Paying Level 2's And 3's

[Guest Spiral]

Hi there,

 

As mentioned in my previous post we are currently recruiting. We have stipulated on the advert that the post is for a level 2 member of staff.

 

A couple of applicants that we are interested in hold a level 3 qualification however, as we are such a small team, we can't afford to pay them the level 3 amount.

 

The sucessful applicant will not hold the same responsibilities as our other level 3 member of staff.

 

Does anyone know what we are legally obliged to pay?

 

Thankyou,

Spiral :-)

[Inge]

You would pay for the job advertised and recruited for.. if as some do you want to recognise the qualification that could be included in a pay structure but other jobs dont automatically give you extra money for the additional qualifications should you choose to do them..

 

we only paid for the job recruited for and appointed... if at a later date a level 3 job comes up we then did internal promotion and recruited for the remaining post..

 

but by doing that you do or can cause them to search for a new job when they are qualified that will pay a higher rate.. we understood that and took the risk.. but did not pay for training or hours while they were doing it.. unless we needed someone to do level 3, then we paid for the training but not the hours.. could not afford both..

[HappyMaz]

If I was applying for a job and the advert asked for a Level 3 qualification I would expect to carry out job tasks and functions at that level and although I am a Level 6 it wouldn't occur to me to demand a higher rate of pay to reflect my enhanced qualification.

 

Of course some would argue that the employer would be getting a bargain but equally that I would be over qualified for the role and as such might not be the best candidate for the job.

 

As an employer I would only have been able to afford to pay the Level 3 rate of pay for the position, and as far as I'm aware there is no legislation that compels you to pay extra for qualifications you do not need the employee to have for that particular job specification.

[finleysmaid]

can i just ask what happens if a level 2 employee becomes a level 3? do you change their rate of pay automatically?

[HappyMaz]

Finleysmaid in my group whenever a person gained their level 3 qualification I did give them a modest salary increment to recognise their achievement. 'Modest' is a good way to describe it - there was never enough to go around - but at least it was a way of rewarding their effort. The job descriptions/specifications for our team were basically the same: you did pretty much the same things whether you were a level 2 or 3. This was the structure I inherited when I took the nursery over.

 

That said, the Deputy Supervisor (later Senior Practitioner) got an enhanced hourly rate to recognise the other responsibilities they had over and above what a Pre-school Assistant (later Early Years Practitioner) carried out.

 

Clear as mud, isn't it?

[Inge]

can i just ask what happens if a level 2 employee becomes a level 3? do you change their rate of pay automatically?

 

it is not necessary unless they are doing a level 3 role... they are paid for the role they are employed for..

 

we didn't .. some do, but we could never afford it..

[HappyMaz]

it is not necessary unless they are doing a level 3 role... they are paid for the role they are employed for..

I agree Inge - it was just that we never had any level 2 and level 3 roles because we were just too small!

[Guest Spiral]

Thanks for all of your replies.

 

As a result of the successfulness of this forum, we have decided we would employ the successful applicant as a level 2 (as advertised) and therefore pay a level 2 amount.

 

We can't afford a level 3 wage and we have no need for a level 3.

 

In answer to Finleysmaid's question, when we have asked a staff member to do training and they have completed it with us (on the understanding they will remain within our employment for a reasonable amount of time), we have always increased their wage accordingly.

 

It's just that we are looking & advertising for a level 2 and some level 3's have applied.

 

Thank you everone,

Spiral :-)