Work hours to be reduced

Kou

I've been in my current job for over 1 year, working full time 5 days per wk. I asked my boss if I can reduce days to 4 (child care costs too expensive). There is extra staff on the day I asked for off each wk, so I wasn't asking for something that was going to make things difficult for anyone. I even said that I would work the 5 days if needed when other staff are on holiday.
Anyway, after taking a week to "make her decision" my boss came back to me and said no, she wants me to continue working the hours I am, and on top of that she said that in September she will hire an extra staff member and will cut my hours down to 3 days, but will space it out over 5 days.
I really want to tell her to stuff her job! And now would be a good time to so it as holidays are coming up so we will be short on staff. However, I don't want to cut off my nose to spite my face, but if my working hrs are cut & over 5 days, can I even claim job seekers allowance? I'm pretty sure I can't because I'm working a few hrs every day so I wouldn't be available to work part time elsewhere.
I have children and have to take into account I'm lucky to have work at all..but I can't see myself being happy working for summer knowing my hrs will be slashed come sept.
Please, any thoughts or suggestions?!

Thanks

tatli_lokma

What is in your contract/ work conditions? Your work hours cannot be changed without your consent. However, as you were the one who initiated the discussion about changing work hours, you are going to have to accept that either way the outcome is not what you are going to want it to be - you either accept the 22.5 (or whatever 3 days hours is for you) over 5 days, or you continue to work 5 days. You are unlikely to get the 4 days you want.

Seems two things are going on here - your employer is either just making a point of being the 'boss' and wants you to know who calls the shots, or by raising the subject of working 4 days, you have made her rethink her staffing levels, and in effect done yourself out of a job. By admitting you can do your work over 4 days and not 5, you have highlighted to her that she may be able to work things out so that she has 2 part-timers working alternate shifts, meaning that holiday cover etc is never compromised. It might be a genuine business decision - one she had not thought of until you raised it. Now that she has looked into it, perhaps she is thinking to take on someone on a CE scheme, or a work assist programme, meaning she will be able to save some money.

Or a third possibility is that she doesn't want you there anymore, and you have given her a reason to get rid of you.

You do not have to accept the contractual changes, but this means you might have no option but to resign or be let go.

I would not advise making a stand and leaving her high and dry, or making things more difficult - a good reference is invaluable in the current jobs market and the last thing you want is for her to tell a new employer that you wanted to change hours and when it wasn't possible you walked out and left her up the creek without a paddle.

I think your best bet is to take a few days to think it over and think through all the options and then approach her to discuss the best way of working things. Perhaps if you suggest to her that you work your hours over 3 or 4 days she might be agreeable. The key to this is to sit down and actually have a business case ready to put forward - make sure you explain not only the advantages to you of your suggestions, but the advantages to her also. It is a business and she will be looking for the best solution for the business, so you need to make sure it is not just a personal request, but that it is sound logic too.

Perhaps also point out to her that from a cost perspective, PRSI costs for 2 part-timers might well be higher than for one person working 3 or 4 days. Of course, as I mentioned earlier, depending on the circumstances she is hiring the new hire under, this might not apply, but it is worth mentioning anyway. If you have a search around the internet, there is a good bit of information out there on the pros and cons of having 2 part time workers instead of one full timer, so do your research before you say anything to her.

Kou

Thanks for that advice! All taken on board and you're right, I'll take a few days before speaking with her again. I'll post here what happens for anyone going thru something similar in future!
Thanks again, much appreciated

LegacyUser

I would advise you to say nothing to her at the moment. If you leave your job due to this she will give you a bad reference.
In regards to social welfare you can only claim for the days you are not working. If you are working 24 hours a week over 5 days you won't be able to claim from welfare.

At this stage you need to look up welfare.ie - in the search section put in part time work.
You will then find out what you can claim if you were to work 1,2 or 3 full days a week.
I would then work out your salary working 1,2 or 3 days a week and add it to the above.
Multiply this by 52 weeks to get your new earnings a year.
If you put these figures into www.taxcalc.ie it will give you your new monthly or weekly salary after tax. Also I would find out the cost of child care if you were to work 1,2 or 3 days a week.

After you do this I would then have a chat with her as the previous post said.
I would let her know in a nice way that anyone working part time will only get paid for the days they don't work by social welfare. Most people won't work part time to be worse off.
I would have all you facts to hand before talking to her. Also think of how you working for them is of benefit to them. Remind her if you do overtime or if you have taken charge of something she does not like doing or if your the only person who is able to do certain aspects of work your company does.
Also if after this she mentions working 24 hours over 5 days a week I would just say I will need to think about this. I would then start to look for a 3 day a week job before she changes your hours in September.
You need to remember it is easier to get a job when your in a job.

StillWaters

Have you applied for your parental leave? They do not have to allow you take it one day a week, but they might. You cannot claim JSB for this day, but you cannot claim it if you work a 4 day week anyway.

eastbono

If you look for your days to be reduced then you will be disqualified from receiving jobseekers.