Thrown in at the deep end and Injury on the job? [Updated]

Jlawson118

Today I started my new part time job. It's just unloading trucks in a warehouse whilst I continue my studies at university. It's weeks of being messed around to sign up for this job, All throughout today, all members of staff who were training me and sorting me out were absolutely fantastic.

Although after all of the health and safety training, I was then thrown into the main warehouse to sort things out. I was pretty much unloading a conveyor belt and just stacking everything up as well as scanning items. I was doing fine at first but then things were pilling up and I couldn't cope. It wasn't so much I couldn't do it fast enough, it was more heavy objects that I couldn't handle by myself. These boxes were shaped like fridge freezers and weighed like one too, I had to lift these by myself and I'm not the strongest person ever so it was a struggle at first. Anyway, a guy told me he'd scan them if I stack them. Then he disappeared. I was pulled by a co-worker asking if I was scanning them in, I told him I was. "Are you sure?" was his reply "M**** is watching you on the CCTV and claims you're not." So I told him at one point one of my co-workers was doing so.

These items were piling up, my co-workers kept coming in to help me out and kept reassuring me it was alright, they were like this on their first day and that I've been thrown in the deep end as a 'test' their exact words were.

After so long, I was told I needed to go into the office. The manager there had CCTV on his screen and he was asking me what was wrong and why I wasn't performing quick enough. And that it's a one man job that I can't even do, they can't afford to have people helping me. He was quite aggressive really, I explained to him I'm not used to handling fridge-freezers by myself and having to lift them. He just said there weren't any, but go back to work and pick up the pace. I later found out from one of my co-workers that these were probably boilers.

For one, I had no lifting equipment, apart from my hands, and nobody to help me out. It's my first shift, I'm not used to it. I've worked in similar jobs but not to this extreme. It'll take a bit of getting used to. Yet I can't believe I'm being pushed around for not performing well enough on my first shift! If that guy really was checking the CCTV for the entire shift, he'll know that I never for one minute slacked off, checked my phone or anything. I worked my absolute backside off..

Am I really expected to be at their level on my first shift? :mad:

[Update]:
After two days being thrown in the deep end and being told I wasn't performing well enough, on the Wednesday all I had to do for my entire shift was to watch some other guy do it who's been there a while, to show it can be done single handedly. And I will admit that I did it my myself on the Thursday but I was being praised by the management for performing better. I thought this was the start of something good after this. Friday was super busy so help was automatically at hand.

But then I started the week again on Monday, where I was working with a conveyer belt, doing the same job as I was before, just stacking the back of a truck pretty much, when these big boilers were just coming down and falling off as well as pilling up. I got stuck, my hand got stuck and I also later bent my little finger backwards, the emergency stop doesn't work on the belt either (I was told about this when I started my first shift but I thought they'd fix it) and before I knew it, I was kind of stuck at the back of this trailer about to be crushed when one of the managers walked in and he actually had the nerve to ask me what was wrong!

I snapped at him saying "What does it look like?" And tried to then explain I'd hurt my hand, I then spoke to another manager who is the first aider and he just shrugged his shoulders at me.

The next morning, it was no better and I went to A&E. The lady at the reception asked me where I worked, I told her and she said she's had a few in from there. I'm not sure if it's the same depo as mine though. Luckily my hand wasn't broken but there's soft tissue damage. It's still hurting quite a lot. I went in to speak to the main boss in charge of the depo yesterday after A&E, my fingers strapped together and an attendance slip from the hospital and explained to him that all the management did were shrug their shoulders at me. He turned around and said "well in all fairness, I'd have done the same"

I explained to him that the emergency stop button doesn't work, and he was like "Well you should have tried another button" for one I couldn't reach another button and two, all of the buttons doesn't work on it! This is a breach of health and safety regulations, even I know this. But I went home fuming. I've been off on the sick two days running now, and I only started last week! I sent him an email informing him it's not working out, and later explained I won't press charges over the conveyer belt if he just understands my reasonings for leaving and actually fixes it. I wasn't planning to sue them or anything, I haven't broken anything and I've not really been there long. But I am being convinced by my family and friends to actually try and claim something.

This really is a reputable company across the world! I can't believe they are operating like this. But two days later and my hand is no better. Unfortunately I have no proof of the conveyer belt not working, I tried to get a video the other night but the management were up my backside and the workload just wasn't quieting down..
What are my rights here?

-taff

No, but employers really don't give a monkeys what a human is capable of, they always want more.

usefulmale

Find another job.

culpepper

Give it a fair go.
It may be that they let you have more slack as time goes on but that the manager likes to exercise his authority on the first few days to let you know he isn't a push over.
Can you ask some of the others for their techniques? It may be there is a way to make it easier ,a sort of routine or flow that works. Is there a way to lift the boilers that makes them more manageable for example, that sort of thing.

jobbingmusician

Do these items have a label on their packaging which tells you how much they weigh? I think this is required by law, although have been unable to come up with a reference. Now google whether 1 person is allowed to lift that much solo. This will give an indication of whether you are being a wimp (or, as I suspect, not).

Jlawson118

jobbingmusician wrote: »

Do these items have a label on their packaging which tells you how much they weigh? I think this is required by law, although have been unable to come up with a reference. Now google whether 1 person is allowed to lift that much solo. This will give an indication of whether you are being a wimp (or, as I suspect, not).

Well I'll definitely have a look tonight, no doubt the weight will be on the stickers or something anyway

Gram_Parsons

Sounds like TPE?

gollum007

jobbingmusician wrote: »

Do these items have a label on their packaging which tells you how much they weigh? I think this is required by law, although have been unable to come up with a reference. Now google whether 1 person is allowed to lift that much solo. This will give an indication of whether you are being a wimp (or, as I suspect, not).

Not as far as I know.

Food items are required to have a weight by law, which I believe is what you're thinking of.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/packaged-goods-weights-and-measures-regulations

Schedules 4-7 of the Weights and Measures Act 1985 also define some other stuff (Sand etc.) , but they're things that are *sold* by weight

-Gollum

saker75

jobbingmusician wrote: »

Do these items have a label on their packaging which tells you how much they weigh? I think this is required by law, although have been unable to come up with a reference. Now google whether 1 person is allowed to lift that much solo. This will give an indication of whether you are being a wimp (or, as I suspect, not).

No, there is no law about this, just an onus on employers to assess risk - here

Would have thought there ought to be a maximum weight though.

tea_lover

There's no maximum weight, as it depends on such a variety of factors. The guidelines do include 25kg for men, lifting at waist height - but that's definitely not a legal maximum (and again, subject to a lot of variables).

Did your initial health and safety training cover manual handling techniques?

Helvetica_Van_Buren

This doesn't sound like a very fun job or place to work. No laws are being broken, they just sound shoddy.

I've had jobs like this and haven't lasted more than a few days, which is why I now work for myself.

The only advice I would give is to ask for some more support whilst you get into the swing of things but by the sound of it this is probably an alien concept to the company.