I’m 6 weeks into a new job and have been underpaid 3 days due to the office being shut for 3 days over Christmas. I approached my manager about this and he agreed I should be paid for those days but HR don’t. He is asking the head of the department for further advice but I suspect I’ll be given the line, they had to be fair for all staff and others who are in the same position were paid the same etc.

However my situation is different. When I was offered the job, I stated I was on a 3 month notice period which I could try to reduce to a month but I’d prefer to start in the new year (2 weeks later than I did) as this would mean I still qualify for a 10% bonus from my old company.

They said it was paramount I started on their requested day as they had staff leaving and they wanted some form of handover. Also as a sweetener I was going to be given the 3 days extra holiday while the office is shut for xmas.

So I did what they asked, on starting the person I was going to have a handover had left, so there was no handover.

When raising the pay issue I made these points again to my manager and firmly. I am anxious about repeating if they come back saying no as I’m still in my probation period.

Aside from this, the company is a good place for me to work and the position well suited for where I’m at career wise. I did have 2 other job offers at the time and I know one company is still looking to fill the position and they were offering 10% more salary, (but more stress I feel to balance out the pay). I’m also unlikely to stay at the company for more than 2 years regardless.

If they come back with the expected answer of no, my options seem to be:

1. Its only 3 days pay, stuck it up. I’ve displayed I’m not a walk over, if I don’t pursue it further and carry on as though it didn’t happen it could strength my case for a salary review. I’m in a good position to renegotiate my salary for 2017 regardless. Maybe take a couple sick days to make it up.

2. Pursue it further, send a complaint formally in writing and see what happens. Risk being seen as disgruntled and get fired. However being fired is unlikely I feel. It’s more likely to make me be seen in a bad light longer term. My manager is probably a good person to keep on my side for future positions at different companies for when he moves on.

3. Clearly the company doesn’t treat it’s staff that well and the manager is abit of an idiot for enforcing a start date for no good reason, take the other job offering 10% more.

What does you contract say?

Did you get anything in writing, if not very little chance id have thought.

Who promised you the three days? If it had the backing of HR, then I’d chase it up. If it was just from your new manager then it could be he did it without approval. The question then is, do you want to make life uncomfortable for him?

My contract mentions reducing pay in lieu of holidays taken on terminating employment. There is no mention of reducing pay in lieu of holiday at any other time.

So 6 weeks into the job. You must have started mid December.
Office shuts for 3 days over Xmas and you want paid holidays for that time whilst everyone else has had to accrue their hols over the year.
Current holiday entitlement is 5.6 weeks per year.
5:6 X 5 working days = 28 days of paid holiday.
28/52 weeks is about half a day a week.
Your owed a day if they run their holidays January to December.

Yup you’ve not acquitted the hours someone gave you duff info and unless you have it in writing you’re going to have a real fight on your hands.

Have you already told hr what you told us?

Bearing in mind you’ve decided you prefer the current company and as long as you’re confident of being able to move on in a couple of years, if required. I’d go for option 1.

TBF I’d move on and consider it a cost of relocation basically since you don’t seem to want the other job but… don’t forget about it, they seem to have pissed you about really quite a lot already and it’s not a good start is it? You’re worried about your probation period and how you look but what about them?

I’ve just been told that I will be reimbursed for the missing 3 days pay. Officially according to the exact employee handbook wording I’m not due the pay. My manager has worked the system so I get paid for sacrificing holiday for this year and is then reinstating the holiday as discretionary ‘time off in lieu’. Just goes to show, it’s always worth asking.

Do you get tips ?

Good outcome

i have known folk redress a perceived imbalance with gratuitous sick days

Three days pay, thieving scumbags.

Personally I wouldn’t want to employ someone who is a walkover or quietly fumes without raising issues. Plus being in a profession where you get interview offers weekly, you can demand a high level of employee conditions.

Must be a software developer :p