Work Placement And Travelling

KURTIS

My daughter recently took up a years placement with a major accountancy firm, but there are expecting her to travel almost 3-4 hours everyday to their clients, she is not paid travelling time or accommodation or overtime. Her contracted hours are 9 - 5.00 pm, but at times she is finishing at 7pm with no overtime. She is 20 she leaves her flat at 6.30am and back at 9-9.30pm, her employer will not pay for taxi. Is this a norm.

Any help will be appreciated

ilikedrawing

Hmm tight Accountants! Is she hoping to become one?

I know a placement is a placement but that seems unreasonable, especially the time she is away at work.

KURTIS

I know.

She gets paid for 7.5 hours and expected to work like another 7.5 hours of overtime and travel without pay. That I don't think is right.

The only problem now is if she hasn't done a years placement she can't complete her studies and all the other companies have already started their placement so she might have to waste a year if she decides to leave this, which seems very unfair.

KURTIS

would appreciate any POSITIVE and CONSTRUCTIVE views on this.

pinkshoes

I'd say firstly your daughter is very lucky to get this placement! I have 4 friends who work for "major accountancy firms", and I knew of MANY who applied after university who didn't get in! Very stiff competition for very few places.

Anyway, your daughter's day actually sounds very similar to what my friends do, especially when starting out. Lots of travelling to customers (they could claim petrol expenses but not overtime), and they often work from 7am in the morning through til 9pm at night, sometimes later! 5 years on and they're MUCH better paid than the starting salary though...

I'd say your daughter needs to think about how much she wants a career in this sector before making any decisions. Could she not get a car (buy or hire one?) so that she didn't have to pay for Taxis?

I know it doesn't seem fair, but as I said before, this business is tough to get into, so if it's something she definitely wants to do, she should perhaps try and put up with the long hours and work round it. Experience is vital for a career - if it wasn't for my experience during my mid-uni gap year, I wouldn't have had the job opportunities I have today!

KURTIS

pinkshoes

First of all you don't know what my daughter's abilities are, so you can't say she is lucky to have a placement. This placement was not just handed over to her, she had to go through lots of interviews and tests.

Secondly because things are tough doesn't mean that one has to put up with situations that clearly would drain a 20 year old. If she is out of her flat by 6.30am and not back until 9-9.30pm and then she is expected to take exams every month.

I have never expected anyone to work overtime without pay or travel to other branches during their time and expected them to reach home 3 hours later than they would if they were working at their normal place of work, and certainly not day in day out.

Sazzyukrafc

I'd suggest your daughter talks to her manager and discusses the situation. It is out of order to make her pay for travel during working hours, they should be paying expenses for this.

rlc_2

I'd say that she should speak to her immediate manager in the first instance to see if she is eligible for accommodation expenses given the length of the commute. If she gets no joy from them then perhaps call her Personnel department.

pinkshoes

KURTIS wrote: »

pinkshoes

First of all you don't know what my daughter's abilities are, so you can't say she is lucky to have a placement. This placement was not just handed over to her, she had to go through lots of interviews and tests..

Well I'm presuming your daughter is very intelligent, ambitious and hard working to get a place, and I said nothing about it being handed over to her, so I don't know where you got that from. I meant that she should count herself lucky because I'm sure there were equally intelligent and ambitious candidates that got rejected.

KURTIS wrote: »

Secondly because things are tough doesn't mean that one has to put up with situations that clearly would drain a 20 year old. If she is out of her flat by 6.30am and not back until 9-9.30pm and then she is expected to take exams every month.

I have never expected anyone to work overtime without pay or travel to other branches during their time and expected them to reach home 3 hours later than they would if they were working at their normal place of work, and certainly not day in day out.

Welcome to the world of accounting. I meet some of my friends straight from work at say 10.30pm when they've been with out at a client and only just got back... it's just the nature of the job.

You may not have liked what I said, but I'm just being honest, and pointing out that this is how it is, & there's probably 100s of others willing to work the long slave driving hours if your daughter isn't up to it or doesn't want to do it. Would you rather I just told you what you seem to want to hear?

The whole idea of placements is to test the candidates to their limits to see what they're capable (or not capable) of, so that they can choose the best. I'm just making the point that your daughter should tread carefully and not get herself a reputation for moaning or not being able to cope with the long hours, as this won't go in her favour.

You didn't even bother to answer my questions: Could she hire a car or buy one? Perhaps the company would hire one for her? By all means ask them this, as they perhaps presumed she had her own.

KURTIS

Her employers know that she hasn't got transport. they have basically told her this is the way it is.They also know that she can't leave them since she would waste a year otherwise.

I don't know of any 20 year old on work placement, spending 15 hours a day at/for a job, when she was told that her contracted hours will be 9-5.30pm. I just want to clarify that this is a placement and not a permanent position, there are no bonuses there are no inducements.

Squirreler

KURTIS wrote: »

My daughter recently took up a years placement with a major accountancy firm, but there are expecting her to travel almost 3-4 hours everyday to their clients, she is not paid travelling time or accommodation or overtime. Her contracted hours are 9 - 5.00 pm, but at times she is finishing at 7pm with no overtime. She is 20 she leaves her flat at 6.30am and back at 9-9.30pm, her employer will not pay for taxi. Is this a norm.

Any help will be appreciated

Well it's a good induction into the world of work for her! I do similar hours, 9am til 5.30pm but all over the country. I don't get paid travelling time and they certainly don't pay for me to get to work! I'm expected to get to work in my own time, as is everyone aren't they? I don't see the problem to be honest. I hope this doesn't sound harsh; it's not meant to.