Swapping days at work

[welshmammy22]

Just wondered what the rule is about requesting which days you work.

I work with someone who has a 2 year old son, after maternity
leave she came back and worked a tues and Thursday with her mum looking after him. Now she is putting him in nursery on Thursdays and Fridays and is demanding that she only works these days.

Can she do this?

[AliMonkey]

She has the right to ask. Employer can say no but has to justify that there is a business reason to do so.

[bloodyteenagers]

Surely it depends on the individual workplace.
Where I work with maybe if the other person who worked the other days would be willing to change days. If they didn't want to change days then no.

[welshmammy22]

That's the thing she's not asking she's demanding she just left a note for the manager saying as of the w/c 19/10 I will be working Thursday and Fridays.

[DragonsCanHop]

What does her contract say, not that I'm expecting you to know that but if you are the person working the Mon, Wed and Fri does your contract state the specific days?

[welshmammy22]

Contract is not set days, it's just states hours per week

[Lunastarfish]

No she doesn't have the right to demand it. The basic rule with employment is that it is a master/servant relationship.

All employees have the right to request flexible working but the employer does not necessarily have to grant it. There are steps they employee and employer have to take under the flexible working regulations.

A request for flexible working under the regulations, which is accepted, is a permanent change to the contract.

[WickedWax]

Does she actually job-share with anyone?

[ginmakesitallok]

Why does it matter to you?

[OddlyLogical]

Does it affect you at all?

[GraciesMansion]

I'm contracted for a certain number of hours per week and I can work whichever days I want because I have my own caseload and we don't have to cover particular days within the team. However I suspect jobs like mine are the minority and most people would need to request different days.

[ftmsoon]

Our contracts state hours and because people job share, they are not allowed to change days unless someone else agrees to swop as they full-time equivalent.

[flowery]

I'm sure the manager will deal with it appropriately and you don't need to concern yourself with it.

[redskybynight]

Depends on her contract. Mine specifies that I work x short days and y long days. It doesn't specify which are my short and which my long days because it makes no odds to the company which way I organize my days. So I can (and do) swap my days around on a whim.

[welshmammy22]

Thanks for your help everyone. The manager is off on holiday at the moment, I'm the assistant manager only been doing the job two weeks and still have lots to learn.
Just wanted some advice as she keeps nagging me saying that working mothers have different rights to women with no kids, have told her she will have to wait to see what manager says.

[MrsLeighHalfpenny]

Working parents don't have different rights to people with no kids, be they mothers or fathers. There are some rights which apply to people with kids, but these would be extra, not different.

[DragonsCanHop]

Working parents have no more right to time off/certain working days than employees with no children/dependants.

There are a few policies in place in regards to parental/carers leave but that is not what she is "requesting"

As a good manager it would always be right practice to see if the request can be applied, happy employees make the workplace a nicer environment to be in.

Does her request for these days effect anyone else in the office ie, will someone have to swap their working day. Does she share work load with others or is it a role where she works independently?

[welshmammy22]

She does share work with others in the department, there is one member of staff who had a Tuesday off and another member of staff coming back from maternity leave at the end of October who is going to be working a Thursday and Friday

[Lunastarfish]

Do you have a hr dept? If so, refer it to them.