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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU to dock this employees pay

202 replies

Fruitsaladjelly · 15/04/2019 19:53

I have an employee who is employed 5 days per week but one of these days is spent at University studying for a professional qualification, the company also funds the course fees as this will be a benefit to us in the long term. This employee works in another office and therefore I don’t have direct daily contact. Today would normally be a university day but they are now on Easter holidays so I called to speak to her only to find she hadn’t come into work because Tuesdays are her uni day! Next week the same person has booked Wednesday, Thursday and Friday off as annual leave, no mention of Tuesday although she clearly is away for the entire week despite being paid to work Tuesdays. This is is more of a wwyd I suppose. I expect her in work if not pursuing the professional qualification, I expect extra study time to be completed in her own time as I personally feel being paid to study and having her course fees covered is perk enough so I don’t think calling the days ‘study days’ is good enough should that excuse be given. In any case I very much doubt she intends to take ‘study’ away on holiday despite it being a paid work day. It feels a bit CF

OP posts:
Original poster
Fruitsaladjelly · 15/04/2019 21:00

Sorry, I wrote this last week but didn’t post, I forgot to alter the wording

OP posts:
Takethebuscuitandthesink · 15/04/2019 21:02

I’d let it go this time but make clear that for the next time she is expected to come in.

bridgetreilly · 15/04/2019 21:02

I don't think you can dock her pay, but you can definitely make it clear to her that if she's not in work on those days, it will count as annual leave.

LadyGAgain · 15/04/2019 21:02

Ring her tomorrow and ask where she is as she's not booked off as annual leave and no college. That will open the conversation.

C8H10N4O2 · 15/04/2019 21:02

Sorry, I wrote this last week but didn’t post, I forgot to alter the wording

Yes. OK.

But then the part about booking off Wednesday/thurs/fri doesn't make sense.

Because last week she wouldn't have been booking off Friday "next week" but Mon, Wednesday, Thursday.

Haffiana · 15/04/2019 21:04

I expect her in work if not pursuing the professional qualification, I expect extra study time to be completed in her own time as I personally feel being paid to study and having her course fees covered is perk enough so I don’t think calling the days ‘study days’ is good enough should that excuse be given.

I call BS. I don't believe any 'employer' as you claim to be would be going on what they 'personally feel' is a 'perk' or concerned about being given 'excuses'. If this was your business and your money paying for this then you would have spelled out exactly what the arrangement is and you would also be quite clear about what the potential benefit to the company is.

You are just a nosy jealous co-worker, aren't you?

C8H10N4O2 · 15/04/2019 21:04

ALso if you wrote this last week why have you not checked the contract situation or the agreement with the appropriate HR department? Instead of waiting a whole week for the wisdom of the internet.

Merrymumoftwo · 15/04/2019 21:05

So are you saying she did not come in last Tuesday and she has taken Wednesday, Thursday and Friday off this week?
Did she come to work today?

TheMagicalChicken · 15/04/2019 21:07

I go to unibine day a week. I am entitled to 20% off the job learning. Which I do on a Thursday

Uni is in Easter break for two weeks.

I'm not going into work
I'm going into uni. And I won't be back in until after the bank hols. And I will be taking the following Thursday as well for study.
I have 3 assignments to hand in and two exams to revise for!

vdbfamily · 15/04/2019 21:13

I have a staff member who is contracted to work for us 30 hours a week. We are sponsoring her getting her professional qualifications. During term she works 2 days at work and has 2 at Uni. During holidays she works 4 days with us and books A/L like everyone else. I think she is taking the micky especially as she started full time with you and then requested you help fund the training. She presumably has the same annual leave entitlement as everyone else so why would she get holidays off on top of that??

Waytooearly · 15/04/2019 21:14

Sorry if I missed something obvious, but do you guys actually pay her for Tuesdays?

I recently did a professional course and on the days we had no actual lectures or workshops they loaded us with assignments with short deadlines, so I definitely went in.

I definitely had the attitude that Wednesday was my 'uni day' and I never went in to the office on Wednesdays! (No I did once, to work on urgent case.)

