WORKING
IN THE UNITED KINGDOM
The
Directorate General for Portuguese Communities can help you. Know your rights
before you go and work in the United Kingdom.
Portugal
and the United Kingdom are part of the European Union.
Portuguese
citizens therefore have the right to work and live in the United Kingdom without
the need for a visa or work permit.
If
you are planning to go and work in the United Kingdom through a temporary work
agency, you will find information about your rights, together with important
contact details, in this leaflet.
However, as it is not an exhaustive statement of the relevant
legislation, you are advised to contact the Directorate General for Consular
Affairs and Portuguese Communities or the Inspectorate General for Labour for
further information before you leave Portugal.
What
is temporary work?
The worker (A)
enters into a contract with a temporary work agency (B) and is placed in the
service of a “user company” (C). The
worker will therefore be working under the
control and direction of the user company (C).
His wages, however, will be paid by the company with which he entered
into the contract, that is to say the temporary work agency (B).
Worker
A
B
C
Temporary
Work Agency
User
Company
For
example: Mr Joaquim enters into a contract with temporary work agency B, which
pays his wages. Meanwhile, agency B has entered into a contract with company
C,
and it is for company C, and under its control and direction, that Mr Joaquim
will be working.
In order to place workers overseas, the temporary work agency
must comply with certain conditions. It must, for example:
Guarantee,
by means of insurance cover, that workers receive health, medical and
hospital care whenever they do not qualify for such care in the host
country;
Make
arrangements for the return passage of workers to Portugal at the end of the
contract or in the event of non-payment of wages;
Provide
workers with insurance against accidents in the workplace or during journeys
to and from work.
Further
information is available from your local Institute of Employment and Vocational
Training, and Inspectorate General for Labour. You can also consult their
websites at www.iefp.pt and www.igt.idict.gov.pt
respectively.
Form of contract for temporary employment
Contracts
for temporary employment must be concluded in writing, in duplicate, and must be
signed by the worker and the temporary work agency before the worker leaves
Portugal.
The
worker must always retain a copy of the contract.
If
there is no written contract, the worker is regarded in Portuguese law as having
an open-ended contract with the temporary work agency, i.e. for an indefinite
period of time.
Similarly,
if the contract of employment, or the contract between the temporary work agency
and the user company, does not state the reasons why it has been concluded, the
worker is likewise regarded as having an open-ended contract.
If
the contract does not specify an end date, it is regarded as valid for one month
and renewal is not permitted.
The
temporary work agency must send a copy of the contract to the District Centre
for Social Security, which then issues forms E101 and E128.
Form
E101 certifies that the worker continues to be subject to Portuguese social
security law, and E128 entitles the worker to access the National Health Service
in the United Kingdom. Once they
have been issued, the agency passes on these forms to the worker so that he can
take them with him to the United Kingdom.
The
contract must include the following:
-
Name
and address of the worker. Name and address of the temporary work agency, as
well as the number and date of the permit authorising the agency to carry on
its business;
- Statement
of the reasons why the contract of temporary employment has been concluded;
- Occupational
category or description of the worker’s duties;
- Place
of work and normal working time (working hours, work days and rest days);
- Holidays;
- Pay
(pay must be accompanied by a pay advice issued each month giving details of
the basic wage, meal allowance and any other allowances that may be due, as
well as overtime, and tax and social security deductions);
- Start
date and duration of the contract of employment;
- End
date of the contract of employment;
- Date
on which the contract was concluded.
-
The temporary worker is also entitled to meal allowances, holiday and
Christmas bonuses, even if these are not specified in the contract.
-
If,
when the contract of employment is concluded with the temporary work agency,
certain additional terms are offered, such as the payment of outward and return
travel costs, accommodation in the United Kingdom or an allowance for travel to
the workplace, these must be set out in the written contract in order to
safeguard the worker’s rights.
Can
the worker conclude a contract with the user company?
Yes,
the worker is free to conclude such a contract and the temporary work agency
cannot prevent him from doing so. Thus,
if the worker decides to conclude a contract with the user company, he can
choose either to wait until the temporary work contract expires, or to rescind
it and pay an indemnity to the temporary work agency.
If
the worker takes up employment direct with a UK employer, he may be liable to
pay UK tax and national insurance contributions and will need to apply to the
nearest Jobcentre or Social Security Office for a National Insurance Number.
Wages
and deductions
National
minimum wage
All workers aged 18 years or over are entitled to receive the
national minimum wage in the United Kingdom. If aged between 18 and 21, you must receive at least £3.80
per hour (subject to revision). If
you are aged 22 or over, you must receive at least £4.50 per hour (subject to
revision).
Agricultural
minimum wage
If you are aged 19 or over and undertake harvesting work, you
must receive at least £4.50 per hour (subject to revision).
If you perform other agricultural tasks, you are entitled to receive £5.15
per hour (subject to revision). If
you work more than 39 hours per week on a farm, you are entitled to receive
overtime pay, which is paid at the rate of one and a half times your basic
hourly wage.
