these unspeakable fucking BASTARDS!!!!!!

[Greensleeves]

I think IANBU but am I just delusional?

dh has worked for the same company for 12 years, the managemen has changed hands a few times, but one thing that has never changed is that they are paid BEFORE Christmas in December - the Friday before. DH has just been told that this year they are being paid on the 28th!

This is a disaster for us, as we are bloody tight at the moment (I am an NQT and doing supply but no proper job yet)

and we started preparing for Christmas late this year for various reasons

basically we have budgeted for buying all our meat, food and drink this Friday, on payday - dh assumed it would be the same as every other year and I didn't question it (in fact I didn't know they hadn't confirmed it, or that there was even a risk of it not happening)

so.... we are in the shit! AIBU to be upset and think this is unnecessarily mean? The company is in profit etc, they are not struggling to pay people! Aaaaaarrrrgh!!

Or possibly they need to get all the payments in before they pay the employees IYSWIM so they will be on the phones right now, pressing for payment on invoices due end of December. Once they've got it all in, they can do the payroll.

Gits.
I was annoyed at our dec 24th pay check....but at least I'll be able to grab whatever's left in the supermarkets that day...

I hope you manage to get an advance.

RichMan, maybe that's it - but it has never happened before in 12 years! Surely they could have prevented it

The only other realistic explanation is that there's been a major balls-up with payroll and the company is using a "policy change" excuse as it's easier than 'fessing up.

This. I don't think a company would deliberately change their system just because of Christmas - not only because it's a massive inconvenience to employees (wouldn't most people have direct debits etc. set up to go out on a certain day of the month, linked to payday?) but because it's probably automated anyway and not that easy to manually override just for the heck of it. So there's either a big fat reason they're hiding, or it's an unintentional fuckup.

I hope your husband gets it sorted, OP.

Could you take out a credit card just this once and cut it up after? Just with a small limit so you're not tempted to overspend. Explain to your bank also, they may have other suggestions, especially if they see the regular salary going in.

Greeny - bastards!! I hope DH gets somewhere with his emails - if it's not too late remind him that you get more bees with honey than vinegar!

I would do as others suggested and ask the bank - I know what you've said about the CCJ, but as a short term thing (ie a few days) they might do it for you, this once?! Nothing to lose in asking!

OP Hmm, depends. What sort of business is it? If times are hard and the customers are strapped for cash, and a lot of them are planning to date cheques 31 December, your DH's company might not have the cash to pay early. You can only do so much to force a customer to pay bang on time. I'm an accountant and delaying payments to make your cash position look better is very common- known as "window dressing". However, they should have warned everyone about the change in policy, at the very least.

If its only food you need have you tried Aldi? They have super bargains at the mo on xmas meal food. www.aldi.co.uk/uk/html/product_range/4862.htm
Then you could have beef or lamb, or the £4.00 chicken? Then all you need is a pudding for about £3 and some exras, you could easily buy it for a family of 5 say for under £15. Some things are sent to test us and I would be furious too but try not to let it ruin xmas, I hope it will work out ok.

12 years represents custom and practice. They should have provided information about this. If they haven't they should agree to help out. Needs an ultra polite e-mail and a grovel and I wouldn't send it directly to the CEO, I would send it via the head/director of HR in the first instance and escalate if no reply after 24 hours.

Little tip OP - on Xmas Eve the turkeys get hugely reduced and I mean hugely - down to a fiver sometimes. I've never dared leave it that late but I bought one regularly and shoved it in the freezer for Easter or to cut up and casserole for a local night shelter.

This may be a terrible idea but -- did you and your DH get each other presents? Could you return some things, use the money for all the food, then re-buy them when he gets paid?

that is a good idea dreaming, but we haven't got each other anything yet, we were going to do it on Friday and meet up for lunch together and then go get all the food booze

we won't starve, but it is a big blow

It is mean to do this without warning. The only bonus part is that you will not have blown all your money before christmas and have that horrendously long January of being skint and miserable. We used to get paid before then they moved it til last day of the month, and in the long runit does help.
Maybe get the food from about 3pm xmas even. Many places will be doing a fresh turkey for a fiver and it is a case of 'everything must go' on the fresh food. If you can scrape enough to do this, you should be ok.

And get your backside to Waitrose for the best bargainous food last thing xmas eve.

Ah too bad.

I know what you mean, sometimes it's not even exactly what people do that is so upsetting, it's that people can be so mean and uncaring.

Maybe try to make a bit of a game of it, with respect to dinner? It's Mystery Christmas! go to the shop last thing and get the nicest of what's marked down and put together the most random dinner ever.

off out now to the dc's christingle, but just wanted to say a heartfelt thank you to everyone who posted, you have calmed me down a bit. It is like having big sisters xx

Come on over. We have tons of booze and food. It will only go to waste.

tempting laduree, tempting!

We will be OK. There are lots of people worse off than we are. I just HATE the meanness, the thoughtlessness of it, and I am a perfectionist, I have been planning my menu and trimmings etc for ages, and now it isn't perfect any more :o(

that was meant to be a sad face, but the grin is nicer...

Wow, they are bastards. I am also meant to be paid on the 21st and we are waiting to do all our food shopping until then. If this happened to us I would be crushed.

I know payday loans are of the devil, but this is a case where using one might be justified. Wonga? The time period you'd be borrowing for is so short that you would end up paying very little for the loan.

A turkey is a tenner in Lidl. I really hope you can borrow a tenner :)

Don't touch the payday loans, what if there is a problem with the company (I'm sure there isn't, just in case)? That could really spiral into something awful.

If it were me, I would have something cheap and cheerful like fried eggs and spend what I could on some booze. Which I realise makes me sound alcoholic and I'm not, I barely drink. But I think that a bit of Christmas Spirit in bottle form would make the lack of posh dinner funny, while having posh food with no wine would be sadder. In a way. If that makes sense.