Working late and cabs...

ovetta2001

I know that once apon a time a company which forced you to work pat public transport time had to supply you with a way home but I'm unsure how it work now.

My sister works from 8 till 4 AM at a club and by then there are no buses. She has the option of getting a company taxi home but has to pay £3.50 a time!

Now I know this doesnt seem like much but she works 5 shifts a week and that means that she has to pay £10 bus fare a week to get in and then £17.50 for the taxis. There is no option to walk home as it is dark and 4 miles away

I was wondering, do the company have the right to charge her or do they have to fork out?

Thank you

dmg24

There is no right to be provided with transport home. I am not aware that there has ever been a legal right, unless it was before my working days?

lamb7994

I've kno companies to do this if it out of your normal hours for a special reason such as a former employer use to pay for taxis when we did overnight stocktakes.
Bt i haven't heard of an employer doing this if you chose to work those hours.

JAmes

top_drawer_2

hi,

I used to work for a nightclub finishing at around 3.30am and we got a cab paid home each night. It was arranged by the club with a local taxi firm as that was around the time their jobs dried up so as last job they were paid a minimal sum to take us all home. It was something arranged by the club to encourage people to work for them as having a car was not common among youngish people who they wanted behind the bar, but now that seems to have changed.

Edited to add: they stopped offering it after about of 18 month of working there and so I had to leave - it wasnt in our contract as such but had been advertised in the job centre as provided but it was difficult to argue.

Could you ask around colleagues and see if you could share? then contribute to the costs or arrange to share a cab if someone lives in your direction.

Jen

olly300

The company have the right to charge her.

There has never been as far as I know a right for an employer to pay for you to get home from a normal place of work when the employee has agreed to the hours of work.

The only time employers are bound to cover costs are:
1. When the employee is made to work at a temporary work place
2. When an employee is made to work at a time that is not agreed in their contract.

Some employers try and get out of 1 and 2 by having clauses in their contracts that the employer can change the contract at any time. However this has been challenged in the courts quite a few times.

Mythical

I've worked at a few nightclubs, finishing at anything between 2.30 and 5am, and only one place has ever provided our taxis home for free - even then it only lasted for a few weeks after opening night. Most have asked staff to pay the first £3-4, one place paid only £4 towards taxis, so yeah, I think it's pretty normal for them to ask that.

Can't suggest how to get there and back for cheaper - I used to drive, then cycle or walk, but neither of those are for everybody.

Sailor_Sam

I use to work behind a bar years ago, the club paid for a cab home for the barstaff, but i don't think they had to, it was just a perk. We all had to share, and because i lived the oppisite direction, i was always last.

Dave_®f©

I manage a club/bar. The latest shift finishes at 1am and I always pay for a cab to get staff home safely within a certain distance (approx 7 miles). If they live outwith that distance then they need their own transport or I don't employ them. I'm not legally obliged or contracted to get them home safely but it's a perk and I tend to keep staff and don't have a high staff turnover.

chuckley

ovetta2001 wrote: »

I know that once apon a time a company which forced you to work pat public transport time had to supply you with a way home but I'm unsure how it work now.

My sister works from 8 till 4 AM at a club and by then there are no buses. She has the option of getting a company taxi home but has to pay £3.50 a time!

Now I know this doesnt seem like much but she works 5 shifts a week and that means that she has to pay £10 bus fare a week to get in and then £17.50 for the taxis. There is no option to walk home as it is dark and 4 miles away

I was wondering, do the company have the right to charge her or do they have to fork out?

Thank you

wherever it is she livin, i gotta move there.... thats a hella cheap.

athensgeorgia

I work in a cab office working til stupid o'clock and our manager only takes on people who live within a short distance as the cab fare comes out of the company iyswim. We do have a certain amount of customers who have accounts with us and pay for staff to go home but it is limited to certain companys like a large well known cinema group and a large well known hotel group, theres also a bowling alley which doesn't actually pay the full fare but gives every staff member a set amount which in this case is £2.50 and it just depends where you live how much you have to put towards it. We also have alot of other late night finshers who have to sort themselves out so i think it depends on the company tbh.

I also think £3.50 for 4 miles journey is rather cheap and i get staff discount off some of our drivers. A possibilty though which we do for some customers is arrange a set fare for a certain journey especially if its someone who'll use us 3+ times a week. Even if this only saves 50p a day (which we normally reduce set fares by) its still a big saving over the year. hth

Any

olly300 wrote: »

The company have the right to charge her.

There has never been as far as I know a right for an employer to pay for you to get home from a normal place of work when the employee has agreed to the hours of work.

The only time employers are bound to cover costs are:
1. When the employee is made to work at a temporary work place
2. When an employee is made to work at a time that is not agreed in their contract.

Some employers try and get out of 1 and 2 by having clauses in their contracts that the employer can change the contract at any time. However this has been challenged in the courts quite a few times.

Exactly as he says.
She shouldn't have taken up a job when she knew she will have difficulty to get there and back. I would have to change bus 4x to get to my work, it might be still light but not by the time I get home and noone gives a damn.
It's like when you go to agency - they ask "do you have transport?" and when they send you for interview they first ask "do you know how far it is from your home? Do you have means to get there? Do you want to even try to get job at this company provided you have no transport and it is mile walk from bus stop?"

I understand your worry about her as it is getting home at night, but the night guards could say the same.. Or night shift workers...