AIBU to think my husbands bosses are complete wankers

[Skarossinkplungerridesagain]

My husband works in a role where he is paid a salary with commission paid on top. We get by on his and my salaries but his commission certainly helps and also pays for some luxuries, most times it can be a few hundred but occasionally (rarely) it can be in the £1000's.But to me the way they do things with regards to payments doesn't sit right with me. Here are a few examples.

1. Commission is paid when the customer makes the first payment. This can be anywhere up to a certain date in the month (the same date as when they process the payroll) so he doesn't know if he's getting paid it until he is paid. He doesn't receive payslips before hand.

2. He was expecting a large commission this month and we were going to go for a last minute holiday. He was told last week, three days before payday that the firm had made a mistake processing the contract and he therefore wouldn't be paid it until the end of August. We can't go away then as I work in a term-time post. So no holiday.

3. He was also told last week that from now on instead of paying commission in full when earned the amount will be split over 12 months. So for example if he secured a contract where he would get £1200 commission instead of the full sum that month they will pay it in £100 installments over the next 12 months. They have admitted this is to stop people leaving.

My husband says that stuff like this is normal and that his contract and every commission based contract has a clause in to say that any commission is at the discretion of the owners. Is this the case?

I think it's a good way of doing it tbh. Steady extra earnings every month rather than unpredictable payments. Also reduces the risk of forfeiting a massive sum upon leaving if it's spread out.

Surely what your DH should do is talk to ACAS and go through the contract terms rather than us all have a guess at it/opinion on it.

OP
Apologies, I must have misunderstood.
No, it doesn't sound legal to wave rights to commission, irrespective if employees agreed to it.Im not a legal expert but I suspect if this scheme was challenged in court , tge employer would become liable to backpayment of all commissions retained.
Really don't like tge sound of it and I would fiercely against it, if my company tried to incorporate it.
Natural
So in effect your job is to make sure the staff paid competitive market rate in order for the company to retain skills? And you make up rules to top up their commission and make it attractive in order to do so?
Your job role has nothing to do with finance still .So whatever commission is due based on performance and whatever is paid based on company's motives are two different things.
You can manipulate the commission scheme any way you like in order to achieve your objectives: ie reduce pay bill, encrease pay bill or satisfy retention stats.

so he doesn’t know he is getting paid it until he is paid
Why did you book a holiday on the strength of money you didn’t know when he’d be paid?

Companies can create a sales plan in whatever way they like unfortunately- changing it at short notice mid year is different and I would check my contract.It does seem odd that you’re unable to book a holiday this month when you know the money is coming next month when you’re in a commission based role. I don’t know any sales people that live in that way, most live of the basic and bank commission (where possible) to provide steady access to funds where needed. Also in my industry it’s common to have a guarantee period (usually 90 days) with a new company to cover any missed commission in your last and let you build up your future sales. Leaving money on the table to move on is just part of the job.

Why did you book a holiday on the strength of money you didn’t know when he’d be paid?

She didn't - they were going to book a last minute trip once he had the money, and then couldn't as he now won't receive it until she's back in work.

Teens as long as it's worded well in the contract or commission scheme an ET wouldn't be interested.

Also nowadays holiday pay should include the variable pay element : commission based employees are compensated for commission lost whilst on holiday. But for the fact employee is on leave , he would earn some sort of commission and its unfair to lose that income as it prevents them from taking holiday due to lost income.
So holiday pay worked out based on average commission earnings per hour of work . Lets say in previous 3 months employee earned £1k of commission and worked 480 hrs therefore commission earnings per hour would be £2.08 . This amount is added to standard hourly pay .So if employee earns £15 per hour , his holiday hourly pay would be £17.08 .This upped hourly rate compensates him for commission he would earn but for the fact he was off work.
OP is that what your DH gets paid for his holiday?

@teens

It doesn’t work like that in my industry as we get paid per “deal” which could take months to win and would also depends on the nature of the project (ongoing contract, one off) we don’t get commission compensation on annual leave but then again most of us would carry on working existing projects while on holiday! I guess every industry is different and there is huge variation in my industry depending on company so it’s really hard to advise the OP on this one. Will all depend on his contract, I would focus on changing the commission structure at short notice but even then it’s a tough one. Not saying it’s fair!

OP as others say you’re making a mistake not getting a credit card.
Get one, and set it up with a direct debit to be repaid in full every month. Will do good things for your credit rating. How do you not know this?!
As for the commission, I agree with others that it sounds a good way to do things and you should rely on the base rate only.
BUT the forfeit of commission already earned sounds unlawful to me.

m.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=4109
Apologies if not clicky link , as dont know how to on my phone
British legal system is precedent based and precedent re holiday pay court case has been set few years ago and therefore new holiday pay rules should be incorporated by all employers.

Sorry had to pop out. Had a chat with my husband and have decided against the credit card as the company seems to be changing the terms of commission payments on a whim we are reluctant as there's nothing to say he will definitely get the commission next month.

As for holiday pay there's no adjustment made, he only earns basic salary for holidays

Sounds quite standard. Getting the com after the client has paid. It all being a bit ad hoc. It’s just the way it works.
More interestingly what does his contract say.
I never ever rely on it. Even in my mind. I made a huge com and then the client never paid. In my head I planned what to do with it, in reality that was stupid.
Until it’s in the bank I don’t think about it at all. it can be months later, for annoying reasons like the accounts lady is on holiday so hasn’t processed it or someone forgot. Or they were too busy doing other things.

“ have decided against the credit card as the company seems to be changing the terms of commission payments on a whim we are reluctant as there's nothing to say he will definitely get the commission next month.”

You’re not understanding. You use the credit card for things like groceries or other everyday expenses, just as you normally would. Then you pay it off in full at the end of the month. This builds your credit rating.

You should also make sure your details are updated on the electoral roll, and clear any student debt to maximise your chances at the best mortgage.