.

nad1611

Thanks for the replies. Anyone know of any useful sites where we can begin to work out what she would have been entitled to annual leave pay etc? Thanks again.

martinthebandit

nad1611 wrote: »

Thanks for the replies. Anyone know of any useful sites where we can begin to work out what she would have been entitled to annual leave pay etc? Thanks again.

https://www.gov.uk/holiday-entitlement-rights/holiday-pay-the-basics

jonnygee2

The ELT industry is one of the worst industries out there. But even for ELT this is poor.


Are you sure she is not 'self employed' though? Many of these schools work on a 'self employment' basis so that they don't have to pay holiday etc (I'm not saying this is legal but its far more difficult to challenge if that's what they are doing).

Out of the blue this week she has been told that from December her hours won't be increased but actually cut to 15hrs.

It's a seasonal business, cuts this time of year are normal so shouldn't really be out of the blue. Is this her first year? A lot of ELT teachers work retail hours to make this up so that's one option.

jonnygee2

She has periodically, asked her seniour about the chances of having a permanent contract and despite this seniour speaking enthusiastically on her behalf to the owner of the School, she hasn't been offered a contract.

Also just to add that permanent contracts in ELT are like gold dust.

The problem is that business for schools goes up and down every week, and pretty much everywhere expects the teachers to take on this risk. The industry as a whole is in long term decline and opportunities for progression are also extremely rare.

If this is her long term career choice I think she should reconsider.

silverwhistle

I can't disagree with what jonnygee2 has said really. Hourly rates are appalling as well, at least they were the last time I looked. Dare I ask how much she is paid per contact hour?


Fortunately I'm in receipt of a small private pension, but any tutoring on-line (occasionally at home) I charge £20 or €24 an hour. I've reluctantly agreed to a lower rate this afternoon for a local student, but only as a favour, not to get the business.



I suggest getting some business cards made and spreading them around with the current students. You have to take a hard-headed attitude and refuse business if necessary. A few years ago I was contacted by a foreign student from a rich gulf state. He demurred at my rates and when I pointed out that a local business school charged £80 an hour, he said, "yes, I know, I go there, but this is for my sister".. He said someone else had offered private lessons at some ridiculous low rate, so I suggested he use them..