EU employment law and contract

Mr_El

Hi

I signed a contract last November for working in a austrian hotel in a ski resort in the resturant.

the contract states 6 days a week with one day off, working 7-11.30in the morning and then 6.30-till 10.30 in the evening, but on one of those 6 days working a lunch shift 8am-2pm instead of the morning and then evening aswell.
and earning x amount of money paid monthly, including free accomodation and food.



however i have been working at the said hotel now for 2 weeks and 1 day. on the 2nd day, when the hotel filled up for xmas, the resturant manager announced we would not be getting a day off for over 2 weeks as its a very buisy and important time for the hotel.
ok i thought i can handle that.

also, food is included. we must be ready for work at 6pm for food, however even if we are not eating at the hotel, we MUST still be there and just sit and wait but in our uniforms, yet the contract states starting 6.30pm in the evening


on top of this, two days a week we must start early in the evening at 5.45pm, and one day in the morning at 6.30pm.

we dont get any extra pay for the extra hours worked, or for the days we should have off that we have to work, and i am still unsure when my first day off will be.



i have kept a record of all the hours ive worked.

i am very tired and fed up with the work and want to leave. there are jobs advertised in the town and i am going to apply for some of these.


where do i stand legally.
can i claim wages for the extra work done (if so how is it worked out, as its monthly paid do i dived the x amount monthly i get by the hours im meant to work to find the hourly wage and then add up the extra hours?)


what happens if i walk out of the job and find a new one? does that void the contract so i cant claim what im owed??

are the austrian employment laws similar to Uk because of the EU now?

Thanks!

Sillychuckie

Try working in London, in the city.
My contract states 9am - 5pm, with an hour break for lunch.
In reality, its 8am till 7pm, with a 5-10minute break to quickly grab a sandwich. - No overtime paid.

I know this isn't a massively helpful reply, nor can one compare inv. banking to ski resorts... but the point im making is that I'm not sure how strong 'employment law' is, and how well it can be enforced.

Surely, if it was so cut and dry, city firms would be getting sued left right and center for not paying over time and asking workers to do those kind of hours. I also see no action from the EU pressuring the UK to comply.
There are almost certainly people that can reply with far more useful information, but its almost certainly going to be a case of 'like it or lump it'.

Sorry I cant be of more help. I'm rather interested in what the laws are myself now, and how (assuming they are in place), they are completely flouted all over the place.
The compliance departments don't seem to put much effort into making sure they comply with these particular laws.