Inaccurate Job Offer Letter

RichieRooo

I recently accepted a job and on their job offer letter it stated that the working hours are 9:00 - 17:30 with a one hour break for lunch. I make that a 37.5 hour week. I accepted a salary also stated on the offer letter.

I have since started the job and on the first day they tell me that lunch only lasts for 30 mins. That means that the job is actually a 40 hour week.

Where do I stand with this?
Is this a breach of contract?

I accepted the job based on the terms stated in the offer letter so I think they should either put me on a 37.5 hour contract or up my salary to reflect 40 hours?

Thoughts ?

[Deleted User]

Employers can sometimes make genuine mistakes too. Ask them, show them the letter and see what they say.

Are you on probation? How much do you want the job? If you had been told it was 40 hours instead of 37.5, would you still have accepted it?

See what they say and then decide ....

RichieRooo

Sleazy wrote: »

Employers can sometimes make genuine mistakes too. Ask them, show them the letter and see what they say.

Are you on probation? How much do you want the job? If you had been told it was 40 hours instead of 37.5, would you still have accepted it?

See what they say and then decide ....

Yes I'm on probation, only 3 days into the new job.
I wouldn't have accepted if I had known it was a 40 hour week.
I would have only accepted if they had offered more in salary.

[Deleted User]

Ask for 2 x 15 mins breaks alongside lunch? Perhaps you've not been told that as it can take a few weeks to find your feet and know the little intricacies

To be honest I had a new employer rip me a new behind day 5 when he actually hated me arriving early and not staying late - something he actually failed to communicate and treated it as the unspoken... I was not even honoured enough with a letter confirming employment

I still walked. As anytime in the first 2 years they can ask you to go I'm afraid. Last year alone I had 3 jobs last a week so I say pick battles wisely in modern Britain.

SomeRandomGuy

I guess it depends how badly you need the job doesn't it? Query it politely but push the situation and it may not end well as they can pretty much get rid of you for any reason in the first 2 years.

I would be upset though, an extra 10 hours across the month makes a fair bit of difference, especially if the salary is not much above minimum wage anyway.

makeyourdaddyproud

Sleazy wrote: »

Employers can sometimes make genuine mistakes too. Ask them, show them the letter and see what they say.

Are you on probation? How much do you want the job? If you had been told it was 40 hours instead of 37.5, would you still have accepted it?

See what they say and then decide ....

But the error is quite a big deal. That works out at 2.5 extra work hours per week for the same money.

My advice to the OP would be accept it until a lower hours role comes around but I would still be sorely miffed at the error.

Undervalued

RichieRooo wrote: »

I recently accepted a job and on their job offer letter it stated that the working hours are 9:00 - 17:30 with a one hour break for lunch. I make that a 37.5 hour week. I accepted a salary also stated on the offer letter.

I have since started the job and on the first day they tell me that lunch only lasts for 30 mins. That means that the job is actually a 40 hour week.

Where do I stand with this?
Is this a breach of contract?

I accepted the job based on the terms stated in the offer letter so I think they should either put me on a 37.5 hour contract or up my salary to reflect 40 hours?

Thoughts ?

Based on what you have posted here then yes it is.

However, as others have suggested, what you can do about it is limited. If your bottom line is that you would not have accepted the job and are willing to leave then you can obviously object and see what the reaction is. It may just be a communication problem or administrative !!!! up.

Keep in mind that during your first month they do not even have to give you notice to terminate (obviously unless a binding period of notice is specified in your contract). After a month they would have to give you at least a week's notice but you have no other protection during the first two years.

If you were deliberately mislead into taking the job (very hard to prove) then there is a remote possibility you may have a claim against them for damages over and above the basic notice but such cases are very, very rare.

ScorpiondeRooftrouser

What sort of job is this? If it is hourly paid work or physical work fair enough, but this really wouldn't make any difference to anyone in most salaried jobs in an office. The start and finish times are the same and nobody ever takes an hour for lunch anyway.

What other options did you have? Did you leave a job for this, or turn down an alternative offer?

ScorpiondeRooftrouser

SomeRandomGuy wrote: »

I guess it depends how badly you need the job doesn't it? Query it politely but push the situation and it may not end well as they can pretty much get rid of you for any reason in the first 2 years.

I would be upset though, an extra 10 hours across the month makes a fair bit of difference, especially if the salary is not much above minimum wage anyway.

Why assume it is? He could be earning 100K a year as a project manager in finance. It's utterly dependent on the type of job, which he hasn't told us.

Takeaway_Addict

ScorpiondeRooftrouser wrote: »

Why assume it is? He could be earning 100K a year as a project manager in finance. It's utterly dependent on the type of job, which he hasn't told us.

The other poster hasn't assumed

RichieRooo

The job is a Software Development role.
I handed in my notice at my previous employer which was a 37.5 hour week, based on the terms set out in the job offer letter at my new employer. Given they stated 09:00 - 17:30 with an hour break for lunch that means they were offering the same 37.5 hour week.

I have since consulted them about this.
All they have come back with is a stuttering apology from the MD.

They say they can't change my hours and they can't up my salary either and if I feel I want to leave then I can.

I feel really mislead given I accepted the job based on those terms in the offer letter.