:mad: They don't pay overtime and it cant take it as time off.DO WE WORK FOR FREE?

galastur

Hi,

My partner works at a supermarket (supposedly the best for customer care, but the worst I know in employee care)

So in summary, she is a "team supervisor", just one step above from the bottom level. She doesn't have a monthly salary, but she is paid hourly (in case this makes some difference)

Her manager says he doesn't pay Overtime, yet he tells her to stay for longer that her contracted hours. If "possible" she can take the hours off from her shifts within that same week (which never happens, because the are sort of staff) ...

So are we suppose to be working for free? or is this ilegal? I guess the second, but I dont know anylonger...anything goes nowdays...

NOTE: what a month!!! can't wait till september is over!

Snakeeyes21

you just tell your partner to stop being a dooemat and stand up for herself.

If she is contracted for x amount of hours and they dont pay overtime then
she works those hours and not a minute more.

If she is willing to work for 'free' then thats her lookout, theres nothing illegal
about agreeing to work extra hours for free.

If she doesnt want to work for free, and the employer doesnt want to pay overtime
then she just doesnt have to do the extra hours, its really that simple.

thegirlintheattic

She needs to say no to extra hours without pay.

dark_lady

And these supermarkets sell fair trade foods so that the people that produce them get a fair days pay for a fair days work.

What a pity that this practice doesnt seem to extend to the employees of the supermarkets.

The hypocrisy of this is astounding.

SarEl

Actually, unpaid overtime is legal provided that the hours worked does not reduce the pay below the NMW. And such overtime can be contractual. So before she says no she does need to check her contract to ensure that there isn't such a condition.

Pete111

Unpaid OT may well be part and parcel of the contract (like many contracts) and definitely worth checking

I would suggest that if she wishes to climb higher than 'team supervisor' then she thinks very hard before annoucing she is working to rule.

SarEl

Pete111 wrote: »

I would suggest that if she wishes to climb higher than 'team supervisor' then she thinks very hard before annoucing she is working to rule.

I had also wondered whether to say this - so I will echo the thought. It may not be right or fair, but it's a fact. People, especially these days, who aren't willing to put in a little more than expected often fail to rise. And may find that come redundancies, are the top of the list. If promotion isn't an issue, and there is no prospect of redundancies, then she can by all means "work to rule". But don't expect any favours back either. Like I said, it may not be fair but it's life.

Hammyman

Googlewhacker wrote: »

I agree, some people on here have Minimum wage=minimum effort as there signature and consequently these are more likely to be the people that stay on minimum wage for longer.

Or the dole.....

I can only assume those with that asinine comment as their signatures are too young to remember what it was like to work before the NMW. We should remove it for a while and see how they like applying for jobs paying £1.50/hr.

galastur

the contract states the hours she must work per week...does not says that she has to do overtime...

I totally agree that sometimes you need to pull a bit harder for the "good" of the company ( I do it myself, and we get rewarded, more flexibility when booking holidays, extra days off, or bonus pay)... but how can you really ask the people earning £7.20 an hour....in London....to work for free!? 4 extra hours a week!? ...And yes, that's the problem, in order to go higher, she will have to kill herself without guarantee of a better position. That's our biggest concern...put up with it, or no.

I know understand how this supermarket "has reported a better than expected rise in sales and profit for the year despite a “challenging” economic backdrop" ...making it is employees work for free! BRAVO! :T

galastur

Hammyman wrote: »

Or the dole.....

I can only assume those with that asinine comment as their signatures are too young to remember what it was like to work before the NMW. We should remove it for a while and see how they like applying for jobs paying £1.50/hr.

This is the rule of age...We all had it worst, right?

Person_one

Staff work for free = less staff needed, lower wage bill, more profit, higher unemployment.

Yes it may be the case that its hard to get on unless you're willing to give up much semblance of an actual life for your employer, but it shouldn't be that way.

Most people are generally happy to put in a few extra hours here and there if its infrequent and they feel that their employer genuinely appreciates it and respects them. When its taken for granted that you'll work for free every shift and never complain for fear of being branded 'not a team player' then its only natural you start to resent it.