Case Study: I’ve left and I’ve not been paid over Christmas!

Case studies from subscribers

We support school staff in England and Wales with a wide range of employment-related issues in schools. These range from clarification with employment contracts, PPA time, job references to allegations from pupils, dismissal from role to employment tribunals and Teaching and Regulation Agency hearings.

This case study looks at the topic of teacher resignation dates and pay which was overdue.

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Case study: “I’ve left and I’ve not been paid over Christmas!”

Case Headlines

Harriet has worked at her large secondary school for a number of years. She has a good relationship with the Headteacher but has decided to move on and take a new post she was offered for the start of the Spring term.

Harriet is employed under The School Teachers Pay and Conditions Document (STPCD). When she resigned, in her letter she mentioned that her last day would be the 19th December. She had resigned well in advance of the minimum notice period date of 31st October.

Harriet subsequently discovered in the December pay round she was only paid until 19th December and asked Edapt to assist as the school said they couldn’t change it.

Subscriber’s view

Harriet had asked the school to correct the payment situation to ensure she was paid until 31st December; she was told it would not be possible to alter this.

Whilst her resignation letter said her last working day would be the 19th December, what she meant of course was that her last day of employment would be 31st December to start employment at the new school on 1st January, maintaining continuity of employment and pension contributions.

Harriet understood why the school misunderstood, but wondered why they hadn’t checked and very much wanted the situation corrected.

How did Edapt support?

Harriet’s caseworker felt that the school had been too quick to assume the intention was to have an unusual contract termination date. There are only three end of contract dates under STPCD and Burgundy Book, and the 19th December isn’t one of them.

Whilst there is nothing to stop an employer and employee coming to an alternative arrangement on dates if they both wish to do so, this didn’t happen in this case and no discussion was held. 

Harriet’s caseworker worked with Harriet to compose a clear letter outlining the contractual situation, asking how it had been misinterpreted and stating that no-one had checked with her it was her intent to break the contract early. The point was made about the termination date being out of the ordinary and it should have been spotted. The consequences for Harriet being break in service, missed pension payments as well as missing salary due under the contract of employment.

The Outcome

The good news was that, after receiving the letter, the school then conceded.  The payment was made, the break in service removed and pension payments restored.

This was a positive outcome but does highlight that whilst letters of resignation can be very short and to the point, stating the last employed date clearly is really important. It is important to not confuse this with the last day in front of pupils!

Note Of Caution

As an aside, most contractual confusion around resignation happens in the middle term because term dates move each year. 

In Autumn and Summer the dates of December 31st and August 31st are easy dates to work with along with their matching resignation dates of 31st October and 31st May. 

However, as Easter moves each year, schools can sometimes interpret the dates differently and have their own communicated deadlines. The Burgundy Book lays out the rules using ‘two months’ as the required minimum notice period. So, it’s wise to count back two months from the start of the Summer term and use that date as the minimum notice period…and then check with the current school to avoid any confusion!

To further complicate things the Burgundy Book also directs that, if you are leaving teaching, the contract termination date can be the 30th April…even if this means a number of days into the new term!

Find out more about the service we provide at Edapt: https://www.edapt.org.uk/