Ds work keep ringing him on holiday and I'm furious !

[ginorwine]

Ds on gap year with zero contract hours job .
He had two weeks off . One with group abroad then a festival .
His work rang on thurs asking were he was !
They gave rang him in Spain to say he isn't entitled to holidays and that he can't go to the festival next week .he had pre arranged it all and it was confirmed by e mail . They said they didn't get it . All different managers. He had to screen shot a copy of the agreement to one of the managers.they sound like they don't know what they are doing .but have affected ds holiday with daily calls or e mails.
We saved to give him this holiday it was his 18 th present .

So upset for him .
I know he's a man now in some ways but I'm so cross .there seems to be several managers there so going to talk to one wd not do anything . It seems very poor communication and possibility of sour grapes towards my son as it really has been freq contact . My son was worried and didn't feel able to ignore the call and e mails .
Is there anything I can do except. Rant and reinforce to him it's them not him ? He had been looking forward to this for a year !!!!

[PuntasticUsername]

You said it yourself - he's 18, he's a man, all else being equal it's best if he deals with it himself I reckon. Appreciate why you are upset for him of course, but isn't this a teeny tiny bit helicopter-ish...?

[LilyMayViolet]

Well if he has their email then he is covered isn't he? They sound like incompetent idiots though. Not sure you can get involved though.

[jelliebelly]

Not for you to get involved I'm afraid other than giving da advice on how to handle it. Are you 100% sure he is blameless in what seems to be disorganisation?

[MagicalHamSandwich]

No there isn't!

Zero hour contracts are shit and that place sounds utterly disorganised - but as you say yourself it's only a gap year.

Really, don't interfere! I say this as the manager who once got an angry e-mail from a father asking why his PFB had been 'passed over' (read: not jumped the queue) for a promotion. Didn't know whether to laugh or cry at the time - I most certainly did know that a woman who needs daddy in order to sort out her work problem was not the sort of supervisor I needed ...

If your DS is in any way sensible he'll be mortified if you interfere!

[LazyLouLou]

Collect the contact details for him, CEO of the company, all the managers involved and anyone else you can think of.

Help him put together a succinct email, that includes the law on holidays, his email request and confirmation and anything else. End with asking them what they are going to do to prevent other members of staff oar not hectored and bullied in this illegal manner.

Then turn his phone off and leave it all for a week!

I HATE idiots like this, bullying pricks!

Sorry. I hope your son can relax and enjoy his birthday treats.

[ilovesooty]

He has confirmation that he had had a holiday authorised. Not for you to get involved.

[chickenfuckingpox]

zero hours contracts work both ways he doesn't have to work they dont have to offer him work

he needs a new job

[CigarsofthePharoahs]

Is his job in retail?
Every retail company I've worked for has been truly terrible at organising the holiday rota. I've had confirmed holiday and then been phoned as to where I was on multiple occasions. I then just show them the holiday form that they signed themselves when I got back.
Has your son followed correct procedure? We weren't allowed to rely on word of mouth or email, it had to be the correct form. Didn't stop them getting it wrong, but I knew I could prove I was in the right!
He does need to take this up with his boss himself though, its great you want to help but it is his job and he needs to stand up for himself.

[ginorwine]

Lazy I will thanks ! It's the end of the holiday now tho . But this will help for future .
Magical - my ds does not want me to interfere . He's very sensible it's just my mother ogre feelings!!!
And yes we have evidence of the e mails. He was aware of ongoing disorganisation and often had panic calls asking him to come in and so he made sure that it was all agreed . Communication manager to manager seems poor .

[ilovesooty]

And if you act as LazyLou suggested he'll find himself with no hours at all on his return. Personally I think zero hour contracts stink but that's what will happen.

[WyrdByrd]

What LazyLouLou said.

Also if it comes to the crunch and the job does go tits up - loads of places will be recruiting for Christmas cover and to fill the spaces left my kids going off to uni come September.

Hope he enjoys his break.

[WyrdByrd]

Just read your update - if the holiday is over and he has a job to go back to I'd be inclined to leave it and suggest that he just looks for something else.

[ginorwine]

Chicken .i agree he needs a new job . He had bar work and food industry experience now so that's good .
He has been told by the customers that he had a good attitude and has been given generous tips and had a very good work ethic , never been late .
We live in a place awash with students so few jobs around but he's now got good exprience . Several staff have walked out from this place .

[ilovesooty]

His workplace sounds horrible and I hope he gets something else soon. However if he doesn't want you to get involved I think you should respect that.

[Anniesaunt]

That is why zero hour contracts are so evil chicken. Some employers can go weeks without offering shifts yet insist on availability 24/7 365 with the threat of the sack making it difficult to meet caring responsibilities and pretty impossible to have another job which is essential to making ends meet for many people.

[TTWK]

The problem isn't zero hours contracts per se, it's a crap employer. Zero hours contracts can be used by a crap employer to make an employee's life hell, but they can also be used by the employee with a decent employer to give the employee flexibility to fit their particular circumstances.

[Mrsjayy]

The managers are at it they have mucked up Rotas and picking on your son (bet they are having a go at others ) your son has aconfirmation email to say he is on holiday just leave it at that and tell him notto answer the phone to the number until he is back at work. Dds work phone her everytime she is on holiday its a pita

[LazyLouLou]

ILS, I was assuming that OPs son would have 0 hours anyway, given the pettiness of many such managers. And it is a gap year, so maybe him walking away might be the thing for him to do, rather than learning to meekly accept such stupidity.

As TTWK says, 0 hours contracts can be great when used properly. But, if you have the wherewithal, shite ones should be challenged all the time. OPs son may be in a position whereby he an make more of a stand than another employee.

OP - I hope the others who left made a fuss as they went. I am not sure how else such rank incompetence can be challenged.

[HagOtheNorth]

Good life experience.
I found working in a series of shit holiday/student jobs refined my sense of how many more options I wanted in my life and gave me that extra incentive to push on through the tough bits in my degree.
So, he can keep going because it's finite.
He's learnt Never Trust A Boss to be honest or organised, get everything in writing and keep it. Check details before agreeing. Keep your temper when involved in discussions with an arse who thinks they own your soul because they are paying you minimum wage.
Know that there are thousands, possibly millions trapped in this situation and he isn't.

[QforCucumber]

Also even on a 0 hours contract he is entitled to holiday accrual and pay - it I'd calculated on an average of hours worked over the previous 12 weeks. I used to be a bar manager where all the staff were on 0 contracts but still accrued holidays. Worth looking into if they're refusing to pay him.

[Duckdeamon]

This kind of experience is what made me determined to work towards a better job in future. In retrospect I would have toed the line less, been less fearful and more assertive with crap employers like this: even in this kind of situation one has some power, eg it's a hassle for them to recruit and bring up to speed someone else.

[ginorwine]

Thanks all .i really appriciAte your support and comments .

[Anniesaunt]

It is the way it is, it can be character building, it can also be character destroying because it wears you down.

BUT it shouldn't be the way it is, being character building is no excuse. Employers don't own us and have the right to control every second of every day. There are too many who act like they do and it's wrong.