Anyone in HR? (rather long)

[new2it]

Advice needed please, I was made redundant from the LEA finishing date 28th November 2007. Through the redeployment register I have been successful at interview and offered the post. On Saturday received the letter confirming the starting salary and it is lower that I thought.
They want to start me on 18.907 (sp22) to 20.736. I rang to check and I would start on 18.907
They have said that I could question this through an e-mail with justification which would then be looked at.
TBH I was looking for 19389.0 as this would be in line with my salary from my old job, i know its only £482.12 per year but I therefore, feel its a drop in salary.
How would you go about justifying this request and would you request it, knowing you desperately, need a job !

I was interviewed on the 3rd Dec so there was a 5 day gap between 28th Nov finishing to getting job on 3rd. I could have started on 10th which would mean a gap of 12 days.
Would this have counted or not?

new2it the legal position is if you are offered the new job while you are still in employment and it starts within 4 weeks of your employment ending, you are not entitled to redundancy payments and would keep your continuity of service. So as you were just about offered the job after your employment ended it would not count.

But from what others have said on this thread with experience of LEAs it sounds as though there might be different, more favourable rules with LEAs which I am not familiar with, so do double check with your union rep.

Hmm, it is unlikely that you could argue continuity of employment, unless you could argue it due to the enhanced disclosure cock-up.

TBH I am surprised they let you go on redundancy with the redeployment opportunity so close. An old director of mine in Finance used to bang on about local govt officers being custodians of the public purse and it looks like they've paid out to you unnecessarily AND you've lost out on your continuity of employment.

But - perhaps you could appeal against the dismissal? It may be too late but if you acted quickly you could appeal, get reinstated, pay back the redundancy and then start your new job retrospectively. It is worth a try and I know some union reps might be inclined to give it a whirl.

If this doesn't work the LA does have discretion to recognise prior service for the purposes of annual leave etc. Speak to your union rep or the person who handled the redundancy.

Sounds like your HR was outsourced - but could you also speak to someone senior in the education dept about your situation? Just to cut out Capita really.

Trouble is the money I received has been paying the mortgage and the pot is just about empty oh, and we did have a nice 2weeks in Tenerife which was dead cheep to go in term time. I guess I can't have my cake and eat it!

Seriously, give the salary negotiation a go. Very often the salary is just automatically put as the bottom of the scale with very little thought. It is worth a go. Good luck!

Well, spoke to the manager who said that as I hadn't done the job before then she could only justify starting me on the lower end of the pay scale. I did say it was only short by £730 but she wasn't going to play ball.
She said it didn't reflect a wage drop as it's not paid by the hour which I was working it out from my old job 10.69.
However, she did ask what pay scale was I on before and what point if I found this out then may be they would reconsider.
I also mentioned continuous service and a gap where I would of had protected salary. I also said I had a lack of faith in Capita and were concerned that my best interests were not being fulfilled, she was sympathetic.
So now once I find out then maybe they will think again!

Found out that I was on point 17 of the teaching assistants scale £16.217.
But not sure if it contained the qualifications allowance of an extra £45 a month.
This means my old hourly rate was £11.59 compared to my new rate of £10.64 pr hour!
Nearly a £1 hour less! That means I should start on £20583.84!

What can I do to persuade her to give me the extra £730.0 that I have requested?

I think you need to talk to someone other than this one manager new2it. It sounds like a monumental cock-up that you ended up being redundant at all - anyone remotely on the ball would have pushed to get your interview brought forward a couple of days or extended your last day of employment by a few days to avoid all this. I doubt the manager you are talking to had anything to do with it or is interested. But it's in everyone's interest to get this sorted out. I know you've spent the money, but just so you're clear, it's not the notice money you'd have to pay back, it's the redundancy payment and I really think it's worth your while.

Do you know the name of someone senior who would actually have the power to sort this out, someone senior in HR preferably or if it's outsourced and you are not confident, someone else very senior and then copy it to someone senior in HR. It's in everyone's best interests for this to be sorted out if at all possible -you definitely shouldn't lose out because of what sounds like a series of cock-ups.

Oh my I have found out what the problem has been!!
My old salary is based on 32 hours pro rata compared to the new job which will be 37 pro rata!!! There lies the difference.
Thats why it didnt work out mathematically!!!! what a balls up

new2it

Have only just picked up this thread again and I have to say I thought I smelt a rat with your redundancy stuff to start off with, but didnt want to dig much more because we were focusing on your salary.

I cant add much to the debate, but say I am with Flowery....I'd escalate this, your benefits and continuous service etc is invaluable. You shouldnt have to lose it. What a crock!

Sounds like you have two concurrent issues to put forward here, one on the redundancy timings piece and one on the salary banding - clearly they are two seperate issues, but it would help if you could find ONE person to help you - as senior as possible....and as much as I hate to give this advice involve your union... (I am not usually a fan, but where there really is a problem, the union has its place)
Good luck !!!

Oh, and found out that last April TA's didn't get a pay rise it went to some legal pay award in October and we were awarded 23% of the 32 hours in back pay from April! Yippee! I'm entitled to 7 months back pay....Capita really don't like me atm.
I am concerned that all this caboodle is being perceived as a trouble maker by my new manager

Hi new - keep plugging away to get everything you are entitled to.

Onilly - Just had to say that I'm a member of a union. I've had to call on them for advice a few times and have always found them helpful in terms of alerting me to what i'm entitled to and how to go about getting it (usually in the form of a letter quoting bits of law at them). I know that unions have had a bit of a reputation for being troublemakers, but us employees sometimes need someone to help us fight for whatever we are entitled to, whether its holiday pay or a chance to eat our lunch away from our desk (both things i've had to fight for in jobs). (Haven't i had a colourful working life!)