Ask the expert: Reduced working hours and pay

Due to the current climate, an employer would like to reduce working hours to three days per week. Esther Smith and Matthew Whelan advise on the legal implications to be aware of in terms of a reduction in pay.

The question:

If we want to reduce employees' working hours so they only work three days per week, what are the legal pitfalls associated with reducing their pay to 60%? What steps do I need to go through to achieve this?

Legal advice:

Matthew Whelan, solicitor, Speechly Bircham

Unless you have a right to reduce hours and/or pay, then ideally you should obtain and properly record each affected employee's agreement to this change.