DD17, is studying beauty therapy at college. Last month she landed herself a Saturday job (also covering holidays and one evening a week). The job is minimum wage, so £7.55 per hour. It is also zero contract hours. She has never been given a contract though.
When she first started they requested she come in for 3 separate training sessions. Two evenings at 3 hours each and a full Saturday which was around 6 hours, so approx 12 hours in total. The Saturday one was actually on the job training with clients. She was not paid for these training sessions, the boss told DD that it isn't their policy to do so. We let this go as the job is related to her college course and we thought it would be good experience for her and to get a foot in the door.
She has worked around 5 Saturdays and 4 evenings since she started late last month (all work paid via bank transfer at the end of each session, thankfully). They have however, messed her about several times, for example they asked her to come in last Thursday at 5pm but when she turned up the place was dark and locked and no one answered her calls, eventually they called her to tell her to come back an hour later so she had to hang around as it wasn't worth her driving back home.
The owner is never in on a Saturday and dd has to converse and liaise with the other Saturday girl (the two job share alternative Saturdays). This girl is only 16 and seems to run the show even though she has only been there a year. DD was often asked to do tasks she hasn't been shown how to do or trained for and if she messages the boss asking for help she is told to message this 16 year old who is often unavailable via text (as she is not working), the boss is also often unavailable so DD has to ask one of the people working at the building (beauty therapists, hairdressers, nail technicians etc) who all simply rent the rooms and are not employed so have no clue themselves.
The week after DD started she was given the keys to open and lock up and basically left to it whilst the owner and the other Saturday girl went on holiday for 2 weeks (separately from each other). When the other girl returned she asked for the keys and hasn't ever returned them back to dd. The whole thing seems flaky and unprofessional. Yesterday dd messaged the owner asking what time she was to start that evening and heard nothing all day then received a phone call at 5pm from the boss stating that she is letting dd go. She gave no real explanation for this decision. I can't help but wonder if they just took dd on to cover for the time they were both on holiday (the ad for the job even stated the applicant needed to be available for those dates).
DD is so upset as the job is in the industry she is training for and she was really enjoying it. The owner had a bloody cheeky to tell her, after she said she had to let her go, that dd is more than welcome to come and do her 30 hours of unpaid work experience (required by the college) with them, whenever she likes.
I am so upset for dd and am now wondering if this unpaid mandatory training is actually even legal - is it? Is it worth asking ACAS? DD was talking to a friend of a friend last night and has found out this place did the same thing to her a year or two back. I'd hate to think this business is taking advantage of young, inexperienced people just starting out in the working world.
Or do we just move on and DD chalk it up to a shitty life experience?