Unfair shift allocation.

[Catchingbabies]

DP works in a retail store, varied shifts on a rota. They have just reopened after lockdown and DP given her shifts. She’s been scheduled to work every single Saturday and every single Sunday for the next 7 weeks. She is a part time worker so does 24 hours (3 days). No other colleague in her department is working every single weekend day and their shifts are more spread out. She raised it with her manager who basically told her tough that’s how they’ve been allocated. Is there any way she can tackle this unfair allocation? Her manager is well aware that childcare is difficult at the weekends due to covid. She’s not asking for weekends off just to do her fair share and not all of them.

What does her contract say?

Why does she think she's been given these shifts not colleagues?

Contract states shift work Monday - Sunday. Manager states she’s been given these shifts as she was one of the last back from furlough and the others have already specified their preferences to not work weekends. They were called back 1 by 1 as store traffic increased, it wasn’t her choice when to go back.

I’m afraid there is nothing she can do. Her contract states mon-sun.

I agree it's not fair, bit this is the risk when doing shift work, especially in retail and hospitality when the busy periods of evenings and weekends.
Can she can ask (a) colleague/s to swap the occasional shift/s so hers are more spaced out?

I'm almost certain that if she has a word with her colleagues, a few of them would be happy to swap at least one shift with her, which should help.

Managers often don't think about the lives of their employees, they just want the shifts covered, and seeing as it's within the terms of the contract, it's what they've done. Unfair of course but there's not a huge amount that can be done about it other than speak to colleagues. Definitely worth a try though!

This is probably a stupid question, but why does Covid make childcare difficult at weekends? Why can't you do childcare?

@Moondust001 I’m a midwife and work days, nights, weekends, on call etc.

Childcare is difficult at weekends due to covid as my friend who used to be our back up childcare if we were both working now isn’t happy to take the children as it takes them over the ‘group of 6’ that is allowed. Neither of us have living parents, partner is an only child and my sister lives 40 minutes away so we are very stuck.

My work is happy to not put me in the weekends my partner is working but financially that means me giving up £24 an hour Sunday rate so my partner can earn minimum wage. It makes no financial sense.

If the contract says weekend working then there’s not a lot she can do. She accepted that contract. Is this about you missing out on enhanced weekend pay?

There is nothing she can do other than try to find somebody willing to swap.

So this is actually about money rather than fairness or Covid, in reality. Yes, income is important, but it isn't the case that there is no childcare available - it is the case that you don't want to do that childcare because you earn more money at the weekend. I am afraid that is about choices, not rights, so yes, I think you need to try to make it work or she needs to find other work.

Does yourcDP know what may happen after thev7 weeks? Will the shifts then be split up for fairly?

Is it a case that those called back sooner From furlough have Already worked similar shifts (weekends) so now it is your DP turn to be fair the the other employees?

I also note previous poster’s comments about it also being financial. Nite that there are agency babysitters and nannies you can hire fir a few hours on a Sunday if you need to work. The good thing is that shop hours are reduced in a Sunday so I’m sure between the shop hours your DO works and the hours you could work in a Sunday plus perhaps using sons of this type of child care you could work a full Sunday shift. Just might fall over into judicial hours. However, mid wife shifts I’m sure cover a 24 hour period.

It’s less favourable treatment of a part-time worker. She can most definitely seek a change and equality with her full time colleagues. It’s not about her contract, it’s about being treated differently. It sounds like a legislative breach.

www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2000/1551/contents/made

I'd quit. It's absolutely unfair and it sounds like you can make the lost ££ up with weekend working yourself.

[quote CherryPavlova]It’s less favourable treatment of a part-time worker. She can most definitely seek a change and equality with her full time colleagues. It’s not about her contract, it’s about being treated differently. It sounds like a legislative breach.

www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2000/1551/contents/made[/quote]
Why are you assuming the colleagues are full time?

@CherryPavlova is right though - the question is why was your DP not also given the opportunity to provide shift preferences as her manager said everyone else was and seemingly these were largely honoured. There is an air of discrimination.

She needs to explain that childcare for that number of weekends in a row with the new covid restrictions will be difficult to secure and she would appreciate some support in altering her Rota. She should provide what she can do so that the problem is reduced to bare minimum. Employers are being encouraged to be supportive where covid restrictions cause issues.

