Virgin Media Closing Albert Dock

[Sirius]

Originally Posted by RichardCoulter

I do hope that you show your manager and colleagues more respect.

Very much so

Originally Posted by RichardCoulter

As previously explained, if you have a problem with me or any other member of Cable Forum, you should use the ignore facility.

You are not a moderator here, do not presume to tell members what they should or should not do.

Originally Posted by RichardCoulter

I do hope that you show your manager and colleagues more respect.

You are treading on very thin ice atm, you have been warned about your attitude towards our members here, specifially VM employees. I suggest you heed it if you wish to continue posting.

[Peter_]

Originally Posted by RichardCoulter

Would you care to elaborate and share your knowledge with the rest of us?

I can then run it by the company solicitor.

Whoever they are they are extracting the urine and anyone that stays as one of his employees must be pretty dumb because unless they are getting paid for those holidays the is little point staying with that company.

The boss is nothing more than a thief who is preying on his staff and if they were my employer I would be taking them to a tribunal for constructive dismissal as that is an abuse of power.

5 weeks unpaid holiday means a loss of a minimum of £1500/£2000 and that is a cut to far for most people and if you even that out over a year they are probably now below minimum wage.

Your friend/colleague/acquaintance whose company this is the lowest form of boss you can have and I for one would wish a company such as that to go out of business as his employees would be better employed looking for a position with a employer that has a conscience.

[RichardCoulter]

The employer that I was referring to is actually a Local Authority, so let's hope that your wish that they "go out of business" does not bear fruit, as a lot of people such as the elderly, disabled, children etc would suffer greatly if they did.

The employees accepted that it was the best way to tackle a bad situation and prevent even more redundancies, which could have been either themselves or their colleagues.

They have been selfless, not dumb, in showing loyalty to both their employer and service users (many of whom are vulnerable members of society) and I applaud them for this.

The people that did this could have taken voluntary redundancy as an alternative if they wanted to leave, but many realise that it is very difficult to obtain alternative employment in the current economic climate.

They all signed a new contract of employment and Unison have scrutinised it for any legal irregularities, including ensuring that the minimum wage regulations are satisfied for the hours that they work.

Unfortunately, we will be seeing more and more zero hours contracts.

Tesco, for example, now use them and if the wages budget is exhausted, employees are required to take unpaid leave.

This arrangement, in my view, does not breach the 1998 Working Time Regulations, a summary of which is supplied below along with my comments as to why not.

28 days’ paid annual leave per year- they will still receive this.

An average 48 hours a week working limit- this will be adhered to.

A limit of eight hours (average) work in a 24 hour period for night workers- as will this requirement.

Free health assessments for night workers- and this.
11 hours rest in a 24 hour period- and this.
24 hours rest per week- and this.
Rest breaks for those who work more than six hours- and this too.

I too don't like the way that employers are having to respond to the very serious economic challenges, but it's the harsh reality that we are all going to have to face up to.

In the old days, groups of desperate men would all turn up at Albert Dock on a daily basis touting for work and a select few would be picked for one days work only, with the rest being sent home- let's hope we don't return to those days.

[Peter_]

Well if I worked for a local authority and it did that then I would not be working for it for long as that is taking money from people and in all likelihood causing hardships and the employees having to claim from the state.

If the was a local authority doing this somehow I think it would have made the national news as that would be scandalous and the chief executive and his complete team should lose their jobs, I also doubt they are giving up 5 weeks wages but them again on the kind of wages they are on it would hardly be noticed.

Google doesn't show anything on this topic (local authority five weeks unpaid leave).....

[Sirius]

Originally Posted by Hugh

Google doesn't show anything on this topic (local authority five weeks unpaid leave).....

Are you at all surprised by that ?

[qasdfdsaq]

Maybe this:

http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/9399..._as_perks_cut/

or similar, but different numbers in question:

http://www.localgovernmentlawyer.co....s&q=&Itemid=25

There's more than one local authority doing it.

Bit of a difference between 1 day in York and 25 days, IMHO.

Re the Dorset example, it didn't happen...

http://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/new..._unpaid_leave/

[Peter_]

Originally Posted by Hugh

Google doesn't show anything on this topic (local authority five weeks unpaid leave).....

As above it would have been national news and the chief executive would have probably stepped down and be suing the government by now for loss of earnings.

[qasdfdsaq]

Well there's this and this too. Just the first few google results. Don't claim to have read them. I'm sure you'll find it if you dig deeper (providing it's true of course).

There's nothing illegal about unpaid leave or working only part of the year. For some jobs it's already pretty standard. Using it as a cost cutting tool isn't new either.

Agreed, but the poster was specific about five weeks, and I cannot find any corroborating evidence.

[Peter_]

Originally Posted by Hugh

Agreed, but the poster was specific about five weeks, and I cannot find any corroborating evidence.

Plus if this was fact it would be more than just hearsay it would be on the national news.

[Sirius]

Originally Posted by Hugh

Agreed, but the poster was specific about five weeks, and I cannot find any corroborating evidence.

I would not look for to long Hugh i don't think it will exist

[Digital Fanatic]

The last remaining staff this morning at Albert Dock have been told it's closing a month earlier, the 30th March.

good luck for the future to all the remaining staff You'll never look back