Working more hours than contracted without pay, unfair money deductions etc...

Unhappy_Worker

During the end of last year/start of this year I was incorrectly put down on the computers timesheet one week as working 23 hours instead of 35 hours to which i'm contracted to do, and indeed did work that week. Along with another member of staff who also lost 10 hours due to it being entered incorrectly. I mentioned this to the manager as soon as I noticed it on the computer a couple of days later and they were adamant it had been put on correctly and said it was due to the bank holiday, despite the fact it clearly showed I worked 23 hours when it should have read 35 hours. Either way there was nothing I could do and I had to wait till the end of February to receive my payslip and as I expected I was deducted 12 hours from my wages as "unauthorised absence" along with another member of staff who had the same despite both of us physically working the usual hours.

I mentioned this to the manager who seemed surprised and didn't understand why. Now the manager is a nice guy, but isn't the quickest at sorting things out. I decided to call the area manager to try and sort things out quicker who said the manager himself would have to sort it out and contact him back. Well anyway a few days later the manager apparently phoned head office and was informed they had made a few mistakes that month with pay and that it would be rectified in March's pay. But basically it wasn't and now nothing seems to be getting done about it. Both me and a fellow employee have lost out on a good few hours wages, but the manager doesn't seem that bothered. How can I get someone to act on it? I would call payroll myself, but they only accept calls from the branch manager and for timesheet entries it must be corrected in branch.

Now another problem - I'm contracted 35 hours a week, but on the weekly rota I always work around 4 hours above that, but I don't get paid for working the extra hours. Whereas the manager is contracted for 45 hours, but tends to work 40-41 weekly. However as the managers are on a monthly salary their pay doesn't get affected. Now I don't mind doing a few hours overtime as long as I get paid, but to be expected to work extra hours without pay I find wrong.

Finally our shop recently had our 'core hours' cut (basically the amount of hours the shop is allowed for staff) which were really tight as it was as there's only 3 members of permanent staff, me, the manager and a sales assistant. Most of the time me or the manager have to work on our own for long periods of time due to there not being enough hours for staff as it is. However the hours were reduced a couple of a weeks ago by five without any notification from head office or the area manager. Which means at the end of the week when the manager tries to run the payroll system there is not enough hours to pay everyone. So when the manager tries to run the payroll it rejects it and you are unable to run it unless someone loses 5 hours of wages for that week (even though I or the other person have worked it). In fact last week the manager even used some of my annual holiday to cover the hours. So whilst I will get paid I have lost out some of my annual holiday.

However the manager has still got everyone working their normal contracted hours as before, but doesn't seem to understand that each week someone will keep losing 5 hours of pay because head office still expect the job done, but with less staffing hours

I have been here before when the hours were cut previously without notice (with a different manager) and they forced the sales assistance (the one who works here now) to change their contracted hours. They were not happy with that and the fact they gave them no notice, but in the end they had to relent and give the sales assistant 12 weeks notice before the new contract took effect.

Basically though neither of us want to lose 5 hours from our contracted hours now (or both lose 2.5 each), but due to the fact the hours were cut without noticed means each week someone's losing out. It's up to the manager to change people's contracted hours, but surely they can't just force it on you like this.

What makes it worse though is the fact the company have reported high profits & sales for the last year and that this year is an important year for them due to the world cup. Yet they cut hours and still expect all the work to be done.

Savvy_Sue

ACAS on Monday, or your union if you're in one.

If you're not in one, join.

And if you haven't already got a copy of your grievance procedures, ask for one, and raise one. ACAS will have a model on their website if everyone looks blank.

ceridwen

A problem situation that I wish you well with.(Errrmmm...it would help make your post clearer if you removed the duplicate comments......you say a lot of this twice).

paulwf

OP please edit your post to remove duplicates.

I wish companies would stop working out the rota by some arbitrary calculation...they are probably saying that wages has to be x% of turnover but why they chose x% is a mystery, they pay no regard to the operational needs of the business or the needs of the customers to get good service.

