Claimant reports starting work to Universal
Credit
Summary
How to record information when a claimant reports starting work, including self-employment or an
apprenticeship, by telephone or face to face
Content
When
a claimant reports they have started, or are due to start work over the telephone or face to
face, the agent should congratulate the claimant and establish:
the date the claimant is due to start work
the amount of total gro
ss earnings the claimant
will receive from this employment and any other
earnings they may receive in a month (the agent
should be aware that the claimant may not know
what earnings they will receive, for example if
they have a zero hours contract)
The agent identifies from
CAMLite Contact history if
a Work Capability Assessment (WCA)
referral has been made. If a referral has been made, the agent creates a CAMLite task with the
following details:
Task Type: Health Condition
Sub-Type: WCA Referral
Start Task From: Today's date
SLA: 3 days
Notes: 'Claimant started work on (dd/mm/yyyy).
WCA action in progress, inform assessment
provider'
Assigned To: UC - WCA
S
ee CAMLite and Work Services Platform notes.
If further action is needed, for example if the claimant is:
self-employed -see 'Claimant is self-employed'
below
an apprentice - see 'Claimant is an apprentice'
below
Claimant has a start date which is not within 1 calendar
month
If the change is not due to happen within 1 calendar month of today's date, the agent advises the
claimant that details can't be taken at this stage and that
Universal Credit can only accept
changes within 1 month.
The claimant must be told to contact Universal Credit within one month of the date they are due
to start work and report:
the date they will start (or when started)
their total gross earnings of all work they may
receive in a month
The claimant must also be reminded that if they fail to notify Universal Credit of any changes in
their circumstances, this may affect their entitlement to Universal Credit.
Claimant has a start date which is within 1 calendar
month
The agent establishes if the claimant has appointments that need to be cancelled or rearranged.
S
ee Identify and cancel Work Services Platform appointments.
If the claimant's gross earnings are equal to or above 35
x National Minimum Wage (NMW) or in
the case of claimants in t
he All Work-related Requirements (AWRR) Intensive regime, earnings
must be above/equal to t
he Administrative Earnings Threshold (AET) to determine if existing
appointments are to be cancelled.
If the claimant does not know what their earnings will be, for example because they have a zero
hours contract, the claimants current work search requirements will continue and any time spent
in work will be considered when their work search is reviewed.
Calculating the earnings amount
The agent determines whether the claimant's earnings are equal to or above 35 x NMW or, in
addition for AWRR intensive regime claimants, are above or equal to the AET.
For example based on the 2014/2015 rates 35 x £6.50 X52 / 12 = £985.83 per month for
claimants over 21.
If the claimant's earnings are not equal to or above 35 x NMW, the agent needs to determine if
the claimant is in the AWRR intensive regime (this is displayed on the claimant's General screen
in t
he Work Services Platform) with earnings above the AET.
The AET for 2015/2016 has been set at £338 per month for a single person based on gross
earnings. S
ee Administrative Earnings Threshold.
If earnings are not equal to or above 35 x NMW or, in addition for AWRR Intensive regime
claimants. do not exceed the AET - see 'All other claimants' below.
If the claimant's earnings are above or/equal to 35 x NMW or, in addition for AWRR Intensive
regime claimants, are above/equal to the AET - the agent:
1. Establishes if the claimant has appointments
that need to be cancelled, re-arranged or
attended.
2. Selects 'Appointment history' in t
he Work
Services Platform (WSP) under the Information
menu in the left hand pane to see the existing
appointments.
3. informs the claimant that they must still attend
any work coach (WC) appointments and meet
their requirements detailed in their
Claimant
Commitment until they start work.
4. Cancels any WC appointments due to take
place after the claimant starts work. See
Identify and cancel Work Services Platform
appointments.
5. Informs the claimant that if they fail without
good reason to attend an appointment or any
other work related requirements, then their
Universal Credit payments will be cut.
The AD removes any Attendance Frequency and Channels fro WSP. S
ee Work Services
Platform guide (Interventions).
See 'Method of contact' below to determine the next appropriate action.
All other claimants
The AD removes any Attendance Frequency and Channel from WSP. S
ee Work Services
Platform guide (Interventions).
The agent selects 'Appointment history' in WSP under the Information menu. If there are any WC
appointments that coincide with the claimant's employment, the agent re-arranges them. S
ee Re-
arranging work-related interviews.
See 'Method of contact' below to determine the next appropriate action.
Method of contact
If the claimant reports to a Service Centre that they have started work or is starting work today,
see 'Entering starting work in the Agent Portal' below.
If a claimant reports starting work to a Service Centre and the start date is within 1 calendar
month of today's date, or reports they are starting work at a Universal Credit outlet, the agent:
1. Opens CAMLite.
2. Locates the claimant's CAMLite record using
their
National Insurance number.
3. Creates a CAMLite Contact history.
4. Records the claimant's job start date and the
amount of gross earnings.
5. Creates the following CAMLite task for an
account developer (AD)
Task Type: Generic Clerical
Sub Type: Action Required
Start Task From: (date the claimant
starts work - or today if the claimant
has started work today )
SLA: 3 days
Notes: Started work - CAMLite
Contact history updated DD/MM/YY
Assigned to UC –Work Services
S
ee CAMLite and Work Service Platform
notes.
