Agricultural Wages in Scotland: Eleventh Edition: A Guide for Workers and Employers

Standby Duty ( Article 21)

A worker is entitled to be paid for each hour spent on standby. The definition of standby duty is given in article 21(2) of the Order, but for convenience this can be summarised as time when a worker is required to be readily available for work on a day when he does not normally work or on a day which has been agreed as a holiday or special holiday.
Payment for each hour during which a worker is on standby should be at a rate which is not less than the agricultural minimum wage rate.
If a worker on standby is required to work, then he must be paid for each hour actually worked in addition to the time spent on standby. The amount of payment will be determined by the status of the day, which means that:
- if the day was a day on which the worker did not normally work, then the hours worked would be paid at not less than his minimum overtime rate (see article 8 of the Order and Section 3 of this guidance note);
- if the day had been agreed by the worker and the employer as a holiday, then the minimum payment for the work done would be the same as it would be for work on a holiday when the worker was not on standby (see article 9(10) of the Order and Section 4 of this guidance note);
- if the day was one of the special holidays (Christmas, New Year, etc) or a day in lieu of one of the special holidays, then payment would be made in accordance with the rules for work carried out on such days (see article 13 of the Order and Section 4 of this guidance note).

Can Pension Contributions still be made? ( Article 22)

The arrangements for the payment of pension contributions are not changed by the new Order. These arrangements are outlined below for convenience.
A worker may choose to have a sum of not less than £4 per week deducted from his pay and paid into a pension fund on his behalf. This can only be done where the worker has given a written instruction to his employer to make these deductions from his pay.
A worker cannot choose to make pension contributions unless he has been continuously employed by the same employer for at least 10 weeks or is already a member of a pension scheme.
Deductions from pay for pension purposes will continue to be made until the worker gives a written instruction to his employer that they should stop or when the worker leaves that employment.

What about Health and Safety Training? ( Article 23)

The new Order continues to give workers a right to time off to attend health and safety training, and it also gives employers the right to insist that workers attend such courses.
The employer and worker may agree that no training is required, but either party can insist on attendance at training courses up to a total of 2 days in any year. The Order does not, of course, stop employers and workers from agreeing that more than 2 days training should be undertaken in a year.
The health and safety training provisions apply only to workers who have been continuously employed by the same employer for more than 10 weeks.
The costs of attendance at such training courses will be paid by the employer. These costs include:
- the cost of course fees etc; and
- the reasonable cost of travel, meals and accommodation necessary to enable the worker to attend the course.

Is the Dog Allowance still payable? ( Article 25)

If it is necessary for a worker to keep and feed a dog (or dogs) to enable him to do his job, then he should be paid a sum of not less than £4.33 per week for each dog, up to a maximum of 4 dogs.
The Inland Revenue advises that, for pay purposes this allowance should be treated as non taxable.

Who is responsible for weather protective clothing? ( Article 26)

It is the responsibility of the employer to ensure that a worker is provided with the weather protective clothing which he needs to do his job.
This means that, where required, the employer must provide wellington boots and PVC coat, leggings and gloves.
It is the responsibility of the employer to repair or replace clothing which is no longer fit for use. However, it is the responsibility of the worker to repair or replace any items which he has damaged or lost as a result of his own carelessness or other fault.

Who needs to keep time sheets? ( Article 27)

The employer must provide the worker with a time sheet on which he can record the hours he has worked each day.
The worker should complete time sheets and give them to his employer. The employer must retain these time sheets for at least 3 years.
There will be no requirement to keep time sheets if the employer uses an automatic system, such as a time clock, to record hours worked.
Examples of 2 types of time sheet (one covering a week and the other covering a month) are shown at Appendix 2. Other styles may be used as long as they can provide all of the necessary information.

When should wages be paid? ( Article 28)

Article 28 of the Order requires that all basic pay and overtime should be paid as soon as possible after the hours have been worked. This generally means that all normal hours worked should be paid for at the end of the week or month, or whatever the normal pay period is. (Some payments may have to be carried over into the next accounting period, eg where overtime is worked shortly before pay day and cannot be processed in time.)
Where a worker is contracted to work varying hours from week to week, or where variable levels of overtime are worked, the employer is not allowed to average out payments across 2 or more pay periods unless the employment is covered by the SIA. Likewise, occasional lump sum payments cannot be regarded as a substitute for prompt and proper payment.
Holiday pay should generally be paid in advance. Other elements of pay should be paid as early as possible after there is sufficient information available to calculate it.
Workers contracted to work under the SIA should be paid at the intervals agreed in the contract.

The Scottish Government