AIBU in expecting time off in lieu for a work event?

[VirtuosoRidiculoso]

Hello

First time AIBUer, Bit scared....
I work for a small charity. I suggested we have a fundraiser & all agreed.
Now I am told - in passing- that staff will not be refunded their hours in TOIL.
I think this is unfair as it's outside of my work hours.
Contract permits TOIL but for some reason this is something we "chose" to do and it has a fun social aspect so it should be done in our free time.

Who is BU? Manager or I?

YABU.

1. You suggested it FFS!
2. Most people are paid a salary to do a job. For most jobs that means doing what needs to be done, which may include a bit of out-of-hours working.
3. If you want to clock on and clock off at exact times or be paid precisely by the hour I suggest you get a job where those are the working conditions.

I work for a charity. We get toil for any work events we attend, even if they are fun. If you are working at the event, you should get toil.

YABU and greedy don't seem to have a very charitable approach to your job.

I work for a charity. If I am asked to work extra time (e.g. to attend a weekend conference as I have been next weekend) I would take TOIL.

If I volunteer to help out at a fundraising event e.g. an evening social fund raiser, that is my choice and I would not take TOIL.

Just because you work for a charity doesn't mean you should be as willing as as a volunteer to give your time freely to the charity. It's a job like any other.

I presume you suggested it in terms of how to overcome funding issues, not ooh this sounds like a jolly!

Sadly I think if they are against you having toil you need to suck it up for one evening, but perhaps be less willing in the future if it grates.

Out of interest - did the amount you raised at your event exceed the relative value of all the hourly staff time if added up?

Not sure I really follow the "it's for charity" argument. Do people who work for charities not get the same rights as the rest of us??

Yes. And most of us don't expect TOIL for attending work events.

juneau - I am paid a salary to to a job for a certain number of hours each week. It's in my contract. My contract also asks for flexible working. So I do that.

My contract does not say "work an extra 10 hours per week unpaid". So I don't. I will get up at 6 am on a Saturday to drive across the country for an event after working an event until midnight the night before but that's working flexibly and so I get TOIL.

As a note, that is pretty much the norm in the majority of charities I've worked for. The only one where huge amounts of unpaid overtime was the norm went through 3 fundraising officers in the last year I was in touch with them, at least one after several months of being signed off sick with stress. I can guarantee that cost them more than treating their fundraisers well would have done.

Of course this presumes that the OP is a fundraiser or similar and doing this as part of her job.if it's just something extra, then YABU. I'm doing a sponsored sky dive for my charity next year and I won't be paid for that.

I have worked for lots of charities and TOIL would be the norm in my experience.
Apart from the last place I worked where I was made redundant, had to work a further month and during that month was expected to do a full day working at the London Marathon with no TOIL.
Pound of flesh anyone?

OP, if you were being asked to attend events like this all the time then I'd agree, however for one offs I think YABU.

No one's contract says 'work an extra 10 hours per week unpaid'! But most contracts that I've worked under say something like 'usual hours of work at 9-5, but on occasion you may be asked to work a bit extra in order to complete a task'. IMO that's normal. If you do an extra day then yes, you would expect to be compensated, but many jobs have social duties attached, such as entertaining clients, and you wouldn't expect time off or extra pay - its just part of your job.

Thank you for the range of opinions.
Apologies for not being clear - its a fundraising idea I put forward and am doing all/most of the work in the run up. It's not voluntary for me, I'll turn up to ensure the smooth running of the event.

Previous charities I have worked for have all offered TOIL for out of office events.
I won't push it and have had a chat with management but the reasoning was pretty flimsy from my pov. A clarification in protocol would be helpful in these grey areas. It's partly the principle of the matter.
I'm happy to do my part for the charity but as others have mentioned, it is a job that pays my bills and I have employers rights like everyone else. I don't think because something is the norm, that makes it OK (e.g. unpaid overtime etc).
It's not great to have a reputation as work-shy or greedy and I wouldn't say I was either - I'm just trying to lead a healthy and balanced working life. I work my hours and that should be enough.
I'm not completely 100% happy in the organisation I have to say so perhaps that is clouding my judgment.
I've already said to the manager that I will respect their decision... but that some clarification of the toil policy would be appreciated. It's very awkward and unprofessional to have a discussion over TOIL because its subjective. Perhaps I should have just accepted it............

The discussion about employment in charities is one that always divides people but it's a can of worms!

Thank you for taking the time to reply.

juneau - the last three contracts I've had have been £Xk per annum, X hours per week, sometimes flexible working/unsociable hours will be expected. TOIL to make up for that is what is normal in the charity sector in my experience.

And yes, half an hour here and there you don't get that for, but most fundraisers and events peogle are working evenings and weekends as normal. It's a core part of their job. You wouldn't tell a barmaid "you don't get paid for hanging out in a pub on a Friday night". You'd say it's her job.