To turn down a job after accepting because they lied re. hours

[MrsH99]

This is my first post although I have been a long-time lurker. I wasn't sure whether to post this here or on the 'Jobs' section.

Anyways, I have been looking for part-time work for a little while now and recently applied to a well-known budget shop that sell mostly frozen food (hint: It's not Iceland). It was advertised as part-time, three days over seven. At the interview I was told it would be 20 hours a week over four days and was even given the days and times of work. I thought great, that's exactly what I'm looking for, the hours was the biggest appeal to me of the job. I'm not really fussed what I'm doing work-wise or where it is, it's the hours that is most important to me.

I was offered the job and accepted. Went in on Wednesday to hand in some documents and asked again about hours so I was clear in my head what days and times it was going to be, was told again the same hours as at the interview.

Then on Friday, the manager casually mentioned in a conversation while I was in doing my training would I be okay doing a 7:30 to 7:30. It soon transpired they want me to do 12-hour shifts on a fairly regular basis i.e. at least a few weeks in the month from the sounds of it. Also, I have now just seen the rota for the next three weeks and every week I am working at least 30 hours, not the 20 it was advertised.

I'm totally gutted and feel really tricked that they weren't upfront about this at the interview. I do remember something being said at the interview about being "fully flexible" but I thought this meant with regard to the days and times worked and was fine with it - I didn't take it to mean that they could put me down to work any number of hours in a week. I can be fairly flexible with regards to days and the hours worked in that day, I just can't manage to work anywhere near full-time hours right now.

If it was up to me alone, I would tell them now that I do not want the job as it is not as advertised but my husband and SIL are putting pressure on me to accept it even though it won't work for us! I feel totally trapped into accepting this job because if I don't it is going to cause a huge argument with DH .

I suppose this post is a bit of a rant as I don't have anyone else to get opinions from - I don't have any friends as I don't enjoy socialising and I don't really have any family to speak to either.

AIBU in feeling so disappointed and angry that they blatantly lied about the hours? Are these sort of shady antics commonplace now in low-paid jobs (from my experience job-hunting recently, it seems they are or maybe I'm just unlucky).

So as not to dripfeed, the reason I want to work part-time is not to do with childcare or benefits. It's because I suffer what I suppose you could term 'gynaecological issues' and suffer with chronic migraines and I find it more manageable to work part-time especially when I have a lot of doctors and hospital appointments and am having a particularly bad time re. pain. DH acts supportive in the sense of running me around to appointments and taking time off when I've had surgeries (I've had four in the past five years) but I often get the feeling that below the surface he doesn't really quite 'get' how bloody difficult it is to do 'normal' things or just carry on when I'm in pain on a weekly basis or so dizzy from migraines I can barely stand up.

Any opinions welcome as I really don't have anyone else to speak to about this.

Changing hours around again this weekend? I'd run a mile, keep temping and looking for another job. It won't get better but worse.

Could a friend teach you driving?

Civil service promotes flexibility so that may be an option? Also some include working from home.

I worked in retail, back in the 90s, and in those days, you had set hours and days. When Sunday trading came in, it was originally optional, and was paid at double time if you wanted to work overtime on Sundays. It was pretty good.

But, by the time my kids started working in retail, they were having the same problems you're having. One had a 6 hour contract, yet usually worked full time, (and was expected to) but the company refused to change the contract to reflect this.

This is the way companies operate now, thanks to the relaxing of employment laws.

I think even if you turn this job down, you're going to come against this with most jobs in retail nowadays.

Learning to drive would be a good idea, but you'll need a job to be able to pay for a car. It's a bit of a catch 22 situation.

I don't know what to suggest. I'd want to turn the job down, but you need the money for driving lessons and a car, in order to try to get a better job.
Perhaps take the job, do it as long as you can, without making your health worse, and get some money saved. Meanwhile, keep looking for something more suitable.

