Forced overtime and holiday pay

Justaguy_2

Hiya, first post here, be gentle please

So I work for that big supermarket picking the online shopping. The majority of the team are on what they call a "flexible contract" where we are given 6:00-9:45 from two to five days a week contracted hours, and then these are extended to finish at 14:00 up to five days a week with forced overtime.

What hours we are expected to work are given to us generally the Friday before, and sometimes they do a few weeks at a time, it doesn't vary a lot on a per person basis.

Our "contract" states: (and if this breaks and confidentiality please remove - I don't think I could paraphrase this very well)

You are employed on a flexible contract and will be expected to work additional hours. These flexible additional hours will be agreed with your manager. A minimum of 24 hours notice will be given, prior to and additional hours being worked.

Flexible hours combined with core hours will be no more than 36.5 hours in any one week.

The company needs you to maintain the flexibility you have specified. If you are consistently unable to work your flexible additional hours when you have been asked to, this may be considered a breach of your contract of employment and could result in disciplinary action up to and including dismissal

So basically as the department finishes the job anywhere between 11ish and 14:00, they cannot give people 8 hour contracts so they have to cover their bases.

My question is to do with holiday pay.

If I take a weeks holiday I am only being paid for my contracted hours, for example 3 days a week 6:00 to 9:45 even though every week I am forced to take overtime taking me to 30~ hours work over 5 days.

Don't take this the wrong way, I want to work full time hours, but there are other people in the department contracted to (for example) 6:00 to 12:00 5 days a week. These people do the same hours per week as I do yet receive over £500 a year in holiday pay more than I do.

It seems to me that the whole "flexible contract" is a scheme to hire full time workers and only have to pay them for part time holidays. I can't see how it is fair.

In contrast, for checkout workers contracted to a low amount of hours they are strongly encouraged to take overtime shifts, but are not forced to.

Any advice you could give would be appreciated.

Thanks.

agrinnall

I'm no expert on this, so I expect other people will give a more authorative answer, but I suspect you have summed it up perfectly yourself - get full time workers, pay part time holidays. From previous reading on here I think they can do this, but you're right that it's not fair - blame the current, and probably previous, government for eroding the rights of workers, and greedy companies for squeezing their employees for maximum profits to benefit shareholders and the big bosses..

Justaguy_2

Yeah I figured as much. Not surprising.

Anyone else have any input on this?

ohreally

Justaguy wrote: »

Anyone else have any input on this?

Since this is a collective issue, raise your concerns with one of the TU's recognised for collective bargaining purposes and petition them to get this on their agenda and sort it out.

Suggest they use this a a campaigning issue to recruit new members as well! There could be a lot of mileage in it for them.