Contractually there is nothing that's been broken, it's just a bit shit on behalf of the manager.

The fact you lose better paid shifts is irrelevant in terms of her employment contract and the needs of their business. If it's an important factor to your household finances, then dp should probably submit a flexible working request and/or get a different job with weekdays only.

It’s less favourable treatment for a part-time worker

OP has not given any indication that the other workers are full time, there are lots of part timers in retail. But even if that was the case, there is no evidence that she has been given weekend shifts because she is part time. It seems she was given them because she was last back from furlough. Perhaps it was considered fair because she has had more time off on paid leave and others have been doing weekends.

Hopefully when the next seven week rota is drawn up, the shifts will be shared out more equally.

There is an air of discrimination.

One the basis of which protected statistic are you thinking of? I cannot see any discrimination.

flowery - Fair point, I was assuming majority were full time. If they are then there is potentially a breach. its irrelevant what the contract says. You don't need everyone to be full time - juts one full time employee to have been treated more positively.

One the basis of which protected statistic are you thinking of? I cannot see any discrimination.

Yes exactly we don't have enough information here from the OP hence my choice of words. For some reason this person wasn't given the same opportunities as her colleagues were and it's worth exploring why.

”You don't need everyone to be full time - juts one full time employee to have been treated more positively.”

Completely wrong. To demonstrate unlawful less favourable treatment as a part timer under the Part Time Regs OP would have to have reason to believe her part time status was the reason for this.

If most of her colleagues who have been treated more favourably are part time there is absolutely no reason to believe less favourable treatment was on the grounds of part time status.

You say your work has not put you in for some shifts, so which poor sod is doing more than their fair share of the less popular shifts? I did shift work for 37 years and have heard every single excuse from sick, lame and lazy as to why they were a special case and couldn't do certain shifts.
It really got me down year after year.

@TweeBree

I'd quit. It's absolutely unfair and it sounds like you can make the lost ££ up with weekend working yourself.

I agree.

flowery Of course there has to be consideration that is is due to being part-time. If everyone else is part-time too, it won't go anywhere.

The OP needs a written statement of reason in accordance with the Act as a first step. To simply say bad luck, is wrong, There may well be a way to address the issues.

"6.—(1) If a worker who considers that his employer may have treated him in a manner which infringes a right conferred on him by regulation 5 requests in writing from his employer a written statement giving particulars of the reasons for the treatment, the worker is entitled to be provided with such a statement within twenty-one days of his request.

(2) A written statement under this regulation is admissable as evidence in any proceedings under these Regulations.

(3) If it appears to the tribunal in any proceedings under these Regulations—

(a)that the employer deliberately, and without reasonable excuse, omitted to provide a written statement, or
(b)that the written statement is evasive or equivocal,
it may draw any inference which it considers it just and equitable to draw, including an inference that the employer has infringed the right in question."

On the face of It, it seems unfair that others have been able to state their preference but once person hasn't so has to suck up all the shifts no one else wants.
I know this would never happen with our current manager. Everyone has to do their turn of having a few rubbish shifts plus a run of good ones. The manager even puts herself, deputies and senior workers on the same rota. She says if everyone does a little no one does a lot, which seems a lot fairer.

Manager states she’s been given these shifts as she was one of the last back from furlough and the others have already specified their preferences to not work weekends
So how long between the first ones going back and your PT? Because in essence, she got all these weekends off that the others back would have had to work. It would therefore be fair that she now makes up for it. You had all that time to ask to work Sundays and earn more.

@Escapedtothecountry I didn’t say my work has not put me in for those shifts. I said they could but it makes no financial sense. Weekend shifts are very popular at my trust due to the enhanced pay so most people want them. There is no ‘poor sod’ covering.

The way it has always worked previously at my partners work is everyone is rota to take their turn at the weekend shifts which averages working 1 in 6 weekends. I then arrange my shift to not work that weekend or if I can’t our friend has the children. I am then free to work the other 5 weekends if needed.

I can’t not work 7 weekends in a row. That’s the problem. She has no issue working the weekends. I have no issue working around her weekends but when it’s 7 weeks in a row working every single weekend with no childcare available it’s not possible.