Less payrise when on maternity leave

[Hope478]

Hello,

I am one of a team of two and I am currently on maternity leave

My colleague, my maternity cover and I received a 1% annual payrise

My colleague then received, a couple of months later, another payrise due to "banding" (I haven't been made aware of any banding, I have only heard this from my colleague)

My maternity cover and I haven't received this extra payrise. I suspect they will say that my colleague now does more on the banding, but me and my colleague have have exact same job role, job title and have always done exactly the same work. I haven't seen the banding, but I am supposed to do just the same as my colleague

I am due back in work in a month

Any idea where I stand with this?

Thank you

Difficult to comment without more information- I think you need to get more detail on what is meant by “banding” and why the increase applies to your colleague only. Until this rise, were you paid the same?

I had a similar problem. I raised a grievance at work. When that was basically ignored I went to ACAS . They called HR and it was all magically sorted out.

Until the rise, we were paid exactly the same.

Ok so you need to get further detail on why this “banding” doesn’t apply to you, before you do anything else.

I don't know how to go about this, or how to word asking, hence why I'm asking.

If she's been given extra responsibilities, I obviously haven't been able to do them as I'm on maternity leave!

Given this is so far rumour, you need to explain to your manager that you've been given this information and as a result you'd to understand if it is the case whether your role will be changing also.

So you need to identify with manager
a if you role is changing too, great assuming you want the extra responsibility
B if not changing, why not and whether there should have been an opportunity for you to be offered the change in role

And so on. But one step at a time find out the facts first and ask your manager to explain.

@YoBeaches

Given this is so far rumour, you need to explain to your manager that you've been given this information and as a result you'd to understand if it is the case whether your role will be changing also.

So you need to identify with manager
a if you role is changing too, great assuming you want the extra responsibility
B if not changing, why not and whether there should have been an opportunity for you to be offered the change in role

And so on. But one step at a time find out the facts first and ask your manager to explain.

It's not a rumour, my colleague has given me the exact figure of her payrise and we're quite close.

This is very good advice though, I'll start with my.manager, thank you.

It's a rumour because you haven't been notified by work formally. They could be planning to notify you on your return.

Your colleague shouldn't have said anything about it at all, close friends or not. They may have misunderstood the situation or not have all the facts themselves.

So don't go in too defensive to start with, just state what you have been told and you want to understand what this means for you.

Just an update, in the hope that anyone else with a similar issue will be able to resolve it too.

Work weren't waiting until my return to inform me (and this would have been discrimination anyway)

They have backdated my payrise to match my colleague and I am receiving a lump sum payment in my next payslip to reflect this

ACAS were a massive help and my work are claiming they simply "forgot" me and it wasn't discrimination

But all resolved now.

Please speak up, don't wait for work to fix it because they won't!

Well done! Hurrah for acas!