CWU : USEFUL HOLIDAY PAY Q&A FROM DGSP

[POSTMAN]

USEFUL HOLIDAY PAY Q&A FROM DGSP

How do I qualify for back pay?
To qualify for back pay you will need to have hit the regularity threshold of having performed 8 hours of non-contractual overtime in each of the broad monthly periods within the six month qualifying period(s).

What period is the back pay based upon?
Back pay for historic regular overtime will be backdated for a period of two years from April 2021. This covers four separate 6 monthly qualifying periods which broadly encompass the following months:
a. April 2019 to September 2019;
b. October 2019 to March 2020;
c. April 2020 to September 2020;
d. October 2020 to March 2021.

What are the dates for the back pay lump sums to be made?
Monthly paid individuals will receive their payments in October salaries on 30th October 2021 and weekly paid individuals, including those who have already withdrawn their previous ET/IT claims, will receive payments on 8th October 2021.

Will the back pay be paid to everyone or just those who had submitted an Employment Tribunal claim?
The back pay will be paid to everyone who meets the qualifying criteria unless they still have a live Employment Tribunal claim that has not been withdrawn. The cut off time and date for withdrawing Employment Tribunals and being included in the payment run for 8th October 2021 was 0900 on Friday 24th September 2021.

What if I didn’t provide notification of the withdrawal of my Employment Tribunal by this date?
Further back pay payments will be made on the 22nd October 2021 for formal notifications of the withdrawal of claims to the ET/IT if received by 1500 Friday 8th October 2021.

I want to withdraw my Employment Tribunal claim but have not received a letter?
In this case you will need to send an e-mail expressing your wish to withdraw to employmentlawholpay@cwu.org quoting the reference number if known and your pay number.

If I miss the qualifying threshold in one of the six monthly periods does this mean I don’t get any back pay at all?
If the minimum threshold is not hit in one six-month period, this will not mean that the other six month periods are not paid where the minimum qualifying threshold has been reached. A member might qualify for a payment in respect of 1, 2, 3 or 4 of the back pay qualifying periods, depending on the levels of overtime they have worked.

Do I need to be employed now to get back pay?
You will need to have been in employment on the date that the ‘agreement letter’ was signed by both parties to qualify for any payment (16th June 2021).

What if I have already received a settlement from ACAS during these periods?
For employees who have already received payments through settlements via ACAS or directly with Royal Mail, this amount will be deducted from the total amount of back pay although there will be no requirement to pay back any settlement money that has been received above the amount calculated.

Is overtime that I performed as an acting manager included in the qualifying criteria?
No as there is a separate agreement in place for employees in grades represented by Unite CMA or who substitute into such a role and work overtime. Only non-contractual overtime performed at a grade represented by CWU will be factored into any holiday pay calculation under this agreement.

Does Scheduled Attendance (or pre-scheduled overtime for LGV drivers) count towards my 8 hours?
No, because payment for SA and pre-scheduled overtime (for LGV drivers) is already paid on annual leave.

I regularly perform ad-hoc scheduled attendance but do not get paid this on annual leave so what should I do?
Please see your CWU Representative as soon as possible and get them to pursue this matter through the relevant channels so that your Scheduled Attendance can be formalised and then paid on leave. Please also contact your Area Representative or Branch Secretary if further advice is needed.

I have a contract of 15 hours but have regularly been performing fifteen hours of overtime every week for over three years.
Can I get my contracted hours increased?
Where regular excess hours have been performed consistently there are national agreements that cover the process to be followed to obtain an increase in your contracted hours and you should see your local CWU Representative to get this progressed. Additional advice and support can also be sought from your Area Representative or Branch Secretary.

When are the interim payments due?
It is confirmed that the dates for the first interim payment covering the period 29th March 2021 to 26th September 2021 will be paid on 30th November 2021 for monthly salaries and 26th November 2021 for weekly paid. Interim payments will be made to all those meeting the regularity threshold and are not dependent upon the withdrawal of an individual Employment Tribunal claim.

Is there any more information available?
This questions and answers sheet should be read in conjunction with LTB 245/21 (viewtopic.php?f=67&t=100881) issued on 17th June 2021 and LTB 412/21 (viewtopic.php?f=67&t=102117) issued on 29th September 2021. These are available on the DGS(P) Department Sharepoint at www.cwu.org.

