Not furloughed but asked to accept pay reduction

[okayokaywhatsnext]

They’re asking staff at different pay points to accept between 10-30% reduction for initial 3 month period to protect company’s future. They’ve made clear it’s voluntary but anyone who says no has to have a meeting with an HR senior and a professional senior. The board have apparently all accepted a 30% reduction. We can’t afford it but am I being selfish in not accepting? We could afford losing the job even less, I suppose.

@SlipSlidin see this link, it's perfectly allowable to take a new job. If your DH's employer has asked him to sign that right away that's a specific circumstance it's wrong for you to say that applies to everyone. In these difficult times it's important to get the facts right about what people are entitled to do

This is the first result when I Google, there are plenty others.

www.express.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/1264000/take-second-job-while-on-furlough-UK-guidelines

My company are telling everyone they're to take a 10% reduction, the same for those who stay in work as those who are furloughed. It wasn't presented as optional...

Key worker so they won’t furlough - utilities industry. We’re not managing to save any money - no travel costs as company car and savings on lunches immediately eaten up by price of feeding everyone at home for all meals.

Nursery are still charging full price to keep the place so no savings there either.

DP has done the same. Bigger pay cut percentages though. It's either take the paycut or be furloughed. Those furloughed are sadly going to be the ones most likely for redundancy when it's over to keep the business afloat.

Yup I had to accept a 30% pay cut - if I didn't was made clear I'd be top of the redundancy list. They say it's "temporary" until business returns to pre virus turnover but I can see them using this as an excuse to keep it in place for months

I'm actually financially better off on furlough even though the cap means my wage has halved (I'm the main earner) as at least we have the mortgage holiday. Problem is that the holiday will end with the furlough

@coconuttelegraph I think I’ll follow my employers guidelines and not an Express article thanks.

And it certainly wasn’t the first google result for me, all of which said “no, you can’t”.

Okay - I realise it’s tough but you really have no choice but to accept the paycut. It is seen as all being in this together. If you make too much of a fuss, it’s highly likely that you’ll be first to be fired. We are going into a depression and the chance of getting new work will be very poor:

no travel costs as company car and savings on lunches immediately eaten up by price of feeding everyone at home for all meals.

so how were you feeding people before?

DH had to do this on 2008 crisis.

My dh has a 20% cut which started yesterday. It’s far from ideal but we’ll manage and just hope he still has a job when this all ends

You're missing my point slipslidin and misleading people, your employer has asked you to sign away a right that everyone else has.

You don't have to believe me but what you said in your first post isn't correct

@Irial yes it's legal. Not without risk for the employer, but tbh in these circumstances I can't see a tribunal finding in favour of the employee.

Although it is very frustrating that they are topping up the 80% for people furloughed so they are not losing out

That seems very unfair. Surely that 20% should go towards making sure those still working are getting 100% of their salary rather than topping up furloughed staff?

I’d be willing to accept a voluntary pay cut if it was the only option but not in this scenario.

@okayokaywhatsnext email nursery and say you can’t afford full fees as you’ve had to take a pay cut.

They are still receiving their LA funding and they’ll get staff salaries covered for furloughed workers. They can’t say you’re paying to protect the place as they can’t give it to anyone else at the moment! We’re asking for 25 % to support the shortfall. Any more is unreasonable.

If a parent t emailed in and said they couldn’t manage it we wouldn’t ask for it. Please talk to them and cancel your direct debit.

Our Exec team have taken a 50% pay cut and I've had to take a 20% pay cut.

It's not ideal, as I am a single parent, but if it means I have a job in the long term, then I accept the pay cut. It will be temporary.

I'd rather the 20% pay cut than being furloughed. I would lose 43% of my pay if that happened.

I'm just grateful to still have a job at the moment.

If you don't accept voluntarily it is quite likely they'll change your contract to reflect the new remuneration and you wouldn't want that to happen