You may be able to prove to them their method is flawed by simply adding up the number of hours you are open against the number of hours on the rota and required breaks. If staffing levels simply don't cover the opening hours then the manager and in turn the regional manager have to do something about it.

All you can really do then is state that in a couple of weeks time all of you in the shop are going to work your contracted hours and no more. Give them the option of either reducing shop opening hours or increasing your hours back to the original level. You need to make sure all other staff are with you and be prepared for them to make your life difficult in the future so it's not an option to take lightly. As Sue says take advice from a union or ACAS first.

Unhappy_Worker

Sorry for the long ramble the other night. It was a bit late and well that's why the message was a bit all over the place.

Anyway i've looked at the ACAS website and they had some interesting info on there. I was thinking of calling them just to have a chat, but i'm not sure. Do they just give advice or can they take action (if you ask them too) on certain things if needs be.

I have had a look at the employee handbook and it states that "most minor problems can be dealt with by the manager and we encourage that". If that does not solve matters then it says "you should send a letter to HR @ Head Office and arrangements will be made for the grievance to progress."

The manager today spoke to the area manager about the hours being cut and the AM told the manager that he did indeed give 6 weeks notice of the hours being reduced (but he never did give notice) and that the reason they were is due to poor sales. Apparently they review the sales each 6 weeks and depending on them they can increase or decrease the amount of hours in the shop. The manager asked if they would cut the hours even more and he was told "most likely". Which seems silly because that would mean on having to keep changing peoples contracts all the time.

Now to be honest I find that a load of rubbish. I have been at the shop for years and the hours have only ever been decreased and never increased and the sales have been very good at some points. The last cut in hours happened around 18 months ago and since then they have never changed till very recently and the sales haven't been that bad.

cally6008

I think me and u work for the same company, Unhappy

(edit - sorry, just been told the right answer, dont work for same company but one thats just as bad)

WeakHeart

Do call ACAS. You won't even have to give your name or the name of your employer. They will advise you but not take action (although they offer a mediation service - details on their site). Or if you have home contents insurance you may have access to a free legal helpline that you can use

Meantime note down what has happened so far in date order and continue to keep records of events and related documents and advice given should you need to refer to them later when you are getting further advice or trying to sort this out with your employer. Also make sure you have access to any company news being circulated so you don't miss out on any important information.

As you have given your manager a number of chances to resolve this informally you will probably need to escalate your concerns more formally in writing, perhaps letting him know that this is the next step that you now feel obliged to take but as recommended, call ACAS first.

tabskitten

I'd go and work for OneStop.......

Unhappy_Worker

WeakHeart wrote: »

Do call ACAS. You won't even have to give your name or the name of your employer. They will advise you but not take action (although they offer a mediation service - details on their site). Or if you have home contents insurance you may have access to a free legal helpline that you can use

Meantime note down what has happened so far in date order and continue to keep records of events and related documents and advice given should you need to refer to them later when you are getting further advice or trying to sort this out with your employer. Also make sure you have access to any company news being circulated so you don't miss out on any important information.

As you have given your manager a number of chances to resolve this informally you will probably need to escalate your concerns more formally in writing, perhaps letting him know that this is the next step that you now feel obliged to take but as recommended, call ACAS first.

I have been keeping notes of things from the start of this year and various work related stuff.

Though apparently you are not allowed to discuss any grievance's on the web. If you post anything on sites like Twitter, Facebook, (or anywhere public) that damages their reputation or interests that may be regarded as a gross misconduct where the normal penalty is summary dismissal. Let's just hope they don't look here then.

Savvy_Sue

Seriously, edit your first post - there's a button underneath it. Remove the clue to the name of the chain. You could do without a gross misconduct if you're raising a grievance.

And remove the duplicate part of it. It looks as if you typed it in word, then cut and pasted it in twice.