Employment Status Hidden

[LouiseJam]

Hi,

I have a couple of employment dilemmas.

1. I believe my employment status has been hidden.
I started volunteering at a CIC. After a couple of weeks, I was offered £100 a month, which turned into £a bit more a month. I was working on average 20-30 hours a week (I was otherwise unemployed and disabled, claiming PIP). All income reported to Universal Credit and tax returns done as there were expenses (which I feel the CIC should’ve paid for, eg Zoom subscription), and I was already set up as self employed from previous work as a housekeeper. No invoices were asked for until the last couple of months of my working there.
A year into the volunteering I was offered a salary of £18k assuming that funding became available, and this would’ve been on a self employed basis too as the director didn’t want to pay “employment taxes”. The funding never came through to my knowledge although other funding was received.
I believe I’ve been taken for a fool and should’ve been paid appropriately for the work that I have done.
How can I calculate what I should’ve been paid? Was I genuinely self employed or should I have been classed as an employee?

2. As this role was WFH, I used my own laptop which was very old. The director purchased a laptop for me as a gift. The director now wants this laptop back and has completed a money claim.
I have proof that the laptop was a gift. If it was purely for work, I should have been told and I would have given the laptop back once employment ceased. Any ideas with this one? It appears the director has misused charity funds!

3. I had a mild disagreement with the director and a trustee and woke the following morning to my work email being disabled and out of a job. Following that, the director and their associates have harassed me in several ways and made very disparaging comments on social media. The police are aware and just told the director to stop, which to be fair, they have since being told a second time.

4. The CIC doesn’t have any policies in place such as GDPR.
The director is concerned that I have data on the laptop but isn’t worried about the data that was on my old laptop or two phones. Something doesn’t quite add up. Also, GDPR breach as the director gave out my personal information to people without my consent and contacted my abuser in order to get “dirt” on me.

I appreciate this is quite a lot of information, so any advice would be so greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

[LouiseJam]

Bump

[ULA]

1. When did you start volunteering at the CIC?
On what basis were you offered the £100?
If you had gone there as a volunteer, surely you were not expecting any monetary compensation for your time?
You say you were working 20-30 hours a week but again surely that was on a voluntary basis you chose to work that amount of hours?

2. What is the proof that you have that the laptop was a gift?

3. This seems to have been resolved with the intervention of the police.

4. If you want to report a GDPR issue then that would need to be done with the ICO - Information Commissioner's Office

[LouiseJam]

Hi,
1. Initially it was for 4 or so hours a week, and I obviously didn’t expect to be paid. Started in June 2020. I was offered the £100 as compensation for my time as there was enough ‘money in the pot’.
As the role changed and expanded, I ended up doing a lot more. Hence why I was doing so many hours. I’d occasionally get an extra £40 here and there for “extra work done”. I can’t say too much as need to keep things as confidential as possible, but the hours I put in were supporting vulnerable people more than anything and could not abandon them. Even ended up getting a second phone so that I could try to keep work separate as it was quite a lot!
2. I confirmed with the director that the laptop was mine in a text.
3. Yes, but still very unprofessional and unpleasant. Several people have said to me that they no longer want anything to do with this CIC as a result of what they have seen.
4. ICO informed, bu

[ULA]

1. There may be an argument that your status was either a worker or employee rather than a volunteer given that you were paid.

2.If a small claim has been filed via Money Claim Online then you will need to decide to defend or not the claim. If you do decide to defend then you will need to do this as this as set out by the civil courts procedures and you will have to rely on the text and any other evidence in your defence.

3. I can understand your perspective but the matter is settled.#

4. Good that you informed the ICO, which was the correct course of action.

[LouiseJam]

Hi,
I wondered if someone could help me to identify my employment status. Checked on gov.uk and says I should be employed (no contract though).
Thanks

[atticus]

More details needed!

[LouiseJam]

Started as a volunteer, for a CIC, was paid £100 a month sometimes more if there was ‘money in the pot’, and eventually offered 16 hours at £18k if funding received. This never materialised though my “wages” increased to £320 a month. Around £18k of funding was received though from the National Lottery, plus more from other places.
I was working on average 25-30 hours a week supporting vulnerable women.
All income I received was declared to Universal Credit and HMRC (previously a self employed housekeeper).
Had lots of expenses (working from home so own internet, had to get a second phone, Zoom subscription, stationary etc).
No contract, nevto see my DBS

[ULA]

LouiseJam I have merged your threads as you appear to have created a second thread in the same subject of employment status. Unfortunately this is not helpful to those of us providing you advice.

In my post #5 I have already set out that potentially, based only on the inforamtion that you have provided your employment status could be considered that of a worker or employee.