[korky]

just gone through my 2019/20 wages online and totted it up,
averaged around £33 p/w in overtime in both halves of the year,
but had a quiet month in each half where i didn't do any, so instead of 4wks @ £33 each i'll get nothing
great work pullinger, keep up the excellent work

[Roundone]

just gone through my 2019/20 wages online and totted it up,
averaged around £33 p/w in overtime in both halves of the year,
but had a quiet month in each half where i didn't do any, so instead of 4wks @ £33 each i'll get nothing
great work pullinger, keep up the excellent work

I highlighted this in another post. Surely as we were encourged to look at 'innovative duty structures' these should have been accounted for in the agreement. I'm sure there will be more than a few people in for a shock when they dont start recieving any average holiday pay!!

[Dexydog]

just gone through my 2019/20 wages online and totted it up,
averaged around £33 p/w in overtime in both halves of the year,
but had a quiet month in each half where i didn't do any, so instead of 4wks @ £33 each i'll get nothing
great work pullinger, keep up the excellent work

Take it to ET.

[korky]

i did get the acas thing the other year, will wait and see what i get 1st and decide from there
i've got a rough estimate of what it should be

[Babel071]

I've been on annual leave for almost entire month. Does that mean I haven't hit requirement for that half year payment or do weeks when you're actually on holidays are excluded from calculations?
Can't really find any information about that anywhere in the agreement

[korky]

yes it's a grey area that isn't clear, i think the deal was always open for abuse regarding leave, especially in summer months when the regular traffic is down (in usual times)

[Dexydog]

There is no grey area regarding this, at all.
You could take all your leave for the year in one month (2 people at my DO do), and then you s**t out for holiday pay for the while 6 months of whatever period that month fits into.
A lot of people are in for a shock next Friday.
At least going forward, as long as you are aware of the qualifying periods, you can try and do 8 hours in each of the 6 month periods, to mitigate any loss you would otherwise have. (this is, of course, assuming you don't have any sick time, which also counts in each of the monthly periods, even though you obviously can't do qualifying overtime whilst you're off sick).
Doesn't make it right, or fair, or even legal.
The whole deal is a complete and utter rip off.

[clashcityrocker]

It is not uncommon for pressure overtime to be paid as SA if there are spare SA hours to use up in a week.
Isn't that going to screw up an individuals right to holiday pay?

[aiden01]

It is not uncommon for pressure overtime to be paid as SA if there are spare SA hours to use up in a week.
Isn't that going to screw up an individuals right to holiday pay?

Guy in mc asked exact question this week answer was either take SA or no ot at all. f--king joke.

[worktotime]

well in my personal opinion this agreement has only 1 winner and its not the staff , i cannot for the life of me understand why the cwu even agreed to the 8 hrs over time in a month as overtime is overtime regardless and why didnt the cwu agree to just any overtime of 48 hrs and above over the 6 month period , as i have worked mine out over the last 6 month period and over the 6 months i have done 74 hours overtime BUT because in 1 month i only did 4 hours i wont get jack s**t and im guessing that a lot of other staff will be shafted the same way .

[Dexydog]

Why are people so willing just to take it up the a**e??
If you have any self respect, sense of fairness, or just plain want what you are owed, legally, tell them to shove their agreement and go to ET.

[korky]

Why are people so willing just to take it up the a**e??
If you have any self respect, sense of fairness, or just plain want what you are owed, legally, tell them to shove their agreement and go to ET.

to be honest, i'll just vote with my feet once the payments trickle in, we have very few sorters in my office of which i'm one,
yes the easy early overtime is nice but i'm not desperate and the extra hour in bed would be more useful

[Dexydog]

That's fine, but what about any pay you will miss out on for last 30 months (and beyond that) because you may not have hit their arbitrary targets?

[Kaning It]

well in my personal opinion this agreement has only 1 winner and its not the staff , i cannot for the life of me understand why the cwu even agreed to the 8 hrs over time in a month as overtime is overtime regardless and why didnt the cwu agree to just any overtime of 48 hrs and above over the 6 month period , as i have worked mine out over the last 6 month period and over the 6 months i have done 74 hours overtime BUT because in 1 month i only did 4 hours i wont get jack s**t and im guessing that a lot of other staff will be shafted the same way .

You definitely won’t be the only one. People have 3 months to put in an Employment Tribunal claim. On that basis there shouldn’t be anything stopping you or anyone else in this position putting in a claim once the back payments have been made or in your case for one period, not been paid. The argument is still the same, that RM overtime is regular as it’s an everyday occurrence in every single office and so there does not need to be this artificial 8 hours a month in every month for 6 months definition of regular. Any reasonable person would say posties regularly work overtime and the facts bear that out.