Should I feel bad?

CuriousG

Ok.

I started a new job a week ago and it has been going great. Two days ago I was required to work 4 hrs over my planned shift which I was only told about on shift, but didn't bother me at all and done it anyway, no problem at all. (Actually if we're being honest, I wasn't told, I had to find out by reading the timesheet, but regardless)

After a week, today was my first day off and I had planned to go away with my oh. I got a call at nine o clock asking could I be in for eleven and I explained I had planned something as it was my day off, is anyone else available? The manager was very persistent but I explained as best I could. If I hadn't planned anything I would have gone in no problem!

She was a bit snipey with me, and I don't want to give a bad impression straight away. IF it was any other I would have gone no bother but as I said, I was scheduled it off so thought it was grand to plan something.

I have been feeling bad all day, is this just me being a fool or was I right to say no??

Laneyh

CuriousG wrote: »

Ok.

I started a new job a week ago and it has been going great. Two days ago I was required to work 4 hrs over my planned shift which I was only told about on shift, but didn't bother me at all and done it anyway, no problem at all. (Actually if we're being honest, I wasn't told, I had to find out by reading the timesheet, but regardless)

After a week, today was my first day off and I had planned to go away with my oh. I got a call at nine o clock asking could I be in for eleven and I explained I had planned something as it was my day off, is anyone else available? The manager was very persistent but I explained as best I could. If I hadn't planned anything I would have gone in no problem!

She was a bit snipey with me, and I don't want to give a bad impression straight away. IF it was any other I would have gone no bother but as I said, I was scheduled it off so thought it was grand to plan something.

I have been feeling bad all day, is this just me being a fool or was I right to say no??

It's a tough call as you're so new in the job and obviously they seem to be under a bit of pressure. However, there is a fine line between being helpful and a team player and being taken for a ride.

It's probably good to set a precedent that you're not always going to be available - you are entitled to time off and to make plans after all.
You could have been geographically somewhere else by the time you got the call. At best they could have hoped to catch you and get you to come in but unless you're a surgeon or something I would hope they won't make a big deal of your not being able to help

You showed willing by working the extra 4 hours at short to no notice.
Hopefully whatever crisis they had was averted
Its good that you care enough about the job to feel bad but you are entitled to a life outside so I wouldn't sweat it too much.

April O Neill

Your day off after working 7 days? No way should you feel bad. Your manager is being a cúnt, to be quite blunt.

You seem like you are very helpful and eager in the job, from your account anyway, but you are entitled to make plans for your day off, unless it's specified in your contract that you are on call.

CuriousG

Thanks for your replies! No am not in any way on call and it is a very unskilled job¬ Thank you I feel a bit better.

ifeelill

Sounds like the same crap we used to pull on employees in the food service industry.

bbam

My senior manager would insist on ringing round folks who were off shift if things looked any bit pear shaped... I hated doing it for trivial things.
He was a complete madman, and if they couldn't come in he would try to hold it against them when it came round to review time... constantly drove me mad :mad:

Hold your ground and help out when you can... but you are entitled to days off without being harrassed too much.

allibastor

if it comes up again during the time you are back now just say that you were away at the time and would not have been able to make it back. Simple. If the company needs work to be done ask them can they compensate you for the cancelled travel plans etc.

boobar

CuriousG wrote: »

Ok.

I started a new job a week ago and it has been going great. Two days ago I was required to work 4 hrs over my planned shift which I was only told about on shift, but didn't bother me at all and done it anyway, no problem at all. (Actually if we're being honest, I wasn't told, I had to find out by reading the timesheet, but regardless)

After a week, today was my first day off and I had planned to go away with my oh. I got a call at nine o clock asking could I be in for eleven and I explained I had planned something as it was my day off, is anyone else available? The manager was very persistent but I explained as best I could. If I hadn't planned anything I would have gone in no problem!

She was a bit snipey with me, and I don't want to give a bad impression straight away. IF it was any other I would have gone no bother but as I said, I was scheduled it off so thought it was grand to plan something.

I have been feeling bad all day, is this just me being a fool or was I right to say no??

No you shouldn't feel bad at all.

Tis good to say no, lays down an expectation for the future....you want someone on call then pay them to be.

Too much of this auld guff going on these days. It sounds like your manager could do with copping on a bit, first not telling you that you'd be working an extra 4 hours and then expecting you to run in on your day off.

Her attitude stinks.

CuriousG

Thanks so much guys... I get anxious over silly stuff like this all the time was so anxious going in but it was fine once I got there!! I just panic over these things for no reason.

Answers really reassured me, thanks. You are all right!!!

PS, it is food service. Obviously common ha ha ha!

