I’m working 40 hours for £75

[Stepintimebert]

I work for a billionaire, and the majority of you will have helped them build the fortune. 80% of the workers in the company have been furloughed, saving them an absolute fortune, allowing the taxpayer to take the burden whilst they sit on a yacht.
I am one of the workers remaining, and we are totally necessary to mop up all the issues and help all the customers, and have the company function smoothly once businesses reopen. We have now been told we have to take a pay cut of 15%. So those remaining working are getting just £75 a week more than those furloughed, for 40 hour work.All of those furloughed will be given jobs once the organisation re opens as it needs a large number of people to function. I know I’m lucky to have a job, but could screech at being done over by the worlds tightest boss who could put their hand in their pocket and make up the money. And once everything is back to normal they will back to overcharging the general public to fill their coffers with even more money.

[FatimaLovesBread]

@Hoggleludo I know that! My post says that there is a monthly limit of £2500

[Hoggleludo]

@FatimaLovesBread

No. People being furloughed are getting 80% of their salary.

So if you get £1500 a month. You'd get 80% of that

The whole country isn't being paid £2500. For example. Those on 250,000 would get the maximum. Which is £2500

[LilacTree1]

What a mess

OP I would also contact ACAS because the pay cut makes no sense.

[Cremebrule]

There is a lot of inequality around this. Some people are working really hard for a pay cut while seeing their colleagues do nothing for 80% of pay. Often those remaining are working really hard so no wonder lots of people working are getting pissed off.

At my work, no-one is furloughed but basically parents tend to be more senior and are doing half-time in home offices and all the junior, younger staff are doing full time while working from their beds or sofas.

[VanGoghsDog]

you all should get together and strike.

And then they'd be on no pay.

Pretty hard sell to those doing nothing for 80% of their wages (or £2,500).

[Hannah021]

It really is annoying, i'd ask to be furloughed to be honest. 75£ difference isnt worth the risk.
and you all should get together and strike. Its unfair given the risk of exposure, they should be paying u more!!!

[perniciousdot]

I haven't been furloughed because I'm a good worker, the shit workers have been furloughed

DD has been furloughed. She is not a manager, supervisor, department leader, key holder or first aider. She is however a bloody good staff member. Her boss had to follow direct instruction from HO and had no choice regarding who to furlough.

[jcyclops]

"once on furlough you have to stay there"

Not True. The minimum furlough period is three weeks. You can then return to work for a spell and be furloughed again. If an operation can tickover on 25% of the staff, then one way to do it is for staff (in rotation) to work for a week then furlough for the next three.

[SinisterBumFacedCat]

I haven't been furloughed because I'm a good worker, the shit workers have been furloughed. I'm actually hoping it's an opportunity to let those people go when this is all over, the company is as busy as ever (service industry) and we are managing on a lot less staff because all the lazy ones are furloughed.

I bet those furloughed staff are having a nice time being away from you.

[Bearbehind]

When deciding who to furlough it was a different criteria to who we'd pick for redundancy. Just because you're still working it's no protection from being made redundant at any stage

I can’t think of a single scenario where this wouldn’t piss the OP off even more

You appear to be pretty much saying you’ve furloughed the people you’ve chosen to give an easier life right now but if it came to redundancies you’d again choose the same people to get a better deal

[bluebeck]

When deciding who to furlough it was a different criteria to who we'd pick for redundancy. Just because you're still working it's no protection from being made redundant at any stage

Totally agree with this. As a manager I would apply completely different criteria and it is naive for anyone to think that they have protection from redundancy because they haven't been selected for furlough.

[ifowaa]

It's very annoying to be travelling to work and the uplift in risk that work entails, for a tiny bit of extra pay than furloughed colleagues.
I haven't been furloughed because I'm a good worker, the shit workers have been furloughed. I'm actually hoping it's an opportunity to let those people go when this is all over, the company is as busy as ever (service industry) and we are managing on a lot less staff because all the lazy ones are furloughed. If only my boss would recognise this and give the hard-working pay rise, but I doubt he will!
I would prefer to rotate being furloughed though, I have a young DS and he's missing out on having me around plus not seeing his friends/nursery, but I'm lucky I work pt and I hope to still have a job when the lockdown is lifted.

