WWYD - acting up without pay while waiting for a new role to be created

[Ginpuddles]

I've been acting up to cover maternity leave for 8 months, and have been paid an extra amount to do so.

During this time, I've made a business case, and my manager agrees, that there is a need for an additional role at the level I've been acting up to.

The person I've been covering has returned and my acting up payment is due to end soon. My boss is proposing to establish a new role. Under our HR rules, I'd have to apply for that role, but as I've been doing the job and have some quite niche skills that will be in the person specification, I'm pretty confident I would get it.

However this is my quandary - HR have advised that my boss can't extend the cover role and I would revert to my usual salary when the cover role ends. My boss wants me to continue doing the tasks at my usual pay level, managing the team etc until the recruitment process for the new role. If I apply for the role, and am successful I would get back pay for the period between.

On the one hand, I like my boss, stand a very good chance of getting the new role, and I don't want to jeopardise the good will I've built up recently.

On the other hand, establishing a new job can take weeks or months where I work (public sector) so there is every likelihood I'd be paid at a lower rate for the job I'm doing for a while - easily into the autumn. There is also a small risk I'd not get the new job, I suppose. I'm feeling a bit of uneasy about how things might pan out.

Is there a middle ground I've not thought of I could suggest to my manager? WWYD

I'd do it, but then I used to work in an environment where this was standard - demonstrating you could work at a higher pay level than currently before getting a pay rise (unless you jumped to a different department where a vacancy was advertised at a higher level).

Can you not flat out suggest that doesn't sound at all fair to you?

You want the new position that is being created. You're intending to apply for it. You hope that the start of the position will be escalated since there's obviously an urgent need to fill it ... cue request for you to do the job for free starting immediately for no pay.

And were you planning to be away for any chunks of the summer anyway? That might cut down on some of the pressure to work more for free?

Thanks Red, thanks Beware

I think you've summed up both sides of the argument. I've been doing the work since last year (and paid for it) but it is generally less usual for people to take on lots of new responsibilities without a regrading of their job or moving into a whole new job.

I've a bit of time off over the summer but will spending most of it at work!