Can my employer make me attend a meeting out of hours?

Question

I work in a nursing home. I have a day off on friday, the same day as a fire health and safety lecture at 1.30, i have been told that everyone must attend. Can they make me come into work for that?
The maintenance man that works here finishes at 12.00, can they make hime come back?
Thanks

Answer 1

Tell them you have long-standing other arrangements which cannot be broken and then see what they have to say for themselves. Those HSE merchants are always available for doing their "do-gooding" so don't let them tell you that no other time is available - and don't mix up all the yankee answers with the UK ones - this IS the UK/Ireland site.
If it's the usual talk, it'll be "don't smoke - don't leave things laying about - make sure there are no slippery surfaces - don't lift heavy weights without help and don't drink either on or within eight hours of going on duty". If you work in a nursing home, you already know more about it than the lecturer will, only they won't admit it!

Answer 2

Mmm, I don't think your best answer here is a legal one. Basically the short answer is no they can't make you and yes if they want you to do it they should pay you overtime or give you time off in lieu. You could probably insist on this and you would be justified in not being there if they didn't.

But... you need to think what impact standing your corner on this would have in the long term. Might it sour your relations with your managers? Might it sour your relations with other colleagues (e.g. the maintenance man, possibly others in the same situation) if they came in on their day off and you wouldn't?

I know you might not want to but try to see it from your employers' point of view. They have a duty of care both to you and the residents of the home. They need to ensure you are aware of all the health and safety procedures. That's why they're saying it's compulsory. What would happen if there was a fire and you didn't know what to do? OK they could organise more than one lecture, but then that would double the cost and the time needed for this.

Nobody can tell you what to do but I would have a think about all these points and then compromise. That would be the best way to preserve harmony and fairness all around. But if this sort of thing becomes a regular situation, i.e. you are always being told to give up your day off then that would be different. Hope this helps.

Answer 3

Unfortunately companies can do a lot of things like this and there is little you can do about it.

If you don't show up for the meeting, you are going to be labeled a trouble maker. They are going to view your attitude as insubordinate and look for reasons to get rid of you in the future.

If you like your job and they pay you well, then you need to attend the meeting. Otherwise you need to find a better job and quit.

At the very least you should ask them to give you another day off to make up for the one they have ruined for you. You could tell them that since they are expecting you to attend the meeting on Friday, you'd like to take Monday off. If they simply refuse to accommodate that kind of thinking, I'd certainly find another job.

In life there are great companies that consider the employees important, and there are those who consider employees to be expendable people who can be exploited at the whim of the boss. You should make it your life goal to avoid working for companies that exploit, that way if enough people have the same attitude, eventually they will have to change to attract high caliber individuals.

Answer 4

Laws vary by state or jurisdiction. Here in California, the employer is required to compensate you for the time spent at mandatory meetings and training. If you are an "at will" employee, your employer could always terminate you for you attending or for any reason at all.

If you want a real answer, talk to a local attorney familiar with the laws where you live an work.

Answer 5

my wife is senior management in an elderly home and it states in the contract that any training that is offered can be turned down but basic training like fire health and safety is usually something every member of staff has to do as its for the best interests of the residents that the staff gets them to safety in case of such an emergency. the training is usually arranged by the local fire safety officer. depending on your employer some will pay you for attending yet some wont.
if you had to sign a contract when you started your job you need to consult this.

Answer 6

You got a lot of correct answers. I'm a local government atty and I know we can make employees attending training on their days off, but we have to pay overtime (unless they are "short" on their hours for that pay period, then it's just straight time). Yes, they can make you come in and yes, they have to pay you for it. They can only do this on an occasional basis, not routinely. This rule is fed'l, under the Fair Labor Standards Act, and does not differ between public and private employers.

Answer 7

It depends on your contract.

Mine states I will be expected to work a reasonable ammount of time outside my normal hours.

The whole thing revolves around what you call "reasonable" unfortunately you would have to take things through your internal grievance process and if necessary onto industrial tribuneral to prove or disprove "reasonable".

If it is not in your contract then you could check with the citizens advice buereau of your rights.

It maybe that they cannot "Force" you to come in (i.e they can't sack you for not) but realistically if you are free and can make it, you may decide that it isn't worth rocking the boat about

Answer 8

If it is part of your training and they can only do the meeting that one day they can ask you to come in for it but they must give you the time back or pay you overtime. Also they must give you sufficient notice of the meeting as it is your day off and you may have childcare or other issues that need sorting - if they have only informed you today then you can refuse saying you had already made other arrangements

Answer 9

If you're a wage earner, as opposed to salaried, they must pay you for your time. If salaried, then they can make you attend without further compensation. Independent Contractors are a third group all together and, I suspect, this does not apply to you. If it does it will be in your contract.

Answer 10

If you are asked to come back in to work then that should be deemed as a shift worked and you should either be paid accordingly or given time off in lieu