But then my work was not paying for my course fees. They also let me work my full-time hours over four long days, so I wasn't getting paid for Wednesdays.

HostessTrolley · 15/04/2019 21:16

The uni holidays/work days are a seperate is due to the annual leave though?

According to the dwp, full time employees should get 28 paid days leave a year, which equates to 5.6 weeks. If she is assuming Tuesdays to be a ‘paid day off’ in uni holidays and booking 4 days annual leave to get a week off work, then she’s getting 7 weeks annual leave - in addition to the other non- uni tuesdays. I doubt that the employer intended giving this employee 25% more AL than the rest of the staff...

Arnoldthecat · 15/04/2019 21:17

She is taking the piss. If not in Uni,she should be in work or book the day off as annual leave. Dont let her get away with that one !

C8H10N4O2 · 15/04/2019 21:19

So are you saying she did not come in last Tuesday and she has taken Wednesday, Thursday and Friday off this week?

Friday this week is a bank hol - whether the OP drafter her post last week or this week its not consistent with the calendar. Unless she works in a Tardis

iolaus · 15/04/2019 21:21

I'm currently doing a professional qualification on day release from work. My uni days are Thursdays - I'm working both this Thursday and next Thursday

SheSaidNoFuckThat · 15/04/2019 21:21

Of all the apprentices I've known, Day release etc - everyone knows if college/uni isn't in the you go to work, it's really not rocket science is it?

titchy · 15/04/2019 21:21

our apprentice attends college one day a week. When it’s not term time then he is expected to come into work.

I bloody well hope that's not true - an apprentice MUST have 20% off each and every week. Not term time only.

OP it all sounds rather shambolic. Just clarify in writing. And base action on what's in her contract, not what you feel like doing.

Witchtower · 15/04/2019 21:22

@C8H10N4O2 😂 your post made me chuckle!

titchy · 15/04/2019 21:22

Of all the apprentices I've known, Day release etc - everyone knows if college/uni isn't in the you go to work, it's really not rocket science is it?

Maybe not rocket science but for apprentices it is wrong. Unless you pay them extra. Bet you don't though.

CalleighDoodle · 15/04/2019 21:24

she had to book good friday as annual leave in an office???

missedith01 · 15/04/2019 21:30

The law is very strict on when a deduction from wages can be made.

www.gov.uk/understanding-your-pay/deductions-from-your-pay

edwinbear · 15/04/2019 21:30

Gosh OP you are getting yourself into knots here aren’t you Grin.

TitianaTitsling · 15/04/2019 21:34

Why would you not just speak to HR than randoms on the internet?

longtompot · 15/04/2019 21:38

Many many years ago when I was 16, I was on YTS with one day a week at college. One week college wasn't open, so I didn't think I had to go to work. I got pulled into the office the next day and basically had a warning.
If she isn't aware she should be in when uni is closed, hols etc, I think have a chat with her in your office so it doesn't happen agan.

Original poster
Fruitsaladjelly · 15/04/2019 21:38

No not a jealous co worker but yes I did start to write this on another day and then change some bits to try and make it less outing, epic fail on the anonymity attempt , sorry for making it more confusing than it needed to be. I’m a truely rubbish liar. The general gist is the truth, no we didn’t change her contract, it was done on a handshake, we try to treat others as we would like to be treated ourselves She asked for help with fees, we thought we were being extra nice employees by offering to pay her even when at uni, we now feel she has taken the piss not just of us but of the other people in her office who pick up the slack to support her in progressing professionally. FWIW I think we probably are too slack in general, if people get their work done/the office is quiet we allow early home times on a Friday, but that started to be taken advantage of as people were taking it as a given and expecting to finish at 4, then 3 then it was half day. Then there were complaints if meeting were arrange for anytime after 2 on a friday. This was one of many instances of perks being taken advantage of. It’s a shame that when given an inch people often take a mile. I was genuinely posting to get the normal ‘in my workplace things are dealt with like this’ type responses. We aren’t big enough to have an HR department and quite honestly we learn this stuff through experience.

OP posts: