Different shift patterns within company same rate of pay

Ella_fella

I accept some of the comments above that it's swings and roundabouts as if I work a 3 shift rota then effectively I get more days away from work as my working hours are compressed into a shorter time doing 12 hours instead of 8 and also that I will save money as on commuting as well as time. But I will have to work nightshifts in this pattern and also have to work weekends and weekend nights.
One thing I didn't mention is that after  Xmas at some point the business has said there will be no 3 on 3 off shift pattern but Monday to Friday working HOWEVER I will be expected to work Mornings/Afternoons/Nights when other departments will be doing just Mornings/Afternoons. So the arguments above are now not valid regards having extra days off/less commuting time and my original question still stands and again I will in my opinion be financially disadvantaged.

KatrinaWaves

Does the company offer enhanced pay for nights and ‘unsociable’ hours. You are acting like it’s a given that this is paid at a premium but it’s not. You only have an argument if other staff are on those premiums 

Ella_fella

KatrinaWaves said:

Does the company offer enhanced pay for nights and ‘unsociable’ hours. You are acting like it’s a given that this is paid at a premium but it’s not. You only have an argument if other staff are on those premiums 

This is the whole crux of what I'm trying to say though, I've worked in the same industry for 25 years and all previous employers from medium sized businesses to globals have rightly recognised that working night and weekends is unsociable hours and weighted the salary accordingly - for example at my last company a person working nights compared to a person working days doing exactly the same job would be salaried 15% more for doing nights. And so on.
So if the answer is that then the company I'm working for now does not recognise this then I either have been hellishly lucky with my others employers or infact they are choosing not to recognise this presumably to save money.
Either way I guess from the answers I have to suck it up or leave I was just looking for some positive advice given the above. 

Savvy_Sue

Employers in the same industry do not have to offer the same terms and conditions: hard to tell if you have been lucky, but your current employer has nothing to 'recognise'. 

You haven't said whether you are in a union. If you were, they might be willing to 'fight your corner'. But as stated, unless you are being treated worse than others for a discriminatory reason, it's not illegal, it's not immoral, it's not wrong. 

Bear in mind you were happy to accept the terms offered, and still would be if you hadn't found out they weren't better than others. 

Ella_fella

Savvy_Sue said:

Employers in the same industry do not have to offer the same terms and conditions: hard to tell if you have been lucky, but your current employer has nothing to 'recognise'. 

You haven't said whether you are in a union. If you were, they might be willing to 'fight your corner'. But as stated, unless you are being treated worse than others for a discriminatory reason, it's not illegal, it's not immoral, it's not wrong. 

Bear in mind you were happy to accept the terms offered, and still would be if you hadn't found out they weren't better than others. 

The business doesn't recognise Unions and I'm not a member of one. 
To answer your second point I had no choice or say in which department I was placed in and there were vacancies in all departments. The contract I signed was on my understanding exactly the same as everyone else's being recruited for that role so was happy to accept it on that basis however it is not now the same as I am having to work proportionally more unsociable hours than my peers on the same contract for the same renumeration which the business has not made any allowance or recognition for. 
As it's been pointed out to me it is not a legal requirement for any  business to make that differentiation so I will just have to suck it up. I can only tell you what industry standard otherwise I would not be raising it.
The company I work for is not a back street firm but a global multinational who apparently prides itself on staff welfare which make it even more disappointing.

Savvy_Sue

Your employer doesn't have to 'recognise' a union for it to be worth joining. A large employer, faced by a number of staff raising a grievance and backed by a union, would probably listen. 

Plus, if you were ever facing a disciplinary situation, the employer would have no choice but to allow you to be accompanied by a union rep. 

General_Grant

Savvy_Sue said:

Your employer doesn't have to 'recognise' a union for it to be worth joining. A large employer, faced by a number of staff raising a grievance and backed by a union, would probably listen. 

Plus, if you were ever facing a disciplinary situation, the employer would have no choice but to allow you to be accompanied by a union rep. 

And doesn't an employer have to recognise a TU if a certain proportion/number of employees are members and request it?

74jax

Ella_fella said:

KatrinaWaves said:

Does the company offer enhanced pay for nights and ‘unsociable’ hours. You are acting like it’s a given that this is paid at a premium but it’s not. You only have an argument if other staff are on those premiums 

So if the answer is that then the company I'm working for now does not recognise this then I either have been hellishly lucky with my others employers or infact they are choosing not to recognise this presumably to save money.
Either way I guess from the answers I have to suck it up or leave I was just looking for some positive advice given the above. 

Why do you need to leave? Has the salary changed? 
You accepted the job and the money, so why do you now need to leave?
When you applied it seems clear the hours were not fixed at the time of applying, so I'd understand if back when you started and you got your shift, you didn't like the hours so left. But that was way back earlier this year. 

Lomast

I have worked shift work for 25 years some companies pay more for unsocial hours some don't there is no legal requirement for them to, ultimately if you are not happy you will have to find a new job

Savvy_Sue

General_Grant said:

Savvy_Sue said:

Your employer doesn't have to 'recognise' a union for it to be worth joining. A large employer, faced by a number of staff raising a grievance and backed by a union, would probably listen. 

Plus, if you were ever facing a disciplinary situation, the employer would have no choice but to allow you to be accompanied by a union rep. 

And doesn't an employer have to recognise a TU if a certain proportion/number of employees are members and request it?

Quite possibly.