Warning for looking after my child

[WaxMeltAddict]

I've tried looking online to see my rights. Basically I started a new job in May and my youngest DD's childminder has been brilliant with working around my hours to look after DD so I can work.
I'm a single mum and Wednesdays are a hit difficult and I can't start until 12 (usually start at 10.30am)
My manager is lovely and understanding but I have been threatened by the big manager about a warning due to this.
Can they give a warning because I have find childcare for 2 hours sometimes?
I'm a hard worker, I'm always on time otherwise. I just want to know where I stand

If you work in a school kitchen then someone must be covering your hours from 10.30. It's not like paperwork that can just be held onto until you get there at 12.

You must know that you are pushing work onto others in the kitchen when you turn in late?

How far in advance do you agree what days you will be working? So they vary the hours, or is it always a case of “on a day you work, start time is 10:30”.

Do you ever have periods when they don’t offer you work?

You can't seriously think you are somehow legally protected from any issue from turning up very very late to work when you can't sort your childcare out? Your rights indeed!!

Of course they can, doesn’t matter what your contract is, if your scheduled you have to show up. Given it won’t happen often just apologise and explain this won’t happen from September. They could be nicer and more understanding but they absolutely don’t have to be.

Look, I'm not putting any blame on my employer, I'm not expecting them to work around me when I know it's me around them.
I'm just stressed out and upset because I'm loving my job and I'm worried when all I want to do is work to support my children, as any mum will do.
I do try my best, I don't sit here and think "oh well I can't go in until 12 so they deal with it" although I know that's the way I'm coming across

Difficult with a zero hours contract.

As a fellow single parent I'm going to say something supportive - it is difficult and i have encountered less than supportive attitudes with some people when something unexpected crops up.

Not with a job but with a course of study. Case in point - DD broke her arm at primary school in P.E. and of course I had to drop everything.

Ended up studying from home.

Looking back I would have done things differently and always, always had and prioritised a 'plan b' with back up child care.

It's still difficult though if you have no friends or family available. But there are dbs checked child care agencies you can pay at short notice if there is only a few sessions needed.

Ulimately you may have to leave the job if zero hours isn't working for you. Which is a shame as others have said only a short time to go until holidays and you seem like a hardworker.

Zero hours contracts really difficult can mess up your UC also.
Hang in there, I'm glad my DD is now past that point, there were so many challenges.

It’s a school kitchen though, you must be able to see that you arriving when lunch is presumably already happening is far too late for you to be useful?

You are wasting your time looking up your rights on this one. I understand why you feel put out if your line manager said ok but Big Manager has given you a clear indication that it doesn't work for them.

Instead of starting a losing battle, apologise, make absolutely sure you have cover for the remainder of term, and reassure Big Manager that you have it sorted and that it won't be any kind of problem going forward.

You say you’re not blaming your employer but you’re on here claiming you got a warning for looking after your child.

Informing your manager you’re going to be an hour and a half late doesn’t get the work done thst you should be doing in that time. If there’s no cover required that means your colleagues are forced to do your work on top of their own for no extra pay. Because you don’t have childcare sorted for your child. I

If your hours change regularly can you tell them you’re not available on Wednesdays until September?

I can’t believe how nasty and horrible some people are on this thread!!! Assuming from the start that she hadn’t informed anyone..
Can you apply for a work/life balance OP? Sounds like they are being pathetic..take take take kind of employer..

It doesn't affect anyone, no cover needs to be arranged what so ever. then why are they employing you? You must be doing something that someone else has to do when you can't.

Your work might agree for you to put back the time at the end of the day or some other day, or for you to take a pay cut as you're working fewer hours, but you cannot just be late!

PS you do sound hard working and committed. Let them keep seeing that and you will build up a lot more good will for any one-offs down the line. Hope it all works out ok.

Instead of starting a losing battle, apologise, make absolutely sure you have cover for the remainder of term, and reassure Big Manager that you have it sorted and that it won't be any kind of problem going forward.

I'd do this - there's only a few weeks left to term and if next September there's no issues with the times ( check that though as inset days can be midweek so if at different schools may encounter slightly different dates so have a plan) it's just getting to end of term currently.

@Peachee

I can’t believe how nasty and horrible some people are on this thread!!! Assuming from the start that she hadn’t informed anyone.. Can you apply for a work/life balance OP? Sounds like they are being pathetic..take take take kind of employer..

