to not understand zero hour contracts

[Samcro]

never given it much thought until today.
how does it work, how does holiday and sickness work?

The majority of commerce in this area is food manufacturing. Most staff are agency on ZCs. Most work is shift work. So, you get up at 5am having sorted childcare (god knows how if you have little support), travel to work ready to clock on for 6am - only to be told that there's no work for you today.

If you refuse to take work from that agency without some guarantees, well you'll be penalised.

Repeat process, but change times to a 10pm start.

Not saying they don't work for some, but more needs to be done in terms of unscrupulous employment practices.

These agencies also reset the clock using these contracts i.e. let people work for a certain duration (until in terms of employment law they become equal to a paid worker), then break the contract temporarily so they start at the beginning again.

I've worked on one for a consultancy. There was a very clear link between when they got contracts in and when work was offered so I didn't feel exploited but there was no security and only limited flexibility in hours/days.

It was (for me) better than nothing but must be totally unworkable for many.

I used to work on a zero hours contract as a health care assistant for the NHS when I was a student. I would phone and tell them what hours I wanted, and they would give me a choice of wards to work on. Occasionally there would be no work available but usually I would pick and choose my shifts. This is perfect for a student as I could work lots in the holidays and very little in term time. This is what zero hours contracts should be for - not for when the employer expects the employer to do regular hours and penalise them if they don't.

Basically zero hours work is fine if it's either:
a) for beer and holiday money, or
b) paid at such a high hourly rate that the good times easily cover the bad.

For low paid work to pay the bills, it is the work of the devil.

Friend in care work couldn't even supplement it doing odd jobs for me, because although the company doesn't ban her from working elsewhere, if she weren't available at 2 hours' notice they'd punish her by withdrawing hours.

Zero hour contracts if properly managed should be fine and offer people with other commitments more flexibility.

I would always tell my zero hours staff that all though you are on zero hours your flexibility makes your earning potential higher. I.E I had one women who would work 70 hours a week on split shifts and was raking it in. I had others who would say to me 'well this week I don't want to work that breakfast, or that shift or that shift etc so they would end up with a lot less hours'.

I would always try and give people the same days off etc so they could plan their lives. However, when you are running businesses like restaurants and hotels that really isn't easy and yes you will have to send people home because you are quieter than expected - the first to be sent home would be the one who was hungover/had a face on them/was moaning about something or other.

On the flip of that I worked for someone who was shit at managing a rota and would over staff every shift and then send loads of people home.

sorry I didn't come back.
thanks for all the posts. I get it better and am glad npw he didn't get the job.