Dh work making people go flexi and take a pay cut

[Thedarksideofthemoon30]

Dh works for Network rail. He’s been with them roughly 10 years but at his currently job for 3.

He’s a signaller and they are changing the hours from 6/2 - 2/10 6/6 etc to 12 hour days/nights.

But they have announced they need 14 people to go flexi, meaning they won’t get any overtime or Sundays etc. We rely to the overtime and 2 Sundays a month.

If people go flexi he would have to take a £10k pay cut from missing out on the overtime etc.

They said it will be the people who haven’t been there the longest.

Aibu to think this is wrong and the job he applied for wasn’t flexi shift? Can they even make you do it?

It also means he won’t know his shifts until a week or so in advance, which with young children makes things so much more difficult and hard for me to work.

@MyDcAreMarvel

Your dh may work hard but he isn’t skilled enough to be earning anywhere near £500 a day.

www.networkrail.co.uk/running-the-railway/looking-after-the-railway/delays-explained/fatalities/

283 suicides in a year. That's 5.4 per week. And they will be spread out over the country. So how on earth would it be possible for one signaller to "deal with a lot of suicides weekly"?!

What is everyone’s problem with £500 a day, assuming 12 hours at double time that’s a base salary of £37k, hardly outrageous

Because not all suicides are reported ;) I’m sure they are other signallers on her that can vouch for that...

British Gas are doing something similar re flexi/overtime/bonus scheme except they are threatening to fire everyone who doesn't sign a new contract voluntarily then offer to rehire them. It's completely unethical and so shit to treat key workers like this.

So £500 overtime is too much to earn in a day for a railway worker doing overtime but not too much for half of Mumsnet and their DHs to earn banging away on a computer wfh while looking after their DC

@UmteenthUser

So £500 overtime is too much to earn in a day for a railway worker doing overtime but not too much for half of Mumsnet and their DHs to earn banging away on a computer wfh while looking after their DC

Bloody well said.

Your dh may work hard but he isn’t skilled enough to be earning anywhere near £500 a day

Wow

If enough people don't say yes they'll likely do a consultation for change of terms, (if it's in his contract already that is) then move onto redundancies if they don't get the outcome

Because not all suicides are reported
Yes they are. RIDOR.

Also OP it's not a pay cut, it's an overtime cut. If they're regularly paying £500 per day when the industry is in trouble due to the pandemic it's totally understandable they need to do this tbh.

It's obviously going to make a dent but at least as you said you can get by on his regular salary.

@UmteenthUser

So £500 overtime is too much to earn in a day for a railway worker doing overtime but not too much for half of Mumsnet and their DHs to earn banging away on a computer wfh while looking after their DC

Spot on!

@Neron

Because not all suicides are reported Yes they are. RIDOR.

@Neron I believe suicides are actually exempt from RIDOR

@UmteenthUser

So £500 overtime is too much to earn in a day for a railway worker doing overtime but not too much for half of Mumsnet and their DHs to earn banging away on a computer wfh while looking after their DC

Totally agree.

As op says, if you think the job sounds so overpaid go ahead apply.

@MrDarcysMa

Also OP it's not a pay cut, it's an overtime cut. If they're regularly paying £500 per day when the industry is in trouble due to the pandemic it's totally understandable they need to do this tbh.

It's obviously going to make a dent but at least as you said you can get by on his regular salary.

The overtime will still be being paid.

#500 per day is #130k per year equivalent - so obviously would be the first thing to be slashed.

Amazing that it ever got to that level - management had really taken their eye off the ball.

Still sucks, I suppose.

Apologies you are correct @MrDarcysMa. Been some changes since

Suicides are reported though, and will have internal procedures. Plus that part of the network would be shut off and the police involved.

Amazing that it ever got to that level - management had really taken their eye off the ball.

You do know how much management earn don't you?

Even if the OPs DH remains on a fixed work pattern, I suspect that the opportunity for overtime will be cut anyway. They will use the flexible shift folk to plug many of the gaps in shifts.

I guess it helps pay the stamp duty too

When covid releases people back into the workplace a lot of people are going to find their worklife changed beyond all recognition. Given the rise of WFH and slump in rail services, your DH is going to be badly affected. Be grateful his industry has not gone bust leaving him jobless. Many others are not so lucky.

Agree with this. I'm surprised we've not heard more about mass transport related companies as they must all be struggling.

I know the government had to bail out TFL but I haven't heard of any issues from Arriva, Stagecoach etc.

It won't just affect transport workers though, services will be reduced & 2/3 days in the future will likely cost what 5 days did in 2020.
Rising unemployment tends to impact the economy as a whole & it's better to have more of us using public transport instead of our own cars in terms of the environment.

@lolulop

It won't just affect transport workers though, services will be reduced & 2/3 days in the future will likely cost what 5 days did in 2020. Rising unemployment tends to impact the economy as a whole & it's better to have more of us using public transport instead of our own cars in terms of the environment.

I agree from an environment perspective and pre COVID I was a supporter of greener, better funded, subsidised public transport. The problem is now people are avoiding public transport because they feel safer from COVID in their cars.

I think car sales have gone up & that legacy will likely last a while.

@Eleganz

OP, your DH needs to get advice from the union here. I am surprised that they are essentially asking some staff to take on worse conditions than others, that could easily expose them to anti-discimination action.

As for those saying that £500 a day is ridiculous. Plenty of people get paid more for less. Management consultants regularly pull in such sums and I don't see anyone on MN complaining about it and that is an almost entirely pointless industry.

Hear hear and I used to work in a management consultancy years ago .

I think more people who do necessary safety critical jobs and fewer management consultants should get paid £500 a day .