AIBU to pay an single parent mother minimum wage?

[Zodiacsunshine]

Admittedly I’m a bit out of touch with what would be acceptable. I’m starting my own business and with the current economy situation I’ve had to reevaluate my outgoings. I’m going to offer a single mother on UC full time work ( reception ). I know she will want the job as I know she is desperate but I really can’t offer more at this point. I will absolutely review this in six months with a view to raise it as I think it will be ok then. She is 40 with one school age child. Plus I think she will be an asset so happy to pay more when I know we will be stable

I’m concerned that.

1. she will think I’m taking the piss

2. it might mess her benefits up and not be worth it for her.

I don’t know anything about being on benefits. She will be my only staff member

Any ideas will be welcomed.

Perhaps have a look at your business model and explore why you can’t afford to pay staff a living wage, instead expecting UC to take up the slack

I’m not expecting UC to take the slack and I think that’s unfair and catty. That’s never been my intention at all. I could offer the job to a school leavers or even get an apprenticeship which would be cheaper for me but I want to help her out and I want to work with her.

Even though I do absolutely feel sorry for her I know this will be beneficial for us both. She’s always held managerial jobs, been the person who locks up at night, cashes up and banks. She’s had really bad depression after a series of catastrophic events, her life was pieces and she’s just coming through it. This will be easy for her but not stressful while while she gets used to being back in work.

Thanks for your responses. Some really good points I’ll take on board.

guanciale I’m going to have a chat with her today about it and see if it’s viable for her.

why dont you ask her if her benefits will be messed up?

Just expect to be told that it's none of your fucking business, potentially. It's a bit rich poking your nose into the finances of either a friend or an employee!

Like I said, you don't know or have a right to know about her financial planning. Keep it professional.

You don’t pay a wage based on someone’s individual situation you pay it based on what the going rate is for the job. NMW is fine- if that’s what receptionists get paid in general.

My only word of caution is that employing someone almost guarantees you lose the friendship. It only seems to work with youngters. I have lost a close family friend after employing them (they walked out of the job with no notice).... not due to me btw! turns out she had form for doing it.

Given that it's all you can afford at the moment, and given also her complete freedom to accept or reject your terms, you're not being unreasonable.

You don’t pay a wage based on someone’s individual situation you pay it based on what the going rate is for the job

I wish people would stop insinuating I’m paying this so her benefits will pick the slack up. I’m really not. The only reason I put it in to the thread header was because I didn’t want to put some one with a child financial difficulty.

I’d be happy to offer a younger person an apprenticeship- because there definitely is scope for further training ( in my line of work) And this would save me money. But like I’ve said - I wanted to throw her a life line with out leaving her short - no ulterior motive what so ever sorry!

As I posted way up thread I’ve had a look at for this work people are being paid Min wage to £9 with lots of experience expected.

NMW isn't fine, it's the least someone should be paid and employers should be moving towards a living wage rate.

There's a lot of bashing of benefit claimants, but it's conveniently forgotten that most employers and businesses wouldn't exist without benefits and even though they haven't claimed them personally, they are benefitting from ohr welfare system and low minimum wages.

We have a punitive benefit system in place and low employment opportunities, tbere isn't a 'choice' involved in having to take jobs. There's a level of exploitation in our wage structure.

The job is what it is. I’ve never heard of an employer paying someone more because of their circumstances. I think taking her circumstances into account day to day would be helpful though - would you pay her sick pay for when her child is ill? Offer flexibility where needed? My employers do, while many don’t - I think providing assurances such as that would be more beneficial and fair.

I'm a single mother and I'd be happy with your offer OP. Many others will be too, if she isn't.

You shouldn't be employing someone you are emotionally invested into like this... I know it sounds harsh, but it rarely works out.

One thing I would say is to be aware that she is doing what is possibly the most important job in your company...

Front of house. First impression, e.t.c.

I say this, to emphasise that although you may not be able to reward her financially in the way you would wish to right now....(?) there may be other incentives and rewards you might offer in future, for example access to further training...

She is clearly in a position to potentially be a great asset to you in your company and staff retention these days is seen as one of the hallmarks of successful and sustainable companies, and I mean that not just in an ecological sense but also in an economic one...

I'm a single parent and get 3p over minimum wage. It doesn't mess up my benefits as DS is school age and I work school hours so no childcare costs. I get working tax credits and I'm better off working than I am not.

I am happy with the wage because my employers allow me a lot of flexibility which makes life a lot easier. I can choose my own hours as long as all the work is done by the end of the week. I work a 4 day week and for example if DS has a school event that I would like to go to my employers allow me to swap my day off.

If you could offer her flexibility then I'm sure she will bite your hand off!

@Ponoka7

NMW isn't fine, it's the least someone should be paid and employers should be moving towards a living wage rate.

There's a lot of bashing of benefit claimants, but it's conveniently forgotten that most employers and businesses wouldn't exist without benefits and even though they haven't claimed them personally, they are benefitting from ohr welfare system and low minimum wages.

We have a punitive benefit system in place and low employment opportunities, tbere isn't a 'choice' involved in having to take jobs. There's a level of exploitation in our wage structure.

There absolutely zero chance with a new business in this economic situation I’d be able to pay her £18,000 salary from the start off. I may as well not open at all or offer the job to an apprentice.

It’s not as simplistic as that. It’s not my fault she’s out of work, it’s not my fault she has a son, to it’s not my fault she has rent to pay. I Can only work off what my business can afford right now. I’m not exploiting anyone

You can't just offer the job to apprentice. Apprenticeship is a training with someone. It wouldn't be cheaper for you. They need to be supervised by someone. They are not instead of employees....

