Legal to be asked to do on call with out pay?

[sanaxe1]

As the title really. My girlfriend is a team leader at a care home for people with learning difficulties and used to be paid £250 per week for on call 1 week in 4. This involved answering calls to give permission for staff to apply medication or to find cover for shifts due to sickness etc. I would say that on average each day there are 5-10 calls with half of them in the early hours of the morning.

Her work has now said that it was a mistake for people to be paid for on call duties and they will no longer pay for on call. Instead the duties will be spread between seniors and management and my girlfriend will now be on call every 5 days for 1 day in even if it includes her day off. She will also not be paid for this on call. Surely this is not legal? She is paid hourly and not on salary, the old on call pay was also not in her contract but the new terms will be in the new contract.

 

[Terminal_Boy]

I’d suggest that your GF rallies everyone else in the same boat and organises an en masse refusal to sign the new contract.

 

[Siliconslave]

have a look at this: https://www.acas.org.uk/changing-an-employment-contract - its from the employer's view but essentially unless theres a flexibility clause they can't force a new contract without your gf's agreement, unless they make her redundant and hire her again.

 

[paradigm]

Depending on how long she has been receiving this on-call payment it may well be an "implied term". She doesn't need a written contract to include her on-call payment if it's been happening for long enough to be considered "custom and practice".