Did your wages for your summer job arrive in your bank account? This is how to check if they were paid correctly
On payday all employees should check their payslip carefully. It tells you among other things what your wages are and the hours you have worked.
When you check your payslip carefully you make sure that you are getting paid what you should for your work. This is what to do:
Check your payslip
Like all other employees, summer workers must get a payslip every time they are paid wages. This is a breakdown of what the earnings you are paid are made up of. A payslip can be on paper or in electronic form.
First check that your personal details and bank account are correct in your payslip.
Then check that your basic wages and any supplements and overtime payments are at least in line with the collective agreement for the sector.
In Finland, employment terms and minimum wages are agreed in sectoral collective agreements concluded between the employees’ union (for example PAM) and the employers’ federation. Wages cannot be lower than the minimum wages, but they can be higher.
To find out what the minimum wages are you should be getting in your job, check wages for young people and summer workers.
Summer work is not a reason for paying workers lower wages, for example due to young age or the job being short-term.
It pays to keep track of your working hours
Next check your payslip for the number of working hours, i.e. how many hours you are being paid for. In order to be sure that you are getting the wages you are due for all the hours you have worked, it pays to keep a record of hours worked right from the start of your job.
Check your employment contract too to see how many working hours you have been promised. This is important because the number of working hours given to an employee must correspond to the number of hours agreed in the employment contract. If an employment contract agrees a minimum of 30 hours a week, but an employee only gets to work 20 hours, their earnings will also be lower than expected.
Check also that taxes and other statutory and mandatory charges, like employment pension contributions and unemployment insurance contributions, are also always deducted from your wages. If you are a trade union member, union membership fees can also be deducted straight from your wages.
Ask your employer to correct your wages if you noticed mistakes
If you didn’t get your wages or you notice something is wrong or missing, contact your employer and try to sort it out as soon as possible. You can ask your employer to go through your payslip with you. Usually it’s a case of human error, which can be put right when it’s pointed out.
If you’re unsure, go to the shop steward at your workplace. If there’s no shop steward at your workplace, get in touch with PAM.
Also check out the summer job checklist, where you can find important information about employment and working life.
Summer workers should join PAM
Are you starting a summer job, for example in a shop, a restaurant, a kiosk, a fast food restaurant, an amusement park or in property services? Did you know that Service Union United PAM also looks after summer workers’ rights and makes sure collective agreements are complied with at workplaces?
In our opinion, fair employment terms and conditions are for everyone. We can advise and support you if you have questions about employment and working life. As a member you know what rights you are entitled to in working life.
Trade union membership is also good security for summer workers. That’s why you should join as soon as you start working. Being a union member also helps to any resolve employment problems summer workers might experience.