To think we shouldn't have to work the day before Christmas Eve?

[blinddoorshyt]

I work in a bathroom shop.
We are closed over Christmas and were lead to believe we broke up on the 22nd
Turns out now we don't
On the 23rd we have to travel to Manchester (3 hours each way ) to have a buffet and games with the company owner.
We have to listen to a presentation on how the company's done this year.
If we don't go we will have a day deducted from our salary.
It's the day before Christmas Eve and we have to drive to Manchester to have picky food with the owner and play Christmas games.
Aibu to think it's ridiculous?
And we have been repeatedly told if we don't go we won't get paid and it will halt any progression in the company !

You chose that job...

I think it's reasonable to expect you to be in your usual place of work, because it's a normal working day.

Reasonable enough to expect you to be in Manchester, as long as all travel is paid for by the company and all travel is entirely within your normal working hours - so you set off for Manchester at 9am, from the shop. And you are back at the shop by 5pm. (Or whatever your contracted working hours are).

It hardly seems worth the effort and expense on their part, as you'll only be in Manchester for a couple of hours in that case (but so be it if that's all they want).

What world are you living in 🤣

Our office is closing the entire two weeks. I'm peeved as I intended to work to save my leave, but, I'll manage.

I do understand the travel for a forced fun party. Ours is on a Sunday, two & a half hours drive away for lunch & mini golf we could do locally. I think it's ridiculous & we refuse to go (DH same company). I don't want to spend my free day going to & from for a lunch when we've heaps to do at home before Christmas. We were pressured again today to attend, as DH & I are the only refusers, but, thankfully it's on a Sunday so they can't force us!

I'm a Spaniard and Christmas Eve dinner has always been the traditional celebration for families to get together instead of Christmas lunch in the Anglo speaking world. Our Christmas Day is like your Boxing Day - a day to relax and eating leftovers. The majority of people still work on the 24th of December until lunchtime, specially if they work in retail.

Your problem is working for a company that supposedly ends the year on the 20th but makes you travel six hours on the 23th for a presentation without reimbursing you for mileage. Frankly, I'll l raise with your manager you didn't expect this expense or having to travel so far the day before Christmas Eve because family commitments. If it's not in your contract, they need to negotiate...but you need to raise the issue.

Ok with what you’ve added:

Working that day - reasonable, even if there was a suggestion you wouldn’t be, they didn’t confirm that.

Having to travel 3 hours each way outside your working hours for mandatory training - honestly a bit dodgy for any role.

Doing this on 23 Dec - very unreasonable. Not because it’s not a normal working day, but because the roads and trains will be rammed. Employers should take that kind of thing in to account.

YABU

OP I'm with you. What a useless power trip by the owner. And opportunity lost to motivate and reward staff, instead making everyone miserable.

Would the 23rd have been a paid day for you before this was announced?

As a lot of other people have said 23rd and 24th are normal working days. You've got a really easy day on 23rd, basically a jolly with no actual work, you should be pleased.

The day before Christmas Eve is just a regular day.

A lot of trade companies, do 'break up' for Christmas as in they shut down and its compulsory to save annual leave for this time.

Whilst I wouldn’t want to do it, I’d just get it done and move on.

Your car can break down very easily and it's impossible to prove. Ideally you'll be at the roadside just within a mile from home and so unable to call the RAC and then you'll have to try and find someone to come and help.
I mean, it depends how big a story you want to tell and the possible consequences of lying. I mean it's a car not a CV. What's the worst that would happen?

Or D&V. That's always a good one. You can self-cert for that.

Is there no useful work that could be done in the shop (and why is a retail shop, assuming that's what it is, shut on the day people want to buy shit in a hurry for their loved ones)

I can't bear these hideous, enforced 'team building' days either, OP. I've endured far too many and now thankfully have a legitimate excuse not to, or at the very least only to go for part of the time.

I have a 1.5h commute to work each day, which is fine: I took that on as part of my contract and that is the distance to my workplace. 3 hours there and back to Manchester - that's without the terrible traffic on the periphery - when it's not your usual workplace is unreasonable. Docking a day's pay for not working a normal working day is fair enough, but saying it will 'halt your progression in the company?' Definitely unreasonable. I'm not sure where this sits from a legal standpoint, but it sounds questionable to me. At the very least, it's dictatorial and uncollegial.

If your employers want to retain their staff they're going exactly the wrong way about it.

I expect to have to work the 23rd and 24th every year. They're both normal working days.

I would absolutely not travel that distance for a 'do' for a retail job though. Are they paying the travel cost?

I feel your pain Op.
I work at a university and our previous vice chancellor always made sure we had at least 11 days over Christmas period off and always paid us a week early; this year a new vice chancellor isn't allowing us to finish on the Friday we have to work right up til 7pm Christmas Eve! Also won't be paid til Christmas Eve either. Completely screwed us over! 🤬😤

It's horrendously unreliable though. I used to do this journey weekly last year.
There were issues more than 50% of the time.
So if you HAVE to be there and they won't accept train issues as reasons for being late I would drive.
Although I don't really think it's safe to drive 6-7 hours in a day...
And realistically it's going to take closer to 4 hours each way Newcastle to Manchester...

So if the days that the shop is closed were taken out of your annual leave allowance as you said, then you must have that extra day AL that was going to be used for the Monday.
So just take it on the Monday and don't go to the party. They can't halt progression for this.

They've done nothing wrong. Offered people the chance to earn some extra money at Christmas time for attending a party and feel part of a bigger thing. They're just a bit silly not thinking about travel and Christmas.

Why not just ring in sick?

For many companies it's not, it depends on where Christmas Day fall in the calendar.

Even in Australia, most companies are closing for business on the 20th of December except retail.

The OP really needs to raise her contract with her manager.

Known as ‘Mad Friday’ my way (NW). Last Friday before Christmas when many people finish work and carnage in town centre pubs and bars ensues!

So you want Christmas Eve Eve off? It's a normal working day, ffs...

Some of the responses on here feel a touch harsh to me - yes it is a normal working day as any other, but you’re being asked to do something outside of your normal work requirements. If they wanted you to open the shop on the 23rd when previously they’d said it would be closed, it would be annoying but tough luck. But I don’t think anyone would be that keen on doing 6 hours of (seems to be unpaid?) travel that close to Christmas. Feels like a slightly inconsiderate ask from the tops of the company to be honest. They’ll think they’re being really thoughtful to offer a fun Christmas do, but perhaps haven’t realised the true impact on those employees furthest away. You could have all had team Christmas Do’s for your individual shops, and watched the presentation together online. As the others have said, a working day for a Christmas do would be a fun get out of work day, but the travel is what makes it not so.

My advice would be to check your contract - if there’s nothing in there about the travel you may have grounds to say they can’t make you go and can’t deduct the pay (though that could make things feel tricker with top brass/managers), or take it as annual leave if you can, or say you’re not going and take the pay hit.