Employment Law - unpaid overtime

scooby088

I think you are right everyone work to rule, it's the only way to get a fairer system of working there, I would also say that an hour or two a day are ok as overtime anything more is actually out of order.

Caroline_a

This might help..

http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/layer?topicId=1074014258

MrRedundant

I think you should consider your position carefully.

He may not like it but the salary and bonus posted along with the cost of living etc is not at all unfavourable for the role and he could easily be replaced.

On the other hand would your OH find replacing the job as easy I suspect not.

Docking money from bonuses for illness etc isnt uncommon and the holidays for appointment isnt all that bad.

Regarding the OT. It isnt compulsory and I dont think its unreasonable his boss pointing out if he doesnt do that bit extra he will suffer in terms of payrises etc.

Your OH has to make a decision and it may well be he finds the grass isnt greener elsehwere. Paid holidays, sick etc are an area where companies are cutting back and he may well find he couldnt match the salary or conditions elsewhere.

getmore4less

How easy is the product/service to duplicate?

Could they all setup on their own doing the same thing?


Is there an issue with process and procedures could efficiency gains reduce the work load without impacting the volume of sales.

What are they actualy doing that takes all this time, how can this be done quicker or even even eliminated.

The problem is once you show that you can be treated like a dooormat it is not long before they don't bother scaping the s**t of before wiping theit feet.

NikNox

scooby088 wrote: »

I think you are right everyone work to rule, it's the only way to get a fairer system of working there, I would also say that an hour or two a day are ok as overtime anything more is actually out of order.

Sometimes you have to make a stand don't you, and if breaks and an hour for lunch are contracted then they should be taking them, especially if they're working until 8-9 at night. I also think, and told my husband this, that an hour or two of overtime is okayish, but expecting staff to put in 12 hour days 5 days a week is unreasonable. I regularly work until 7 or 8, but then I'm paid for any overtime I do so it's not begrudged, and it's the NHS and therefore generally accepted that if you wanted a 9-5 job then the NHS isn't the place to get one!

NikNox

getmore4less wrote: »

How easy is the product/service to duplicate?

Could they all setup on their own doing the same thing?


Is there an issue with process and procedures could efficiency gains reduce the work load without impacting the volume of sales.

What are they actualy doing that takes all this time, how can this be done quicker or even even eliminated.

The problem is once you show that you can be treated like a dooormat it is not long before they don't bother scaping the s**t of before wiping theit feet.

They have enough knowledge in the marketing of the product, but it's a specialised product for use in the petrochemical industry and each one is made to order to the clients specs, and their clients include big oil companies. Because the product is very environmentally friendly, it's in big demand and part of the problem is that the production department cannot keep up with the orders because they have a high level of sickness (due to pressure I would imagine). My husband is in the sales/admin department and has tried to stand up to the bosses demands, but sadly his colleagues back out. The thing is that they are all very passionate about their product, so the boss has them all over a barrell that way too.

NikNox

MrRedundant wrote: »

I think you should consider your position carefully.

He may not like it but the salary and bonus posted along with the cost of living etc is not at all unfavourable for the role and he could easily be replaced.

On the other hand would your OH find replacing the job as easy I suspect not.

Docking money from bonuses for illness etc isnt uncommon and the holidays for appointment isnt all that bad.

Regarding the OT. It isnt compulsory and I dont think its unreasonable his boss pointing out if he doesnt do that bit extra he will suffer in terms of payrises etc.

Your OH has to make a decision and it may well be he finds the grass isnt greener elsehwere. Paid holidays, sick etc are an area where companies are cutting back and he may well find he couldnt match the salary or conditions elsewhere.

I can see it from both sides, as most companies now are wising up to the sick leave culture, and some people will use any old excuse not to come to work. If we don't make it into work because of adverse weather we either have to take the time as leave or unpaid, which is fair enough, so I too understand why their boss would dock them for not turning up in snowy weather. They just think that £100 is unreasonable because they don't earn that in a day. And, I also believe too that if you want a promotion or payrise, because it's very much a dog eat dog world out there you have to show willing and go that extra mile. However, my husband believes that working through lunch regularly and not taking breaks is giving the boss an extra hour and a half each day of their time and thought by doing that was showing willing enough, but he just wants more and more. He says that working a 12 hour day with no breaks is unreasonable, which it is, and that's why I told him that if the boss expects that from them, then they should definitely be taking their breaks and whole lunch hour. The problem is that if you work people too hard and give nothing to them in terms of praise (he's often rude and sarcastic) then they will not respond positively, and overwork inevitably leads to stress which then leads to people being signed off work. Therefore, by working to rule they are protecting themselves by taking the breaks they need, and also showing him that they are not pushovers but are willing to help out when work is too hectic. It's all about striking a happy balance and doing a bit of back scratching, and keeping on the right side of the law. I would imagine that the last thing the boss wants is tribunals!

treetrunks

We used to have a similar issue where our contracts stated that we were expected to work a reasonable amount of additional hours as requested during busy times. At the time we were told by our union representatives that 10% of your working week was a reasonable amount in the eyes of the law, no idea if this is correct or not.

I would imagine that as no one is entitled to a pay rise then he can chose to reward those that work til 9 every night if he wants. Personally its not the sort of person id look to work for.

NikNox

treetrunks wrote: »

We used to have a similar issue where our contracts stated that we were expected to work a reasonable amount of additional hours as requested during busy times. At the time we were told by our union representatives that 10% of your working week was a reasonable amount in the eyes of the law, no idea if this is correct or not.

I would imagine that as no one is entitled to a pay rise then he can chose to reward those that work til 9 every night if he wants. Personally its not the sort of person id look to work for.

It's not in my husband's contract that he is expected to work overtime, but I think most of us are happy to do so if the boss is nice about it! These days though if you're lucky enough to have a job then you tend to stick at it if the pay isn't bad don't you, and just put up with a grumpy unreasonable boss. They don't have a high staff turnover, which is another indication of bad management, but maybe that's down to the bonus they receive every year. The job has benefits such as being local, reasonable pay, bonus and 5 weeks AL entitlement per year, so it's not all doom and gloom, but expecting staff to put in an extra 3-4 hours every day takes the biscuit.

Gordon_Hose

He has 2 choices...

1. Put up with it, and be thankful he has a job.

2. Leave.