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.

Why don't you talk to her, explain the situation and let her decide what would be the best option.

Medical Receptionists in my experience are usually paid NMW - or very little above.

So it all sounds fine to me!

Everything that @Justanotherscumbag said.

OP, you sound like a lovely person, I hope it works really well for both of you.

The fact that you would even come here to canvass for opinions really surprises me, I may be jaded but I haven't heard many employers caring about their staff to this level in recent years.

Remember, the wage is only part of what you will be providing. She will also have a job that she can be proud of and look forward to, a sense of purpose, and work experience back on her CV. And as you have said you are happy to review the pay when finances are better for you.

I hope she accepts the job good luck with your venture.

MintyMabel I think you’ve got a bit of a chip on your shoulder to be honest. But it’s AIBU so it’s probably to be expected. It’s down to you if you want to read some thing negative in to it 🤷‍♀️

Thanks for the helpful posts. I’m going to discuss it with her later and see what she says.

Job security, a good employer and regular hours are more important than hourly rate when on benefits.

@Zodiacsunshine Don't worry, there are numerous threads where MintyMabel makes a bit of a nuisance of herself getting offended by everything and thinking everyone else is far below her level of intelligence and moral compass.
You're absolutely right, both morally and legally, to pay this woman minimum wage. If anything, I'm concerned that you're caring too much here and are setting yourself up to be taken advantage of. You're expecting minimum commitment and minimum skills/qualifications - that's exactly what minimum wage is designed for. If she wants a higher wage than you can or will pay then she's able to go elsewhere. Her benefits will top her up if she needs it so that really is not your concern. You're being more than reasonable - ignore the nutters who think business owners are all rolling in cash and in some kind of conspiracy against workers.

I think you’ve got a bit of a chip on your shoulder to be honest. But it’s AIBU so it’s probably to be expected. It’s down to you if you want to read some thing negative in to it

No chip on my shoulder. That’s a trite phrase trotted out when you’ve nowhere else to go.

It’s not unreasonable to expect businesses to pay staff a living wage rather than trying all angles to see how they can find the cheapest staff. We complain when big businesses don’t do it but for some reason it’s perfectly fine for small businesses to do so.

My dad worked hard through the early days of starting his business, doing everything himself because he refused to pay people low wages.

35 years on, my sister now runs his highly successful business and not a single member of their staff needs to rely on the government to make sure they have enough to live on. Their ethos is, if you can’t afford to pay staff enough to live on, you can’t afford to have staff.

where MintyMabel makes a bit of a nuisance of herself getting offended by everything and thinking everyone else is far below her level of intelligence and moral compass.

How strange you’d follow me about like that. I can’t recall a single post of yours. Glad I give you something to do with your time.

@Zodiacsunshine did she accept?