To expect to be paid for my lunch hour

[TheoriginalLEM]

My employer has recently sold out to a corporate. We have all been TUPEE'd over and are, so far, staying on our original contract with is far better than the contract from the new company.

I was due to train for a professional qualification in the field (this isn't without issue for personal reasons) and because this would result in a change of job role, I would be required to change to the new contract.

As I said, my current employment package is generous. We have an hours lunch break, paid. I am aware that this is not the case more often than not. I would lose about £40 a week if I lost my lunch breaks (I work four days).

If I change to the new contract, I have been told they are not able to reduce my wage ( I am currently paid very well for my position). Currently, upon qualification the new company actually pay newly qualified staff just under what I earn now so there is no financial incentive, but professionally I want to train.

BUT I can't afford to lose £40 a week.

Can they change my lunch break payment, if they are not allowed to reduce my wage? A colleague who was working v part time has just gone over to them and she no longer gets a paid lunch break, however she did not have a contract with the original employer so was starting from scratch.

This will be pivotal in my decision to train, so need to know where I stand - any thoughts?

In fact, no one has said anything to us that the tupe thing has been finite?

In my work there are a group of staff who get paid lunch breaks, however they work supervising offenders and have to continue supervising them during lunch. This is clearly still work so obviously they should be paid.

I can't think of many other situations where a paid lunch break should be expected.

What is TUPEE?

It's up to them if they tell you. There is no legal minimum time and the buyer is at rights to change your contract if there is an economic reason. we do a min of twelve months as a condition of sale. But many sellers do not protect their employees like this or dictate. If you've not been told, I'd guess they have not specified a time limit in the sale.

You need to look at the wider picture. Firstly, has the buyer doubled up on staff and are redundancies likely? Secondly are you more secure if you qualify? Do you wish to stay?

Also then look at it realistically. Are they likely to run their employees on a two tier contract system for longer than they need to. No they are not. They will move everyone to the same contract. Either by improving the existing staffs, or changing the tuped staffs. Based on what you say the latter is more likely.

You can object and refuse to be tuped. But this results in termination of employment without right to redundancy pay.

If they are going to make staff redundant they will know this and so will the current owner, They will have discounted the sale price in line with redundancy payments.

If you want to stay there and you think qualification will help that, then qualify and play the long game.

Don't suppose you are a vet nurse?

I work in the NHS and get a 30 minute paid break and then 2x20 minutes unpaid breaks.

Not that we ever get to take them....

OP I don't understand. You wrote "I am currently paid very well for my position)" then a few posts later said "I am paid a very low wage for my job so its a significant blow." Which is true?

Bluntness I would love you to point me to the section in the TUPE Regulations enabling employers to put a time limit on the protection the Regulations give please.

To be clear, being tuped does not guarantee you life time employment, nor does it guarantee the contracts can't be changed unless the seller made a condition of sale and grandfathers the conditions.

Your contract can be changed for economic ( can't afford it, more than market rate), technical ( do not have the skill set) or organisational ( too many people and structure doesn't work) reasons.

Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations

Sorry - that was in answer to iamastonished

Thankyou Bluntness - all very useful information. They have said that they have no intentions of making people redundant. I was on holiday when the HR department visited so will need to talk to them via email I guess.

The skills are very specific and not transferrable out of the industry, however it would mean I would be able to get a job in other companies locally, which there are quite a lot so I could transfer to another employer if this company turn out to be the shower of shit that they have proven themselves to be in the first few months.

It is a massive blow :(

Basically, when a business or service is transferred, the staff transfer over to the new business or service provider on the same terms and conditions and with continuity of employment

How many hours are you contracted to work? If you currently work 4 x 10 hours days then I'm guessing your contracted hours are 40? Surely then if an hour of each shift will be unpaid then in order to fulfill your contracted hours your shifts could now be 11 hours long but for the same money?

Because, the op has explained that. Many around her are on min wage. She is not but is still on quite a low wage

I would love an answer to my question.

You could ask your current employer if your contracts have been guaranteed for any length of time as part of the sale conditions.

Hope that helps 💐

Cross post Stealth sorry. Didn't see that, thread moved fast.

I have explained this upthread, I'm not sure how it affects any advice you may or may not have to offer. Surely its all relative - if I got paid loads, id could afford it but would be losing more.

It would have made me think you were making stuff up, that's all. So as you're not, I'd agree with other's comments that I'd be inclined to try to plough ahead and get the professional qualification and get out of there, if HR have nothing to offer to help that is.

Why would I make stuff up? I might be being vague as I don't want to out myself

If you are a vet nurse, then being employed by a corporate is rubbish and you may well want to leave after a year anyway. Further qualifications will probably not affect your employability or pay that much (because there are so few VNs anyway because they never get paid properly!) but it may help a bit if you want to work in a referral practice in future. It's a tricky one! I'd probably go for the qual - if you can manage it.

There's vague then there's outright contradictory. I missed your 'explanation' for that. Anyway, best of luck.

I know it's Saturday night and they can be as boring as duck but this would have to be the MOST boring made up these ever

No offence to your thread Lem!

I'm afraid I don't have any advice but masses of empathy because I'm currently trying to change job roles and like you are paid well for the role but it's a low paid job.

It's frustrating!

I'm astonished that you are paid for your lunch break I have NEVER heard of an organisation that does this. There are mandatory breaks that must be allowed depending on age/length of working day but they are always unpaid.