I'm a part time worker, what can I do about overtime?

Question

I'm contracted to work 4 hours a week, but for about 6 months now i've been working 4 hours daily, 5 days a week (mostly, a few differencece here and there). But do I have to work overtime? Can I refuse to work any overtime if something comes up? Would this count as Holiday, or unpaid Holiday, or what? HELP! My boss is an **** and I need to know my rights before he can exploit me anymore!

BTW, I'm in the UK so I AM a PartTime Worker with holidays etc (tho i only get paid for my contract hours etc)

Perhaps I should explain the 'exploit' thing. Our Manager takes alot of liberties with us, whether it be our contracts or our hours. A friend/collegue had a week booked off for about three months and when it came to it our boss said no, she couldnt have the week off because he hadnt realised. BIG DEAL NOT HER PROBLEM. I had the same problem, but when my boss called me I was over 300 miles away so not alot could be done then. He says constantly 'do this because its in your contract' when we found that what he was asking us to do WASNT in our contract, and also 'You know this, you've signed something to say you agree' when at least two of us hadnt. We havent seen the fire safety video, and i'm sure theyre breaking the law with heating, i've fainted twice in the heat and cant stand working in the winter coz it gets so cold! *shrug* I cant get another job, (been trying for over a year) And I need the cash.

Answer 1

It depends on your employer and your contract. I work part time for a big organisation in wales. If I do overtime it is paid at a standard rate, whereas my colleagues who are full time are paid time- and- a- half or double time. I suggest that you gather your thoughts and approach your employer - tell them how unhappy you are with the situation and that you fell you are being forced to look for alternative employment even though you enjoy your work. see what they say!

Answer 2

My Boss sounds kinda similar, but basically in the UK at the minute there just aint enough jobs, and if there is someone not willing to do hours (however annoying it is when you keep being called in) they just think right i can replace you soon enough. Also means that if you do need to ask the boss for a day off or a favour if youve been good and put in the overtime, hes more likely to say yes. It is a two way street.

But to answer your question specifically, unless you have it in your contract that you MUST work overtime then yep you are legally entitled to tell him where to shove it (but probably a bit nicer than that if you still want to keep your job lol!!) It wont affect your holiday entitlement in fact the more hours you do the more holiday you are entitled to.

Answer 3

Do you get paid for your extra hours if you don't then it is illegal. This is the problem with the UK now they delibertly give out part-time jobs for about 4/10 hours and then they make you work alot more some even full time but cos you came on as a part-time worker you don't have the rights of other workers like time off and paid holidays, theres not much you can do about it with all the immagrants and other unemployed willing to work the same or more hours for less pay! I sugest you get some kind of qualifications so you can get a better job and yes you can refuse to do the extra hours just say you want tuesdays off or that you won't do it when you already had plans stick up for yourself and if they fire you well you could prob get another jobs mc-jobs are acutally quite good. and if you can't get another job well then ur suck welcome to the crewl and unfair world and these organisations know that you need the pay and take it for granted ...however i would get in contact with health and saftey or something with the heat problems you could very possibly even sue them for that!

Answer 4

You should have a written contract of employment , together with the companies policies and procedures give to you when you joined . At the time you would have been given two copies and asked to read then sign and return one .
I hope this has happened ??!!
For the sake of 4 hours per week is this job really worth the hassle you seem to be having .
If you have been working 20 hours a week over such a protracted period it seems to me that the company should have employed someone to work those hours .
It all sounds a bit dodgy to me , I know it is probably difficult to find a job with the part time hours you seek , but I think you should probably look .
Good Luck

Answer 5

Exploit you? You call this exploited? Just how is that being exploited? I find your complaint kind of ironic, when others are complaining on this board about not being given ENOUGH hours. Suggestion: look for another job.

No, you can refuse, you don't have to work the extra hours your boss is requiring. But if you don't, then he can fire you for your refusal. And you would have been fired for cause, so would not be eligible for unemployment benefits even if you would have qualified otherwise.

It isn't overtime as far as time and a half unless you work over 40 hours in a week.

Answer 6

You are a part time worker.... and you are a CONTRACTOR.

You do not get overtime even if you work 1000 hours, as you are a contractor. A regular employee gets overtime if they work more then 40 hours.

You are not entitled to holidays, neither paid or unpaid.

If you dont want to work that much, tell your client... but he might want to find someone else that does want the hours... and he will fire you.

Answer 7

Are you being paid for all the hours you work? if so, there's not much else you can do. The laws in most states say that you have to work 40 hours per week before you would get overtime.

Answer 8

yes you are being exploited and you boss is in fact defrauding the government ask for a review of your hours
you are now as you say working a 20 hour week without any benefits and as such you could be due to working tax credit as it is if you are only contracted to four hours a week you are not. go to your local job centre for proper advice re this problem they will sort it out for you

Answer 9

yes just make excuses to get out of it