What is a basic week????

[Fordfocus]

Hi need a bit of advice with regard to a basic working week.Ive been with my employer 3 yrs now as an HGV driver.My contract doesn't state my hrs of work as such.It only states my wage for a basic week(their words not mine).Ive written to HR and IM being told that as I can work 60hrs a week that is my basic week.As I am under the Working Time Directive I have to average 48 hrs over a fixed 17 week period.As far as I'm led to believe from HR I work 60 hrs with no overtime as I'm on £90 per day.Has anybody ever heard of a fall back wage.

[Amethyst]

Re: What is a basic week????

Do you get paid £90 a day regardless of how many hours you work on an individual day?

[Fordfocus]

Re: What is a basic week????

Do you get paid £90 a day regardless of how many hours you work on an individual day?

Hi Amethyst thanks for the reply.The way they word it is.If I cannot do my job for any reason in a day i.e holds up,breakdowns etc I will get £90 a day. If a do my job as normal I get £90 with extra on top usually £20 or so a day.They call the £90 a day a fall back.Ive never heard of this in all my life.

[des8]

Re: What is a basic week????

Fall back wage is the amount aworker can expect if he is unable to work, e.g. becomes unemployed, is sick or on strike
A link to a "learned" paper discussion: https://homepages.warwick.ac.uk/staf...teractions.pdf

[Fordfocus]

Re: What is a basic week????

Fall back wage is the amount aworker can expect if he is unable to work, e.g. becomes unemployed, is sick or on strike
A link to a "learned" paper discussion: https://homepages.warwick.ac.uk/staf...teractions.pdf

Thanks for the reply to my thread.Ive looked at the link you sent and to be honest that is too technical for me too understand haha.Your examples of fall back are different to that of my employer.If I was any of the above of your examples surely my employer wouldn't pay me the fall back wage.My employer states different reasons for having such a wage structure in place.Thanks

[des8]

Re: What is a basic week????

Well you did say ".If I cannot do my job for any reason "... but really your employer seems to regard "fall back" as "basic" or"minimal".

Employment isn't my scene,... I was just intrigued by the terminology so did a little digging.

[ULA]

Re: What is a basic week????

I have never heard of a fall-back wage, however I am guessing from what you have described they are using this term as a basic daily salary regardless of whether you manage to complete the job which is the £90. If however you do complete the job then you are given effectively a "bonus" additional payment the £20.

As I understand it as an HGV driver you cannot opt out of the Working Time Directive therefore as you say you can’t work more than 48 hours a week on average - normally averaged over 17 weeks, therefore I do no know how they can determine that you work 60 hours per week as a basic working week.

Not sure if this is of any help.

[Fordfocus]

Re: What is a basic week????

I have never heard of a fall-back wage, however I am guessing from what you have described they are using this term as a basic daily salary regardless of whether you manage to complete the job which is the £90. If however you do complete the job then you are given effectively a "bonus" additional payment the £20.

As I understand it as an HGV driver you cannot opt out of the Working Time Directive therefore as you say you can’t work more than 48 hours a week on average - normally averaged over 17 weeks, therefore I do no know how they can determine that you work 60 hours per week as a basic working week.

Not sure if this is of any help.

Hi Ula Thanks for your reply.I have never heard of a fall back wage either in all my years of working.Your dead right re WTD.Reading between the lines I think what they are trying to say is....because I can legally work 60 a week they are expecting me to do that and at the same time fall in line with the WTD.For that 60 there is no overtime rate obviously as,they don't class it as overtime but £450 divided by 60 is £7.50.I have challenged them about the £7.50 per hr and I've been told I'm not paid by the hr I'm paid by the day.There seems to be a lot of kidology going on here I think

[ULA]

Re: What is a basic week????

I have to agree.

Don't forget that under the WTD your average working hours are calculated over a 17-week period. You can work more than 48 hours in one week as long as the average is less than 48, you will not be able to work many weeks at 60 hours without there being weeks when you work less than 48 to ensure things average out.

If 60 hours per week is a regular working number of hours for you then they are not in accordance with the WTD. As a matter of interest do you have a record of the average number of hours you have worked over the last 17 weeks?

[Fordfocus]

Re: What is a basic week????

I have to agree.

Don't forget that under the WTD your average working hours are calculated over a 17-week period. You can work more than 48 hours in one week as long as the average is less than 48, you will not be able to work many weeks at 60 hours without there being weeks when you work less than 48 to ensure things average out.

If 60 hours per week is a regular working number of hours for you then they are not in accordance with the WTD. As a matter of interest do you have a record of the average number of hours you have worked over the last 17 weeks?

Yes I do have a record of hrs worked over the last 17 week fixed period for WTD through my digital printouts.I forgot to mention in my previous reply that although I can legally work 60 hrs a week my "duty time " for a week can be 71 hrs.This is made up of 3 15'hr shifts and 2 13 hr shifts.What they are expecting is we maximise our legal duty time but only pay me for 60 hrs.Now of that 71 hrs take breaks off totalling 3.75 hrs.The remaining 7.25 hrs can be POA.

[ULA]

Re: What is a basic week????

As you say you are allowed to work a 60 hour week, however you must not exceed an average of 48 Hours per week over the prescribed reference period of 17 weeks unless following a collective/workforce agreement the working time can be averaged over 26 weeks. In addition have driving limits if a maximum 9 hours driving per day which twice a week can be extended to a maximum of 10 hours per day.

I think that you need to get clarification from your employer as to your hours of work as I have feeling from what you have said that you may be working greater than is allowed.

[mystery1]

Re: What is a basic week????

You should get a written statement of employment within 2 months. If you haven't got it ask for it.

M1