Shift swapping

[WhatInTheAcasIsGoingOn]

Posting on behalf of a friend. He works in a fast food place and rotas are posted around a month in advance. Each week the employees work different days. There is no pattern at all so planning ahead over a month is impossible and you'd need to officially request specific days to be avoided a month in advance. Some weeks you could work 10 in a row because week one he's in Wed to Sun and in week 2 it's Mon to Friday.

Friend, Let's call him Bill, needed a specific day off and asked if a shift swap could happen. He found someone in his same role, applied for the change, filled in the paperwork with the colleague and had it approved. The rota was officially changed by the manager. Bill did the other person's shift but when his swapped shift came, the other person had called in sick. Bill was called into work and threatened with a disciplinary if he didn't because he would be classed as a no show for his own shift (which it no longer was). Bill had to cancel his plans and go to work. He's furious. Not only with the colleague but with the boss. The shift was swapped. The rota was changed. He completed the shifts he was required to. Is this right or not? Google isn't telling him anything useful.

Oh no that's really unfair on bill!!! I would have been furious. I would say his boss was being a chancer and looking after himself knowing that was an easy way to bully someone into a shift. Can he take it further?

I'm with Bill. The shift was no longer his once the swap was formally agreed, it was the other staffs responsibility.

If there is a formal process to swap shifts, with paperwork that had to be 'approved' then there is no way it was Bill's responsibility to cover the shift.

I would say there is some grey area if staff informally swap amongst themselves in a WhatsApp group they've set up themselves.

@UsingChangeofName that's what I think too. There is no informal shift exchanges allowed at all. You submit a request, two forms signed by both parties and if approved, the manager changes the rota. If not, then you don't get the exchange. I say once it's approved by management then the shift is the other person's responsibility as if it was always on the rota. Bill had to work 6 shifts that week straight after 5 in a row the week before. 11 days in a row when he really needed that day off and it cost him quite a lot of money dumping his plans because he was called in at opening time so had no notice to cancel. I would have turned my phone off personally and ignored him calling.

I know it is easy for any of us to say when we aren't the ones being badly treated at our place of work, but if he were dismissed for not coming in, he'd have a case for unlawful dismissal there. What poor employers like this rely on, is the fact that 'Bill' is too worried about losing his job, to stand up for himself.

Perhaps suggest that Bill gets in touch with ACAS for further advice if it is a small business. If it is a bigger company then he could speak to HR.

Personally, if I'm not rostered to work I do not answer any work related calls. They aren't paying me, they don't get my time. Manager was 100% in the wrong and depending on how Bill feels about it, I would take it higher. It was not Bills shift. Bill was not on the roster. But if he's a 17tr old kid that wants to keep his fast food job, Bill probably can't say anything.