Don't want to implicate myself at work, but need to vent
Discussion
I'm gonna have a rant here, because I can't do it on Facebook.
Bit of background - Middle of last year I started a 0 hour contract at my local entertainment venue as a stage tech. Installing for live shows, sound/video, that kinda thing. I was a casual while there were five full time members of staff, with one other guy who had a 60hr/month contract. Around September time this guy left, and his 60hr contract was offered to me. Hell yeah, well up for that. I loved working there. I do some freelance work too and I had a few dates booked in, so I responded to the offer with an excited "YES! But I do have other work booked in that will need to be taken into consideration". I was told that for the most part it shouldn't be a problem.
Fast forward a couple of weeks, and I get an email saying that the contract offer has been postponed until the new year because they can't work around with the days I had booked elsewhere. Now, I had a solid month in December already booked with them. The contract could've started then. But whatever.
Come the new year I approach them about the contract and I get told that it is no longer on offer due to the contract being scrapped entirely. Something to do with there not being enough work to warrant five full timers plus an ad hoc 60hr contract. Seemed reasonable, it sucked but I wasn't about to kick up a fuss. I still really wanted a proper shot at this job so I let it go. Besides, I had loads of freelance stuff coming up so I wasn't about to go hungry.
In the first week of January a bunch of us went out for drinks after work. The five full timers and a few of the casuals. With us was a new boy, 18 years old, worked at a supermarket. He wasn't really drinking so I asked him what was up. "I don't want to get drunk in front of these guys, I want to make a good impression". Why, I ask? "They've offered me a 20hr/week contract".
Are you f***ing s***ting me.
20hrs a week. Or 80hrs a month. By the sounds of it the 60hr/month contract offer has been taken away from me, upgraded to 80hr/month, and then offered to this kid. I didn't say anything to him. Just wandered off and started talking to someone else.
I start watching this kid like a hawk. Suddenly his name pops up on the rota a lot. More than my name. I send another email to the boss, making sure to not let on that I know what's going on. I just want to make sure that there is still work coming up as I haven't been on the rota much, and if there has been any movement on the possible 60hr/month contract. Apparently there's still plenty of work (even though I'm now doing 1 day a week, whereas before I was doing 4 or 5) but the contract is still a no go.
I don't know what to do. Should I say something? Ask if I did something wrong to have the contract offered elsewhere? I don't want to make a thing of it, there are so many casual workers that I can just see me being thrown to the wayside if I make any kind of drama.
Tl; dr - I was offered 60hr contract, offer postponed, 80hr contract then offered to some kid instead.
Bit of background - Middle of last year I started a 0 hour contract at my local entertainment venue as a stage tech. Installing for live shows, sound/video, that kinda thing. I was a casual while there were five full time members of staff, with one other guy who had a 60hr/month contract. Around September time this guy left, and his 60hr contract was offered to me. Hell yeah, well up for that. I loved working there. I do some freelance work too and I had a few dates booked in, so I responded to the offer with an excited "YES! But I do have other work booked in that will need to be taken into consideration". I was told that for the most part it shouldn't be a problem.
Fast forward a couple of weeks, and I get an email saying that the contract offer has been postponed until the new year because they can't work around with the days I had booked elsewhere. Now, I had a solid month in December already booked with them. The contract could've started then. But whatever.
Come the new year I approach them about the contract and I get told that it is no longer on offer due to the contract being scrapped entirely. Something to do with there not being enough work to warrant five full timers plus an ad hoc 60hr contract. Seemed reasonable, it sucked but I wasn't about to kick up a fuss. I still really wanted a proper shot at this job so I let it go. Besides, I had loads of freelance stuff coming up so I wasn't about to go hungry.
In the first week of January a bunch of us went out for drinks after work. The five full timers and a few of the casuals. With us was a new boy, 18 years old, worked at a supermarket. He wasn't really drinking so I asked him what was up. "I don't want to get drunk in front of these guys, I want to make a good impression". Why, I ask? "They've offered me a 20hr/week contract".
Are you f***ing s***ting me.
