Term time working - how does it work ?

[LIZS]

I'm possibly going to be able to negotiate term time (39weeks pa) working on a job I've been temping in for last 6 months. Sounds ideal logistically but, aside from the potential pay drop (I'd have to do similar hours per week but fewer weeks per year, paid over 12 months), I'll still have to cover some weeks of school holidays during which my net earnings would be negligible.

What are the advantages/disadvantages ? Are you really able to switch off when you take several weeks off at a time and pick it up again easily on return ? Are there any particular questions I need to be asking at this stage.

i am very interested in this thread as hoping to do the same in a little while

I suppose it depends on what kind of job you do. I work part-time hours term time only in an admin job for the local council. The things I do are very much 'stand alone' projects - there is no impact on the rest of the team if I am not there to do them, and the work does not build up too much during the holidays. It works brilliantly, I get along with everyone in the team, no-one resents the fact that I work these hours (it's quite common in local govt) and I like having a holiday every 6 weeks or so .

I don't really understand why your earnings would be negligible during the summer hols, though - wouldn't your salary be paid over 12 months, so you would earn less, but get the same amount, each month? That's how I get paid, anyhow.

Can't really advise on any questions, as my job was advertised as term time only, but I would make sure that your employers are prepared to be flexible - eg I don't have any annual leave I can take to look after dd if she is sick, or if I would like to go to school events, but my boss is ok for me to take time off if I make it up during the holidays.

What sort of job will you be doing?

Also admin but in education, so relatively little should need doing over summer for example. What I meant was that for those 5 or so weeks when I'd have to cover with paid childcare I'd effectively be barely breaking even, in practice yes I'd be paid evenly over 12 months - I'd be working/paid for 39 weeks but only net the equivalent of 34 after these costs. Agree about the need for flexibility, I can currently clock up extra hours to take for kids being off for odd days and half a day before holidays or to attend concerts, appointments etc and would need to continue to be able to do so.

Obviously being incredibly dense here, but if you are off during the summer holidays, why would you need paid childcare?

Because my kids are only in school for 34/35 weeks (private) and "termtime" is for 39 weeks as per state schools/further education. Also dates for half term and this Easter break don't necessarily coincide.

and if FBB or anyone who does similar already, can advise, what happens wrt Bank Holidays like Mayday which fall in termtime and should an official office closure for Christams be counted as time off on top of the 13 weeks(as for all year round workers) or allowed for within the holiday period ?

Lizs - I work term-time only admin in a school. I get paid for 39 weeks plus a little over 4 weeks on top of that for holiday pay.

Because it's part-time it's really flexible. I have to work Mondays but I can do my other hours on any other days really. It works both ways though and I will usuallu fit in around what they need. I don't have a problem dropping back in to it after the long holiday although I do tend to do some odd days during the summer as there's always something to do.

If you work full time you get the benefit of the bank holidays which fall in term time (there's only really that MayDay one anyway most years). Christmas is included in the 13 weeks.

The 13 weeks are approx
2 weeks at Christmas,
1 week in Feb
2 weeks at Easter (ish)
1 week end of May
6 weeks Summer
1 week October.

Of these 4 are paid.

Lizs if you work part time you shouldn't be treated less favourably than a full timer. Probably the best way to ensure that is to add up all the time off a full timer would get, and work out what proportion you should get working term time only.

I think if you try and work out a proportion of annual leave, plus a proportion of bank holidays, plus a proportion of Christmas shut-down, it's going to get very complicated and confusing.

Add up all the time off a full timer would get, divide by 52 and multiply by 39 (or however many weeks it is). That's the total time off you should get. They can obviously tell you when to take it if they like, so I would expect some of it to be bank holidays during your working weeks, or whatever. I'd be inclined to do the calculation yourself, then see how they are working it out or what method they come back with when you get your new contract or speak to HR, and as long as you're not worse off, go with whatever they say about working it out.

I'm working on the assumption that the weeks you are working, you're full time or at least 5 days a week.

See what they come back with anyway.

Oh, just to add, I haven't worked with anyone working term-time only hours specifically, people I've done it with were on annualised hours contracts, where the total number of hours were put into their contract to effectively allow them to do term-time only, which means their holiday was worked out in hours as well.

thanks fbb . I think they prorata the al allowance before arriving at a 39 weeks actual working figure in hours/£ - so ineffect I might get up 43/44 weeks worth of money iyswim spread across 12 months but I'd do 20 hours pw in a O.5 role to compensate. Would still only be pt btw whcih complicates it further. Have emailed HR and am awaiting a reply .