Question about overtime - are they obligated to pay it?

loladeunknown

I'm working a minimum wage job and I'm the only Irish person there, nobody else has very good english or been in the country too long so I can't ask them. Basically, they're training in a whole load of new staff, hence everything takes longer than usual (as might be expected). We get shifts, and say mine would be from 10am til 5.30, but we can't actually finish until all our tasks are done (clean x, y and z machine) and thats at 6.15. I'm being told that they won't pay us anything that extra 45 minutes, even when we can't leave until its done. Is that legal?

Nody

Yes it is if it's covered in the contract in general.

LowKeyReturn

Nody wrote: »

Yes it is if it's covered in the contract in general.

I'm not saying you're wrong but I'd be obliged if you could point me in the direction of some authority for this.

It's one thing not to get OT and Sunday premiums when you're salaried and working above minimum wage, I think it's quite another to expect employees to do overtime unpaid on minimum wage. To do so amounts to them working for less than the minimum wage.

Manach

The contract would be the main source of information on what are the hours expected and pay, so if no OT mentioned then unlikely to have a case - but on the other hand if these hours start impinging on the governments set working times of an average 48H over 6 weeks(?) then could start to raise that as an issue?

loladeunknown

I don't have a contract yet, but to my knowledge I'm on a 20hr/week contract that can go above that and seems to be generally in the region of 40hrs or more, but I'm still getting paid hourly.

Looking at citizens information, it seems to be that you must be paid for actual hours worked. At the rate I'm going I've lost at least 5 hours in the past week.

tatli_lokma

Until you get your contract there is no actual way of knowing if you should get OT or not. There is no legal obligation to pay overtime (as in paid hours at a higher rate), although as you mention you should get paid for hours worked if they are in excess of your contracted hours.

If you are contracted for 20 hours and work in excess of that you should get paid your normal hourly rate or be given TOIL of those hours. If you are working full time and are salaried it is a bit different.

Also, you would be accruing additional annual leave for your extra hours at 8% of the hours worked to a maximum of 20 days per year.

You need to push for your contract and see what it says before you can take it any further.

A Primal Nut

From Citizens Information:

Overtime
Overtime is work done outside normal working hours. There is no statutory obligation on employers in Ireland to pay employees higher rates, for example, double time, for work completed in overtime. You must, however, receive at the very least your normal hourly rate of pay for overtime. Certain sectors of employment were covered by Employment Regulation Orders and Registered Employment Agreements and may have higher rates of pay for overtime

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/employment/employment_rights_and_conditions/hours_of_work/working_week.html

You definitely should be getting paid something. Are you a salaried employee? I guess if you are minimum wage you are paid hourly.

The only situation I've seen people not being paid overtime is salaried employees who sign a contract to get a bonus instead of overtime.

Wishbone Ash

loladeunknown wrote: »

... I'm still getting paid hourly....

If you were getting paid hourly, wouldn't you be getting paid for the hours worked?

Is it a case of you being less organised than you could be?

In the past I've had jobs in which it was possible to get finished up in time but many of my colleagues didn't as they left everything to the end of their shift when many things could have been done and dusted prior to the end of the shift.