Really baffled how you’ve not simply called the person who interviewed you or your boss (if they’re not the same person) and explained it’s more than the advertised hours and more than you feel able to do, and that the rota doesn’t reflect the conversations had around hours and shifts. If they say it stays as it is, you tell them you can’t and don’t want to do it, and take it from there. If you’ve been offered a 20 hour week and accepted a 20 hour week then it isn’t unreasonable to challenge it when you’re given a 30 hour week rota! Stand up for yourself.

... the person who had the job before me didn't have a problem with it...

How come they left then?

OP, if I were you I’d push back and say you can only do 20hrs for health reasons - if they are as short-staffed as you say, surely anything is better than nothing. But if they say no, turn it down. Your health isn’t worth it.

Your law degree is not so out of date that it's worthless. It's still a law degree. Focus on that and getting back into the legal route. Are you getting treatment for your endo?

I don't know what to suggest. I'd want to turn the job down, but you need the money for driving lessons and a car, in order to try to get a better job

So OP books an appointment for a driving lesson. Wednesday afternoon for instance Then FF change the rota again and she has to work Wednesday afternoon. OP cancels the lesson.

OP rebooks driving lesson for Monday afternoon FF change the rota again and she has to work Monday afternoon.

Rinse and repeat

Rinse and repeat. Sticks out a country mile that this will happen yet doesnt seem to have occured to anyone except me!

Ive been here in the early 2000s. Had to cancel many appointments including one to deal with a dental abscess for a
staff training course in another town which was THEN cancelled.

OP my DH is 23 years my senior. Hes never had the attitude that yours has though. I was the breadwinner when we were working due to DHS poor health. Post DHS massive heart attack and subsequent disability i became his full time carer. Hes 69 and now retired.

Your husband is 20 years older than you When his health starts to decline please keep the attitude he has shown to your health in mind. Because if it were me i would be returning the "favour"

Re his parents. Mine were similar. DM worked 50 years in factories Didnt retire until two months before her 80th birthday.

It has badly affected her health BADLY! My dad retired at the end of August. Hes 83 Was a taxi driver. Prior to that .....construction.

They never sent me or DB away though.

Are your in laws still alive? How is their health?

" the person who had the job before me didn't have a problem with it."

This shows that they dont see their staff as individuals but as bots and/or units.

His parents even shipped him and his sis to live with their gran growing up so that they could work more hours

So another womans labour enabled his parents to do this. What if shed said no.

A 20hr contract normally plies that is the minimum you will be given, and expected to work up to 40hrs if needed to cover staff shortages/sickness/holidays etc.

I thought that was the norm... 🤷

Well you're obviously entitled to turn it down for whatever reason you wish.

But in retail fixed hours are very unusual and I think you are unreasonable expecting that you will get the same shift pattern every week without any changes.

Why not make that clear at interview then Why lie?

My advice is to record job interviews on your phone. This is what people are going to have to start doing.

Its the fact that changes are at short notice that people object to.

How are people suppossed to book doctors appointments. This board is the first to complain when NHS time gets wasted.

I actually had a manager try to stop me attending an appointment . Id booked it for my day off but she changed my day off the night before. She told me yes it would be fine to attend the appointment but then changed her mind again an HOUR before the appointment time.

If companies are going to do this they need to make it clear at the beginning with their job advert and interview. They should not tell someone certain days and times and then completely change this. They should also be giving their staff notice of change of rota's. Companies need to realise that their staff are human beings not robots. We all have other commitments outside of work and are not at our employers beck and call 24/7.

@OrangeSlices998 I only have the number for the shop itself and the manager is off on Sundays. I don't even have an email address or a mobile number for anyone. I'm meant to start at 2pm tomorrow so I'm thinking of going in first thing in the morning and bringing this all up with them. I already know they're not going to change their minds and are going to expect me to do these hours.

@OtraCosaMariposa It wouldn't necessarily need to be the exact same shifts and days every week and I said that at the interview when that whole 'fully flexible' thing came up. But I do kind of want an idea of the number of hours they'll put me down for. And there is changing the rota and just plain taking the piss - since the rota went up on Friday night it has changed twice already.

