Salary Payments Prevent Benefits Payments.

[sandfordboy]

Please can anyone assist with advice regarding my Daughters issues with her employer & Gov.uk. (Benefits).

My daughter works part time at a nursery. She receives the new benefits top up (universal credit allowance). She has 2 x young children (both at school) & lives in private rented accomodation.The employer says she receives a 4 x weekly salary. The date the salary is paid on varies nearly every month & within the last year this has resulted in 3 months when she appears to receive 2 wage payments in the same month.When this occurs she has her benefits payment witheld which means a £650 reduction in benefits payments for that month.This causes enormous hardship. Her appeals to Gov.uk have been refused on all 3 occasions. I have backfilled the £650 to ensure she can pay her rent. I have very limited savings & this situation cannot be sustained.

Her request to employer to ensure her salary is either paid on the last day of each month or the first day of each month has been refused (repeatedly).

[ULA]

Firstly can I ask what does her contract state about when her salary will be paid?

[sandfordboy]

Sorry for delay, the poorly written contract/document does not state anything regarding payments!

[ULA]

No worries, on not being able to find anything specific.

Can you confirm my understanding that she is paid very 4 weeks?

Has she been paid at this intervals since she started at the nursery?

[sandfordboy]

Thanks ULA,she has worked at Nursery for @ 3 years (part time) undertaking NVQ3. Essential to know that her total weekly hours have always been specifically geared to comply with the requirements of receiving Universal credit allowance. The employer was fully agreeable to this from day one.The wages are very low & the combined amount is just enough to cover monthly rent & carefully managed living.
First 18 months she was paid at end of every month so no problems. Then without notice this was changed to every 4 weekly payments & the problem started.She has raised this issue with her manager who has not offered any help.She has made requests with the contractor who manages staff pay & they say it is simply their system & thats it.The problems this causes are massive & her health is suffering as a direct result.

[ULA]

If contractually your daughter was to be paid at the end of every month and for some reason her employer decided to change the payment date then they should have been done by way of notice to all employees as a variation to their contract.

My normal suggestion would be that she raises a grievance, however my concern is that given the change happened 18 months ago, this may not be the best way to go. When did she first raise it with the manager?