Unpaid Overtime: Why Employers Should Stop Practicing This Callous Culture?

There was a time when the whole world was busy motivating the employees to execute the best workmanship practices in their respective job places. But now the whole paradigm has changed.  The attention of genius-minded people has deviated towards raising the voice against unpaid overtime structure.

This callous behavior is so rampant these days and thereby requires an immediate fix. It’s high time to crack down on the unpaid overtime system.

Employees have no issue working for a little stretched hours with the pay compensated in their true wage. However, the culture of staying late without compensation is pushing their limits.

This penciled blog is an effort to let the employers know what illicit acts they are practicing and what consequences they will have to bear if they keep on exercising this severe activity.

Should employers need to be concerned about unpaid overtime? Yes. Because there are rules now that bring them to the utmost accountability.

Employers are always concerned about their name and shame so if they don’t want any potential lawsuit to be filed against them, they will have to trim the nails of sense.

This is to be mentioned that unless the employee’s contract doesn’t mention the overtime payment, unpaid overtime is not unlawful at all. In fact, the cases of working after office hours or at lunchtime go with the territory.

Investigation BY HRMC

If staff is being given pay below the National Minimum Wage, it is treated as a criminal offense.

Thus, all those employers who repudiate to pay even the legal minimum, are investigated by HRMC. Which results in forcing the employee to pay the fine and other due pays. 

Employment Tribunal Claim

Employers may also be subjected to Employment Tribunal Claim if they fail to pay the wages for the actual number of worked hours.

NMW Calculation

When the salaried staff is kept to work for unreasonable lengths, the extra hours are calculated through NMW calculation. And when extra hours exceed a certain limit, it makes the low-salaried staff work below the NMW rate. This situation compels employers to pay more.

Here again, HRMC comes to enforce NMW on raised complaints.

What Should Be Employer’s Agenda Now?

They can set themselves free from any potential lawsuit claimed against them if the employment contract doesn’t bear any highlights for overtime payment. However, they are accountable and responsible to pay for extra hours/overtime otherwise.

Legal Working Hours of Employees

If the contract is having a clear mention of overtime, still there is a set boundary for the extended hours by the Working Time Regulations 1998 rule. That dictates that the staff cannot be compelled to work more than 48 hours a week over a period of 17-week. However, a separate written document will be signed if the employee wishes to work more than this limit.

If overtime is being done voluntarily, what an employer can do is to come up with a solution that serves both parties. That may be the additional pay for the extra hours or permission to take time off instead.

However, if the contract mentions the overtime to be done by an employee and if he/she refuses to do so, the employer has full autonomy to take disciplinary action against that worker.

The Word From Very Well

If you are an employer, ensure to pay the employee not less than the NMW and in case of overtime pay, the contract is the basis that forms the ground for potential complaints and claims by an employee. Thus, at the time of contractual clause making, both parties must be attentive to what is being written on the contract.