@HelenaDove DH's parents both died fairly youngish - FIL was 72 and MIL was 71. They actually both in fact retired before retiring age due to ill-health which was mostly down to smoking to be honest but makes you wonder if the work and the hours they were doing had something to do with it too. They both retired in their mid to late 50s but up until then they just worked insane hours. Oh and recording interviews is a bloody brilliant idea lol never thought of that.

I guess the one thing I've come to realise from this thread and hearing how often this kind of thing happens, is that retail is really not for me. I kind of knew that already to be honest, it's deffo not what I want to do. I've just in the last half hour applied for a legal secretary job that's actually in the town I live and is a part-time job share so fingers crossed that might come to something...although I'm not getting my hopes up as they'll likely get a ton of applications!

The manager doesnt do Sundays Quelle surprise.

And the rota has changed twice in the last 48 hours See what i mean re OP trying to book driving lessons. Unless she has the power of premonition how is this even achieivable.

Your normal working hours are variable. Your working week will be organised according to a rota, which
is published on your Employee Portal on a weekly basis. You are responsible for keeping track of your scheduled shifts and any amendments made to the rota where necessary. In this regard, you are expected to show reasonable flexibility

At the rate they change the rotas you would have to check it every ten minutes.

You can't record a conversation without permission of all present.

Just write a letter stating you can't accept the job, as the hours are not what you said you were able to do.

State what hours you can do in the letter, then tell them if you don't hear from them, you'll assume the agreed hours are not acceptable.

Drop the letter off and go home.

The rota changing suggests that some staff are refusing to work certain times on the current one!

Op there are some employee reviews on a site called glass door
You need to take a look.

I'm angry reading this for 2 reasons, 1st reason is people advising you not to take this job - I'm assuming their posting from a place of privilege as remember there are people on MN who are earning silly money but think they are disadvantaged . And 2nd is the people who say that this is standard practice in retail jobs, wtaf!!! What if you were single parent or /and a student??? Are they taking the piss more because you aren't or do they do this to everyone??
I'm so mad at this.

And I agree with lying about the offer being withdrawn or if lying doesn't sit well with you (but remember, they lied first) then be awkward as fuck and only accept the shifts you can do, suffer the consequences as you have right on your side.

You don't need to mention your disability at interview to be covered by law. Phone acas for advice.

I think I will phone acas in the morning just to see what they say, can't really hurt, although I've already decided I'm not taking the job. I like the idea another poster suggested about writing a letter and dropping it off, I think I'll do that and assume they will just look for someone else and move on and keep applying for other things.

I had a talk with DH earlier about the job, told him everything I've said here about how I've been blatantly lied to and tricked into accepting a job that is not as advertised. I told him I felt totally trapped (i.e. by him making me feel I had to do it) and that actually I just wanted to run away and wished I had never applied for the job in the first place. He was sympathetic at the time but then later asked me what I'm working tomorrow so is obviously assuming that I will be doing it. I've decided I'm not and i actually don't care what happens because at the end of the day it is not him who is being expected to work until 730pm or even 10pm on stocktake days and then open again the next morning at 730am and do 12-hour shifts on my feet for that whole 12 hours. It was also dropped into the conversation on Friday that you often don't get your breaks and in fact, weirdly, the contract and nothing else I've seen, mentions anything about breaks so I get the impression I'm being expected to do these shifts without breaks. Fuck that.

@Helenadove I've had a look at the reviews on Indeed and Glassdoor - to say the majority of the reviews are truly awful would be a massive understatement.

I get the feeling the only thing that will make your DH take any notice would be when the hours impact on something that you are meant to be doing with him and encroaches on his time. If you were to take the job which you arent.

Unfortunately SOME of MN do think the only marriage vow that should be kept is the one you make to remain faithful.

In sickness and in health.....................not so much and your DH seems to fall into that camp too. He is not listening to you with regards to your health and this will breed resentment further down the line as he gets older and slows down.

I really hope that you get the job you want soon and answer your DH with a breezy "Sorry darling i have to go to work" when hes older and expects you to care for him.