to think that those working a four day week should also get 'summer office hours'?

[SteelMagnolia]

For June/July/August, that's 13 weeks, employees at my company (800 employees, public company) get to leave at 3pm. Normal leaving hours for Fridays are 5pm, so that is 2 hours off. So, over the three months, that is a total of 26 hours off.

I don't work on Fridays. I work Mon-Thurs. My salary, bonus, public holidays, etc are all 4/5ths of what it was when I was full time. I assumed I would be entitled to some kind of summer concession, to equal 4/5ths of 26 hours, which is 20.8 hours. I sent an email to my HR rep today asking if they'd decided what to do about summer hours for those not working Fridays (there are several mums in the office on a reduced schedule.)

My HR team's response, via an official "summer hours Q&A" she attached to an email:
'Q: What happens if I don?t work on a Friday?
A: Lucky you! That?s just one of those things unfortunately; you won?t be able to carry over to another day."

However the Q&A says they ARE going to make concessions for people who are unable to leave early on Fridays because of their duties. So, they are making some adjustments.

AIBU to think this is not right? (And to be annoyed at the language they used, ie "Lucky you!" Anyone not working Fridays probably have kids and ARE working their butts off that day, at home!)

HidinginaHardHat the OP doesn't work 4 days due to 'luck' but because thats all she gets paid for. What an unhelpful comment.

I won't apologise for my comment you ARE lucky to be in a position where you can work part time.

I am with auraofdora with this in so far as our part timers are treated with kid gloves, any new benefits are run by them first and they ALWAYS come off best when a company rejig happens. Suck it up this time.

Fair enough. But I think when they do things like being so miserly to give you 4/5ths of public holidays, it doesn't make you feel too easy-going about stuff like this. I've also taken lots of work calls on my unpaid Fridays. Didn't say a peep about not getting the Royal Wedding Day holiday, etc. But a policy that goes all summer long like this and adds up to so many hours...just seems a bit too far. The mums I know up there working part time contribute a hellava lot.

Just a note of caution over your bank holidays - you are entitled to only 4/5 of b/h if only working part-time so if you decide to make an issue of early close fridays you may find yourself losing pay/working extra hours to compensate for b/h

Perhaps part time work is all that a person could find? Perhaps it is all that is offered? Perhaps they can't afford full time childcare? What a load of jealous twaddle.

It is a good point about the bank holidays...something to look at.

Oh and Mondays and Friday's are very very hard to book off as annual leave for us full timers due to the part time workers hours and the risk of understaffing. It does get my goat when I hear things like this. Perhaps it is better if i leave the thread.

If Mondays and Fridays are hard to book off that's a management issue, not the fault of those who have agreements to work part time

Actually Hiding it's not "luck" - the company is simply fulfilling their LEGAL requirement to give serious consideration to letting people switch to a part-time role if they are the parent of a child under six.

I don't give a shit whether or not you apologise, but most other posters on here recognise the patronising (and institutionally sexist) nature of your comment.

I fail to see how, as a working mother, I am being sexist.

That's utter bollocks. I work part time because I can't afford the childcare to work any more and I can't afford to give it up. I do a 3 hr round commute into London for a profit of £3000 pa after travel and childcare. But it's £3000 that we need so I have to do it. I don't have the luxury of choice. My job share is on long term sick leave so I am doing a full time job in 3 days, longer hours, no overtime, no time in lieu. I have to use annual leave to cover the shortfall in bank hols because work wanted me to do Mondays.

It's tough to get annual leave? Oh diddums.

I work full time because I have to. If I did not myself and my DC would be homeless, there is no 'aww diddums' about not being able to get annual leave booked when it is the only time you can have any real quality time with the kids. I would love to have 'summer working' or to work part time, but to work part time would mean losing the roof from over our heads.

You talk like it is a choice to work full time as much as it is a choice to work part time.

From personal experience the part time workers do so because they do not need to work full time and only work to keep their hand in. So yes i do feel put out by someone quibbling a full timers priviledge not being extended to them.

wellwisher what a stupid post.

hardhat you sound like you have a chip in your shoudler about part time workers.

OP you should be entitled to 4/5th of that benefit if everything else is altered proportionally. your company could be accused of discriminating.

wow!! just read hardhats last post!! part-time workers only work to keep their hand in??? are you really that ignorant? don't you speak to any of your part-time colleagues?

But you're already part time and only work 4 days a week..I don't see why you shuold get any concession. Yes, on paper, it's unfair but if you're already working fewer hours it really doesn't matter in the long run.

I used to work 10-2 every day. My colleagues used to leave at on Fridays. I didn't complain, I was only iin a few hours every day anyway. You're being a bit petty.

OP not sure what you can do, you need to find out what the legal situation is. You should get 4/5 of what full time staff get for everything really.

And bloody hell all you part-time bashers! I now work three days a week, full time childcare is not finanacially viable, and I work waaay more than I should as it's rare that your actual workload is reduced to 3/5 of what it was previously!
hardhat just because your firm appears to pander to part time workers doesn't mean we get a great deal across the board. I am glad I'm off two days a week, but the three days I'm in are far more stressful than they were when I worked full time.

Bitterness is not a nice attribute.

Well wisher are you for real?!

I work 4 days a week and miss out on a friday non-contact afternoon ( i am a teacher) which full time staff get every 8 weeks. It would be nice to have the time, but would be unworkable and affect others if I tried to move the time to one of my days. i just enjoy my fridays, and have never tried to overturn the decision. I also find it hard enough to fit my work inot 4 days, so an afternoon away from the children and classroom would actually make my job harder

www.direct.gov.uk/en/Employment/Employees/Flexibleworking/DG_10027738

Employment rights of part-time workers

Part-time workers have the same statutory employment rights as any other employee. You do not have to work a minimum number of hours to qualify for employment rights.

As a part-time worker you have the right to:

receive the same rights of pay as full-time employees
not be excluded from training simply because you work part-time
receive holiday entitlement pro rata to comparable full-time workers
have any career break schemes, contractual and parental leave made available to you in the same way as for full-time workers
not be treated less favourably when workers are selected for redundancy

www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/detail?itemId=1074411968&type=RESOURCES

Pro rata contractual benefits
Part-time workers have the right to receive contractual benefits pro rata, ie in proportion to the hours they work.

This applies to benefits such as:

paid annual leave above the statutory minimum
company cars
staff discounts
health insurance
subsidised mortgages
profit-sharing and share-option schemes
For example, if you allow your full-time workers 30 days' paid annual leave, a part-time worker working three days a week would be entitled to 18 days.

I don't understand the logic of some posters

If you work 37 hours a week normally then over the summer you get 2 hours extra off but you're still paid for those hours

If you work 30 hours a week you should be entitled to nothing, after all you've already got 7 hours (unpaid!) off each week

Ludicrous

(Disclaimer: I don't work part time)

So the company values the OP enough to have her there 4 days and even ring her at home on her day off but doesn't want to extend benefits to her that other employees receive....

Is being a part time worker a sub species?! (according to some of the posters here it would seem so)

cumbria the point is OP doesn't get paid for teh friday. her salary is reduced by fifth, but the workers that leave at 3 on a friday arent working taht extra fifth tehy are cutting two hours off it but still getting paid for the two hours. tehrfore they are getting a benefit that op isn't getting simply for teh fact that tehy work on a friday. OP and other part-time staff should be treated fairly.

There are some right nobs on this thread isn't there?

OP- yanbu

Hiding lots of jobs are advertised at part time hours only, especially these days when companies are looking to cut costs. Someone who works in my team my soon be dropping to PT hours, not her choice!
Should she count herself lucky?