higher pay petition for receptionists

[geministar2007]

hi not sure if posted in correct area or if anyone can help.

I just wanted to know why companies seem to think paying a receptionist £5.52 an hour and a KP at the same rate is ok?
We all play our part in an organisation but a receptionist has so much more responsibility and has to look clean and immaculate.

I work as a receptionist in cornwall and i know a lot of receptionists feel the same about this.

Does anyone have any ideas of how to approach this pay issue?

cheers

[Sidewinder]

I guess that the answer to this lies in the issue of supply and demand. I tend to agree that a Receptionist, being the public face of a hotel or any other organisation has a justifiable claim for greater recognition, however if there is a steady stream of employees willing to do the job for Minimum Wage then that will be the going rate for the job. The Kitchen Porter has to be paid £5.52 for that is the law (providing that they are 22 or over), as does the Receptionist, irrespective of the work involved.

The only two remedies available to you are to make a case to your employer for a pay enhancement, or to vote with your feet unfortunately. If you bring added value to the role, and your employer can appreciate that, then your case will be stronger. Similarly, if you are valued and there are identical jobs elsewhere for more money, then it may pay the employer to keep you. If however MW is the going rate for a Receptionist in your area, then you will have nothing to gain in leaving, nor would you have any great lever to use on the employer, other than him being willing to retain your services.

Another factor to consider is that the KP may feel exactly the same as you.....slogging his guts out in uncomfortable surroundings for a paltry £5.52 an hour whilst the Receptionist has a cushy desk job sat down all day and doing nothing more than answer the phone and talking to people! We all think we are worth more money for the jobs that we do, but at the end of the day we are only worth what the market dictates that we should be paid!

[hanzo]

Yup, people pay you exactly what they can get away with. That is the national minimum wage. You could go and get a job that paid better elsewhere, but that job might be considerably less enjoyable. My sister once worked in a place that paid £7.50 per hour for a receptionist, but she was put in a cupboard with a telephone, no books allowed and no internet. She didn't see another person at all during her shifts and since everybody had direct dial numbers she had to field about 2 calls per day. She quit after about 1 week, and they told her when she left that she'd lasted longer than anybody in the past year.