[CheesyHousePlant]

So you have a job and you have taken a 15% cut, 5% less than furloughed colleagues.

Are you doing more work i.e. taking on furloughed colleagues work?

I am working on same pay but doing more work so swings and roundabouts. Eventually my pay will be cut, its only a matter of time.

[haggistramp]

Wait until you catch Corona because you've had to go out and work, so not able to self isolate. Your really will get hacked off when you see furloughed workers getting 80% of their pay whilst your sacrifice as a key worker rewards you with £94 SSP. But we're all in this together or some bullshit.

[perniciousdot]

my boss is happy enough for us to keep the wheels turning so things can snap back into action, yet can’t stump a couple of million to pay people still working, while the government are paying to retain their other staff.

So the problem is one of ethics?

[ChrissieKeller61]

When deciding who to furlough it was a different criteria to who we'd pick for redundancy. Just because you're still working it's no protection from being made redundant at any stage

[Soontobe60]

You will lose 15% of your gross pay, not your net pay. But yes, your colleagues on furlough won’t be much worse off than you. Except they Could be made redundant and will lose holiday pay,

[Stepintimebert]

I’m not sure of the exact amount. It comes into effect with next weeks payslip. My colleagues who do exactly the same job as me can’t come back part time as once on furlough you have to stay there. As I said before, my boss is happy enough for us to keep the wheels turning so things can snap back into action, yet can’t stump a couple of million to pay people still working, while the government are paying to retain their other staff. If you are worth over a billion pounds, a few million is like 50p to you or me.

[Petiolaris]

OP you need to get in touch with ACAS. Your boss has cut your salary by 15% but hasn’t cut your colleagues’ salary. They’re still on their previous salary even though they’re currently only being paid 80% of it. Presuming you have the same job as them, that’s discrimination and is illegal. They can’t cut some employees’ salaries but not others.

[IDefinitelyHaveFriends]

In that case OP I’m much more sympathetic. You’re being paid 25 quid more than your furloughed colleagues, not 75 quid.

The furlough system is a generous scheme got together in a hell of a hurry and unsurprisingly it has a few flaws.
One minor one is that some perfectly profitable companies which can easily keep going in a “from home” environment are being heavily subsidised to furlough their receptionists and tea ladies rather than being expected to bear the costs themselves.
But another is that if you are a company who has retained about 25% of its existing workload, the scheme forces you to completely furlough 75% of your workload (or, probably in practice, 80%) and keep the others working at 100% of normal rate, or more, rather than spread the work evenly out among everyone, and that can spread dissent and envy among some workforces. Doesn’t apply in all cases of course: Cameron Mackintosh couldn’t get the ushers to take turns maintaining the website and checking the legal documents.

[Stepintimebert]

My colleagues are being paid 80% of £440 net. I am being paid 85% of ££440. And yes I do realise I am lucky, and a lot of people are risking their lives daily for less than that. My beef was that my billionaire boss couldn’t put their hand in their pocket to say thanks to those to keep things in place for when we return and for helping them build this empire over the last 20 years. Compared to many in this world we are millionaires. We have food, housing and the NHS. But that doesn’t mean I can’t feel frustrated about my current position. If you have never spoken your mind or complain about anything, then please feel free to berate me.

[TheTeenageYears]

The government should have made a stipulation within the furlough provision that anyone being furloughed could be called up to do alternative work where needed. Fruit picking, delivering goods etc etc. There would obviously need to be some parameters depending on age, where you live, physical limitations but it seems ridiculous not to have the extra hands on deck required to keep the country running when the government are picking up the bill. It would make it slightly fairer on employees who are still going out to work too.

[DippyAvocado]

Presumably you are being paid your normal wage
No, it says in the OP her wage has been cut by 15%!

[Babyroobs]

Presumably you are being paid your normal wage so it's ridiculous to say that you are working 40 hours for £75. The issue is that your furloughed colleauges are being paid 80% for doing nothing.

[Petiolaris]

Are the furloughed staff also losing 15% of their salary? And then they receive 80% of their new salary?