Employment Laws (contract issue)

[Ross_]

Ok looking for a bit of assistance ...

I have worked for a company for just short of 5 years , i started part time originally when i was @ Uni and worked 5-9 mon - thur and a sat (23 hours per week) ... i then changed courses and thus changed my hours working (still 23 hours just different days times) i then finished uni , and change my hours to full time (35 hours per week)

so now i work monday - friday 9-5 and every month i work 1 sat (get a day off during the week for that) , but the situation has come up where the company are proposing to change the contracts of the staff in my department to an "annualised contract" , from the letter i have been sent this pretty much says they can have us working any hours the business requires 24/7 if the need arrose

i do not want to accept this contract as i do not want to work the equivelant of shift work or at the companys beckon call ... so what i want to know is ..

Can they do this ? and if so what are my options ? would i be within my rights to refuse the new contract ? would constructive dismissal be an option ?

Any help appreciated as i dont know what my next move should be

Ross

[plasticpig]

Unless you have opted out of the working time directive they cannot get you to work anywhere near 24/7. The directive says:

You should not over 48 hours in the week (averaged over 11 weeks).
you should have 11 hours continuous rest in a 24 hour period.
A 20 minute break in work periods of over 6 hours.
If you are working nights then you should work no more than eight hours work in 24 hours.
You should express your concerns to the HR department. It may be all the company are looking for is extra flexibility rather than the wors case scenarion.

[Ross_]

Thanks for the reply mate

my appologies i dont think i made things as clear as i could have , i dont mean i will working 24 hours i mean on the contract the basic wording says that i can work any hours the company requires a total of 1820 Per annum (35 hours a week)

altho that could be 20 hours 1 week and 44 hours the other week etc

my main concerns are i like my 9-5 job and would like to stay simmilar ... not working from 7am til any times up til 10pm

Ross

[voyds9]

iirc they have to give you 6 weeks notice of change of terms of contract. You are not obliged to accept these new terms. If, however, you continue to work you are deemed to have accepted the new contract.
If you do not accept the new conditions they may be able to may you redundant if they can show it is necessary for the continued operation of the business.




Waits to be corrected.

[edc]

Without understanding the motive for changing the contracts or without seeing the new and old contracts thenselves it may be that the company is moving towards a zero hours type of set up.

With regards the changes to working hours have a skim read over the working time directive.