20hrs a week. Or 80hrs a month. By the sounds of it the 60hr/month contract offer has been taken away from me, upgraded to 80hr/month, and then offered to this kid. I didn't say anything to him. Just wandered off and started talking to someone else.
I start watching this kid like a hawk. Suddenly his name pops up on the rota a lot. More than my name. I send another email to the boss, making sure to not let on that I know what's going on. I just want to make sure that there is still work coming up as I haven't been on the rota much, and if there has been any movement on the possible 60hr/month contract. Apparently there's still plenty of work (even though I'm now doing 1 day a week, whereas before I was doing 4 or 5) but the contract is still a no go.
I don't know what to do. Should I say something? Ask if I did something wrong to have the contract offered elsewhere? I don't want to make a thing of it, there are so many casual workers that I can just see me being thrown to the wayside if I make any kind of drama.
Tl; dr - I was offered 60hr contract, offer postponed, 80hr contract then offered to some kid instead.
Edited by CasuallyDressed on Tuesday 2nd February 19:02
CasuallyDressed said:
Du1point8 said:
suspect he is cheaper... plus do you have any legal aspect being a zero contract worker, Im not sure, maybe time to move on as they want the cheaper person.
Not cheaper. All the casuals are on the same rate.I know a person who got a permie position in a bank as he was dating the PM's daughter... it pissed off the contractors as he was doing the job of a £400 a day person but had no experience and wondered why we would not help him... PM brought us together and we told him that reputation had to be earned with experience and knowledge, not with dating the bosses daughter... PM said no more and walked out... in the 2 years I was there he was covered in cotton wool and could do no wrong, got kicked out when his daughter dumped him...
Sometimes its not what but who you know.
ikarl said:
Don't mean to offend, but is 'some kid' better than you?
The point I'm trying to make, probably very poorly, is there will be a reason for him getting the contract
I would certainly not expect so. I'd been doing that job for months, as well as freelancing in the same area for nearly 2 years, while he's been stacking shelves.The point I'm trying to make, probably very poorly, is there will be a reason for him getting the contract
If he was miraculously better than me then he must be an extraordinarily fast learner.
CasuallyDressed said:
ikarl said:
Don't mean to offend, but is 'some kid' better than you?
The point I'm trying to make, probably very poorly, is there will be a reason for him getting the contract
I would certainly not expect so. I'd been doing that job for months, as well as freelancing in the same area for nearly 2 years, while he's been stacking shelves.The point I'm trying to make, probably very poorly, is there will be a reason for him getting the contract
If he was miraculously better than me then he must be an extraordinarily fast learner.
Not what you want to hear, but I suspect it is quite a lot to do with the fact that that they offered you the contract and you effectively said "great, I will fit it around my other job".
Absolutely nothing you can do about the other bloke getting the contract really, just keep asking for more hours while you look for another job.
Absolutely nothing you can do about the other bloke getting the contract really, just keep asking for more hours while you look for another job.
randlemarcus said:
Not what you want to hear, but I suspect it is quite a lot to do with the fact that that they offered you the contract and you effectively said "great, I will fit it around my other job".
I suspect exactly the same. Never give away information that you don't need to as honesty is not always the best policy.CasuallyDressed said:
I do some freelance work too and I had a few dates booked in, so I responded to the offer with an excited "YES! But I do have other work booked in that will need to be taken into consideration". I was told that for the most part it shouldn't be a problem.
You: I'll take the work but you need to fit around me and my other commitments.Him: Yes please no problem.
Who would you employ?
ikarl said:
Don't mean to offend, but is 'some kid' better than you?
The point I'm trying to make, probably very poorly, is there will be a reason for him getting the contract
that ' this kid' sees the work as a higher priorty than 'swanning off on some freelance sThe point I'm trying to make, probably very poorly, is there will be a reason for him getting the contract
t' , it may be the person who offered the OP the work originally was overruled on that basis ... CasuallyDressed said:
bhstewie said:
hstewie said: You: I'll take the work but you need to fit around me and my other commitments.
Him: Yes please no problem.
Who would you employ?
His contract didn't start until the middle of January. I was ready with a clear schedule to start the contract at the beginning of December.Him: Yes please no problem.
Who would you employ?
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