What if your 40yo single mum gets £1K a month tax free not impacting benefits from her child’s father?
Make a business decision, not an emotional one.
Aim for living wage not NMW - or whatever you benchmark against similar jobs.
Look at other ways you can provide benefits - possibly tricky with a reception, but working hours flexibility, for example.
Don’t assume you know her circumstances!

@OmgThereAreNoPlanesAboveMeNow

You can't just offer the job to apprentice. Apprenticeship is a training with someone. It wouldn't be cheaper for you. They need to be supervised by someone. They are not instead of employees....

I could totally train a apprentice to do reception and the role I do. I had originally thought of that. I have worked with apprenticeships before, I’ve trained them. You really do not need to sit over someone’s shoulder whilst they pick a phone up and write down an appointment in a book. I could train them in my line of work.

But that’s not the point of the thread.

I think it’s lovely that you are thinking of your friend. You do also have to think of your business too, you won’t be able to help her if your business goes bust in 6 months.

I would be happy with nmw, and regular reviews with a chance for it to be increased would be an absolute bonus.
Yes nmw is rubbish but it is what it is and you’re not the only person paying it, as a new business I think it works both ways and enables you to take on staff and get your business going. I’m sure she’ll really appreciate it.

I'm a single mum and DC are older now, so don't have any childcare costs any more.
When they were younger I would have taken an opportunity like this, the min wage wouldn't have necessarily bothered me, I was looking to work my way up, to reach a stage where I didn't need benefits. I understood that I needed to work towards that, and have done so.
So more important to me were the practicalities of working as a single mum, and the progression of the job. Further training which could lead to a better wage, allowed to take holidays at Christmas and in the summer holidays where gaps in childcare happened, not being penalised if I needed to take a day off for childcare issues - that has probably happened once a year to be honest on average and was usually down to things like snow/weather closing school at the last minute, or child care letting me down at the last minute.
But then I was also flexible back and willing to turn in at short notice where I could get child care at short notice, pick up extra shifts in advance that I could plan for etc.
There's more ways to support a single parent than to throw money their way.
I'm not sure how it stands now with UC, but when I was earning less there was a sort of ceiling that I realised. My income was around £1500 a month, regardless of how much of that was earned and how much was tax credits/benefits. So unless a wage increase took me above £1500, which stopped benefits, it made no difference to my overall financial situation.
It did however make a difference to my employability, I had it on my CV, had more/different experience, and would help towards me earning a better wage in the future.
I'm not sure how UC works, or if it's the same principle, but personally I balanced earning a little less against the other positives the job had for the present and the future.

I'm a single mother, I've been on benefit, I now work full time. I don't have much more left over at the end of the month working full time than I did on benefit however I would much rather work for my money than claim. I was so happy to get rid of housing benefit as they were awful to deal with. Being on benefits is not as easy as people think, they can sanction them or reduce them at any time, if she's working full time even on minimum wage she will know she can pay her bills, and top ups from the government is a bonus but she won't be reliant on them to pay bills. Don't worry about her losing benefit, moving her away from them is in her interests. You sound generous and thoughtful and you're giving her a good opportunity. Don't underestimate the value of earning your own wage instead of claiming.

If she’s still on tax credits she will need at least 16hours to get working tax credit - that will make the biggest difference for that benefit.
Not sure how UC works as not moved to it yet but I think you will need to ensure she is paid the same day regardless of weekends/bank holidays to stop it being altered as it’s a real time benefit.

You really do not need to sit over someone’s shoulder whilst they pick a phone up and write down an appointment in a book.

If that’s all there is to it then it doesn’t require much input and is hardly an apprenticeship. Is an apprenticeship to be a receptionist even really a thing? All the receptionists I know have basically just learned on the job - learning on the job and doing an apprenticeship is not the same thing - you may need a day or morning of training /orientation and then you just get on with it and learn as go I find this quite annoying because I think we already don’t value apprenticeships enough in this country or get it right - this sort of thing doesn’t help. In many other countries they really mean something just like a college certificate or a degree. An apprenticeship to be a receptionist is a bit of a piss take in my opinion. Just like an apprenticeship to work as a retail assistant (a job I’ve done) would be - it requires an hour or two of in house training and you’re off.

I’m not expecting UC to take the slack and I think that’s unfair and catty. That’s never been my intention at all. I could offer the job to a school leavers or even get an apprenticeship which would be cheaper for me but I want to help her out and I want to work with her

Wow, you’ve looked at all the ways you can pay peanuts on this one, haven’t you. Don’t you agree with paying people a living wage then?

There's a lot of bashing of benefit claimants, but it's conveniently forgotten that most employers and businesses wouldn't exist without benefits and even though they haven't claimed them personally, they are benefitting from ohr welfare system and low minimum wages.

Yay for businesses who can pay less and the government picks up the tab. Must be lovely to decide you don’t have to pay staff properly because the government will prop up your business. Meanwhile there are actually many, many employers, big and small who insist on paying a living wage so people don’t have to rely on benefits. It isn’t “most” who treat employees so badly.

Assuming her child was born before 2017.
Assuming she pays 3% into a private employer pension.
Assuming she works 35 hours per week.
Income =14924 gross
Net=13432
Monthly net=1119.33
Unicersal credit maximum if not renting =691.24
Work allowance =512

1119.33-512=607.33 - 63%=382.62

Uc= 308.52
So take home =1427.85

Equivalent to hourly rate of £9.41