Deductions
from wages
- Transport:
if you work in the agricultural sector, you must still be paid the
agricultural minimum wage after money has been deducted from your wages to
pay for transport.
- Accommodation:
the employer may make deductions from your wage to pay for accommodation,
but these are limited by law.
If you receive the national minimum wage, the maximum amount that the
employer may deduct is £24.50 per week (subject to revision).
- Tax
and Social Security: tax and social security deductions are made by the
temporary work agency, that is to say the agency with which you concluded
the contract.
No other
deductions may be made from your wage unless expressly provided for in the
contract of employment, or unless you have agreed to this in writing.
The
temporary work agency cannot demand from the temporary worker any payment of any
kind for services such as induction or vocational training.
Benefits
Accommodation - if you are on a low wage, you
should contact the local authorities (local council) in the area where you are
living for information regarding the possibility of claiming benefit to assist
with payment of rent.
Sickness and
maternity - if you are ill or unable
to work for four or more consecutive days, or if you are pregnant, you should
contact the nearest Inland Revenue Office for information regarding the
possibility of claiming benefit. If you are sick, unable to work or pregnant,
you must immediately notify your employer.
In order to claim benefits such as sickness and maternity
benefit in the United Kingdom, you must obtain a National Insurance Number and
should contact the nearest Jobcentre or Social Security Office for advice.
Holidays,
working hours, health and safety
Holidays
Under general UK legislation, all workers are entitled to
four working weeks’ paid holiday per year.
Holidays may include public holidays, depending on the terms of your
contract of employment.
In practice, the number of days’ paid holiday to which a
worker is entitled is proportionate to the duration of the contract.
Thus:
- if you have a one-year contract and work five days a week,
you are entitled to 20 days' paid holiday;
-
if the contract is for six months and you work five days a
week, you are entitled to 10 days' paid holiday.
In the specific case of the agricultural sector, an
agricultural worker is entitled to 22 days' paid holiday per year, plus public
holidays, and 11 days’ paid holiday, plus public holidays, if the contract of
employment is for six months.
There is no minimum period of employment for entitlement to
paid holidays. Workers must be paid
for holidays not taken at the end of the contract of employment.
Working
hours
Working time, including overtime, may not exceed an average
of 48 hours per week over a 17-week period (or over a 26-week period in the
agricultural sector), unless this has been agreed in writing.
Health and
safety
The company for whom the worker is working must ensure a good
standard of health and safety for the worker and provide sufficient training to
enable him to perform his duties safely.
CONTACTS
In
Portugal:
·
Inspectorate General for Labour
Praça
de Alvalade, 1, 1749-073, Lisboa
Tel: 21 7924500; Fax: 21 7924597
http://www.igt.idict.gov.pt
· Institute for
Employment and
Vocational Training
Av.
José Malhoa, 11, 1099-018, Lisboa
Tel: 21 8614100; Fax: 21 7227009
http://www.iefp.pt
·
Directorate General for Consular
Affairs and Portuguese Communities – Legal Affairs Office
Av.
Visconde Valmor, 19, 1049-061, Lisboa
Tel: 21 7929700; Fax: 21 7929779
http://www.secomunidades.pt
In the United Kingdom:
·
Portuguese Consulate General in London
Silver City House, 62, Brompton Road, London SW3 1BJ
Tel: 020 7581 8722
·
Portuguese Catholic Mission
165, Arlington Road, Camden Town, London NW1 7EX
Tel: 020 7267 9612 or
6, Minerva Close, London SW9 6NZ
Tel:
020 7587 0881
· TUC
Portuguese Workers Project
Telephone messages (in Portuguese) 020 7467 1256
email: ctp@tuc.org.uk
·
Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB): General advice
Tel:
see local telephone directory
·
Department
of Trade and Industry (DTI)
Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate
Tel:
0845 955 5105
· National Minimum Wage Helpline: Information on the national minimum wage
Tel:
0845 6000678
Northern Ireland Tel: 08456500207
Agricultural Minimum Wage Tel: 0845 0000134
Scotland Tel: 0131 2446397
Northern
Ireland Tel: 028 9052 0813
·
Inland Revenue: Information on sickness and maternity
benefits
Tel:
see local telephone directory
·
Jobcentre/Social Security Offices: Issue of National
Insurance Numbers
Tel:
see local telephone directory
·
Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service
(Acas):
Information on employment rights
Tel: 08457 47 47 47
Northern Ireland Tel: 028 9032 1442
On arrival in the United
Kingdom, you should register at the Portuguese Consulate General in
London. It is open from Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 1pm (except on
Portuguese and UK public holidays). If you are unable to travel to London
when you arrive, you should register provisionally by post. Do not forget
to send a photo and a copy of your identity card.
The Consulate General can provide you with useful information in order to
guarantee and protect your rights. |
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