6. Reads the following declaration to the claimant:
"If I give false or incomplete information or fail
to report changes in my circumstances
promptly, I understand that my Universal Credit
payments may be stopped and any
overpayment of Universal Credit may be
recovered.
I understand that I must report all changes in
my circumstances which may affect my
entitlement promptly and by failing to do so I
may be liable to prosecution or face a financial
penalty"
7. Reads out the following information:
"You don't need to report your earnings if your
employer pays your wages through a Pay As
You Earn scheme as your Universal Credit
payments will be automatically adjusted.
However, you must report earnings if:
you receive payments which are not
covered by Pay As You Earn
you have casual earnings
Universal Credit has already asked
you to report earnings yourself from
a particular job."
8. Confirms the details of the claimant's
employment, again congratulates the claimant
on starting work and tells them they may be
contacted to accept a new Claimant
Commitment.
9. Ends the call/interview and updates WSP
'General notes with the details of the
conversation together with confirmation that
the declaration has been read and accepted.
S
ee CAMLite and Work Service Platform notes.
Entering starting work in the Agent Portal
If the claimant has already started work or is starting on the day the change is reported, the
telephony agent (TA):
1. Accesses t
he Agent Portal through CAMLite.
2. Opens 'Reporting changes' on the claimant's Universal Credit homepage to display the
'Update your claim screen 1'.
3. Selects 'Update my work status'.
4. Selects 'Continue' to display the 'Update your claim screen 2'.
5. Selects 'Continue' to display the 'End of section' screen.
6. Selects 'Continue' to display the 'Claim overview' screen.
7. Selects 'Start' from the 'In your circumstance' field. This will present the 'Questions about your
work income' screen.
8. Reads the information displayed to the claimant.
9. Selects 'Continue' to display the 'Your paid work' screen.
10. Enters the 'Date started work'.
11. Enters the total expected monthly gross earnings the claimant will receive from all
employment in a month.
12. Selects 'Continue' to enter the change.
13. Reads the information displayed to the claimant.
14. Selects 'Continue' which presents the 'Claim Overview' screen.
15. Selects 'View summary'.
16. Selects 'I confirm all details are correct' which will present the 'Declaration' screen.
17. Reads the declaration and selects 'I confirm this declaration and submit my claim'. This will
submit the change.
18. Updates CAMLite Contact history with the actions taken
19. Ends the call and updates WSP notes with the relevant details.
Claimant is self-employed
When a claimant reports that they
are self-employed (or
a partner who is already self-employed
joins an existing claim) a Gateway Interview is needed for those claimants who are in the AWRR
group, or are lifted out of the AWRR group into th
e No Work Related Requirement (NWRR)
group because they have earnings which are above t
he Conditionality Earnings Threshold
(CET).
The claimant is referred to a Gateway Interview for the WC to consider whether they are gainfully
self-employed. If the claimant is in gainful self-employment they do not have to look for, or be
available for other work, to continue receiving Universal Credit.
A revised Claimant Commitment must be created to ensure the claimant is moved to the Self-
employed – Start Up group if in the first year of trading, or the Self-employed - Minimum Income
Floor (MIF) applies where it is assumed f
or conditionality and payment purposes that their
earnings are in line with their CET.
If it is decided the claimant is not in gainful self-employment, they must continue to report their
self-employed earnings to Universal Credit in each assessment period and be available to look
for other work to continue receiving Universal Credit. S
ee Capturing and processing self-
employment information.
Claimant is an apprentice
When a claimant reports they are taking up a position as an apprentice (or someone who is an
apprentice joins a Universal Credit claim), confirmation is required that they are in a recognised
apprenticeship.
Consideration is also required for any impact on the claimant's expected hours and if the lower
NMW apprentice rate applies which will affect their CET.
Apprenticeships combine practical training in a job with study as follows:
working their normal work hours (minimum 30
hours per week)
training as part of their apprenticeship (usually
one day per week)
paid at least the NMW apprentice rate whilst they
are under 19 (16 – 18) or during the first year of
their apprenticeship (19 or over)
paid at least the NMW rate for their age if they
are aged 19 or over and have completed their
first year
The claimant must:
have a named training provider
be working towards a recognised qualification
be paid at least the NMW for an apprentice
The claimant must provide:
the name of their training provider
the name of the vocational qualification they are
studying for
If the claimant is unable to provide this information they are unlikely to be undertaking a formal
apprenticeship.
When the apprenticeship is confirmed, the claimant's expected hours are revised to a maximum
of 30 hours per week and the apprentice NMW rate indicator (where this applies) is amended so
the CET is calculated using the appropriate NMW rate.
The related CET is calculated using the correct NMW. If the claimant is under 19, or in the first
year of their apprenticeship (any age). the apprentice rate must be used (whilst it is possible for
an apprentice to be paid above the applicable NMW – the minimum expected is used in CET
calculations).
Apprentices should be in the NWRR – Working enough regime because they are earning equal
or over their (adjusted) CET. Apprentices will be treated exactly the same as any other claimant
who is in work.
If the apprentice is 19 and over and has completed the first year of their apprenticeship,
Universal Credit calculates their CET using the NMW rate appropriate to their age, and correctly
assesses and allocates their conditionality regime. No additional action is needed.
S
ee Inputting a change in circumstances onto Agent Portal to automatically determine a
claimant's conditionality regime.