Take take take for wanting someone there at a time agreed to work in a fairly time specific role?

I think try to work with them and see if there's something that can be arranged for the next few weeks. Explain the solution for September onwards and hope they are understanding. Good luck.

Mumsnet is not the place for advice on this in my opinion, you need advice based on fact, not opinion. (Contact ACAS or Citizens Advice to discuss or at least there are a couple of fb groups around Law and HR employment one I found useful when I had a situation was UK Employment Law & HR Advice. )

What does your immediate line manager say when you've told them about the upper manager threatening a warning?

I am the kitchen manager of a small but busy school kitchen we do not stop once we walk through the door my assistant starts at 0945 every day as she gets the dining area ready and helps me if I still need to prep something at that time I have 3 x fresh main choices 2 types of veg 1 potato dish , plus a jacket potato bar with all the fillings and 2 types of homemade puddings/biscuits to feed 150 .Our service starts at 1145 so this would really impact me if my lady was an hour and a half late every wednesday.As much as I sympathise op as I was a single parent in the army for some time and that was bloody hard you have to put things properly in place it's not fair on others who probably have their own workload and it must impact them in some way because everyone has allocated tasks in a kitchen .get some proper childcare in place as you said you are ok from september you can book childminders and nannies in advance with a site called sitters a bit more probably than your childminder but if you weigh it up with job security I'd do that . Dont be the unreliable one

@Peachee

I can’t believe how nasty and horrible some people are on this thread!!! Assuming from the start that she hadn’t informed anyone.. Can you apply for a work/life balance OP? Sounds like they are being pathetic..take take take kind of employer..

What's pathetic about an employer expecting an employee to turn up on time each week and giving them a warning when this doesn't happen.

It sounds like although you're on a zero hour contract (I hate them) you have set hours and days each week. If your childminder can't do the hours you need then you need to find an alternative arrangement. It's great they've been flexible with you but you don't owe them anything, you're paying for a service that doesn't entirely cover your needs.

Your employer was right to warn you that arriving late repeatedly due to childcare is unacceptable now you need to work out if you're going to continue with unreliable childcare on Wednesday (and risk your job) and find an alternative more reliable arrangement.

@Peachee

I can’t believe how nasty and horrible some people are on this thread!!! Assuming from the start that she hadn’t informed anyone.. Can you apply for a work/life balance OP? Sounds like they are being pathetic..take take take kind of employer..

Well if they need someone to come in at 10.30 to prep for lunch then that’s when OP is needed Her work/life balance is of course important but when the job requires someone to be there at 10.30 then OP has to be. As a working parent I am sympathetic but if I were an employer I might not be

OP, you've said it won't be a problem again as DD's hours are secured from September.

So as long as you can get through the next couple of weeks until the end of term, don't worry about it.

:)

I find MN so very very pro-employer. I get that you need to work your contracted hours, but being late twice in 8 weeks is not the end of the world. People are doing their best in this life and I can't imagine how hard it must be for a single mum on, I assume, a relatively low income and a zero hours contract job. A little sympathy and flexibility goes a long way. WTF are people supposed to do sometimes.

In the office based work place, it maybe ok to be late for few times, but I think it's very unreasonable in school kitchen. I doubt that nobody being affected by you being late.

@Armychefbethebest

I am the kitchen manager of a small but busy school kitchen we do not stop once we walk through the door my assistant starts at 0945 every day as she gets the dining area ready and helps me if I still need to prep something at that time I have 3 x fresh main choices 2 types of veg 1 potato dish , plus a jacket potato bar with all the fillings and 2 types of homemade puddings/biscuits to feed 150 .Our service starts at 1145 so this would really impact me if my lady was an hour and a half late every wednesday.As much as I sympathise op as I was a single parent in the army for some time and that was bloody hard you have to put things properly in place it's not fair on others who probably have their own workload and it must impact them in some way because everyone has allocated tasks in a kitchen .get some proper childcare in place as you said you are ok from september you can book childminders and nannies in advance with a site called sitters a bit more probably than your childminder but if you weigh it up with job security I'd do that . Dont be the unreliable one

Good job you have enough time to be on MN in the middle of all that chaos though

If you can’t be there for the start of the shift you shouldn’t accept the shift at all.