No Pants

In future, don't be planning to go away, be away. At least 3 hours away.

danthefan

Would just reiterate what others have said, don't feel remotely bad. You've already demonstrated you're willing to work hard by doing the extra hours at no notice, you are 100% entitled to time off, and your manager sounds like an asshole.

ifeelill

sounds like the crap train is just starting I'd be surprised if this isn't going to be a regular occorance

No Pants

No Pants wrote: »

In future, don't be planning to go away, be away. At least 3 hours away.

I don't mean physically, but when called do not be only planning to travel.

arthurday2013

CuriousG wrote: »

Ok.

I started a new job a week ago and it has been going great. Two days ago I was required to work 4 hrs over my planned shift which I was only told about on shift, but didn't bother me at all and done it anyway, no problem at all. (Actually if we're being honest, I wasn't told, I had to find out by reading the timesheet, but regardless)

After a week, today was my first day off and I had planned to go away with my oh. I got a call at nine o clock asking could I be in for eleven and I explained I had planned something as it was my day off, is anyone else available? The manager was very persistent but I explained as best I could. If I hadn't planned anything I would have gone in no problem!

She was a bit snipey with me, and I don't want to give a bad impression straight away. IF it was any other I would have gone no bother but as I said, I was scheduled it off so thought it was grand to plan something.

I have been feeling bad all day, is this just me being a fool or was I right to say no??

In all honesty, yes, you should feel bad. Ok, it is technically your day off. But these folks have given you a job. You should have worked.

BohsCeltic

arthurday2013 wrote: »

In all honesty, yes, you should feel bad. Ok, it is technically your day off. But these folks have given you a job. You should have worked.

What a load of nonsense, with that mentality you'd never plan anything on your day off in case your job called

arthurday2013

BohsCeltic wrote: »

What a load of nonsense, with that mentality you'd never plan anything on your day off in case your job called

Ok, but it seems like this is the first time they company asked. If they keep doing it, then yes it is understandable.

Look at it a different way. The OP is new - his employers probably haven't known him long enough to fully appreciate what he brings to the job., his qualities, his work ethic, etc. Now if he were there two years and had a reputation of being someone who helps out, then saying no would be fine. But he is there two minutes, and says no. That leaves a bad impression.

arthurday2013

arthurday2013 wrote: »

Ok, but it seems like this is the first time they company asked. If they keep doing it, then yes it is understandable.

Look at it a different way. The OP is new - his employers probably haven't known him long enough to fully appreciate what he brings to the job., his qualities, his work ethic, etc. Now if he were there two years and had a reputation of being someone who helps out, then saying no would be fine. But he is there two minutes, and says no. That leaves a bad impression.

It doesn't matter whether he's been there two years or two days. It was his day off, for God's sake! Nobody, absolutely nobody, should feel guilted into working when they're scheduled to be off, especially if they've already worked a whole week without a break. I'm sick of this slavedriver mentality. People are human beings, with lives and families. Not being available 24/7 doesn't make you a bad employee. It's not as if he called in sick. He was supposed to be off!

arthurday2013

Kaysen Tall Pimple wrote: »

It doesn't matter whether he's been there two years or two days. It was his day off, for God's sake! Nobody, absolutely nobody, should feel guilted into working when they're scheduled to be off, especially if they've already worked a whole week without a break. I'm sick of this slavedriver mentality. People are human beings, with lives and families. Not being available 24/7 doesn't make you a bad employee. It's not as if he called in sick. He was supposed to be off!

I think Bill Cullen was right - no work ethic, a mollycoddled generation

Agent Smith

No Pants wrote: »

I don't mean physically, but when called do not be only planning to travel.

I worked for a large Retailer that like to call people to come in to work when they were off.

Just say your out of the state. "I'm in newry" works well.*





*not so well if your living in dundalk

arthurday2013

arthurday2013 wrote: »

I think Bill Cullen was right - no work ethic, a mollycoddled generation

Yep, anyone trying to exploit people for their own gains would say that. Human rights? What human rights? What's wrong with making people come into work when you want them to? Why should anyone get to have any sort of home life? See their family? Go to the doctor or dentist? Just have a day off after working 7 days in a row so they don't get ill? :rolleyes:

BlatentCheek

OP do you think your employer felt bad about extending your shift by four hours with no notice or pressuring you to work on your first day off in seven days?

TBH all I'm getting from this is that your new employer has shorted you, or tried to short you, twice in your first week; it doesn't bode well for what they'll be like in future. Start recording incidents like this. A written record will put you in a much stronger position if you have to deal with any disciplinary procedure brought on by you resisting their unreasonable requests. Similarly if they dismiss you, or short you on wages or anything else, it will help you if you seek redress from a rights commissioner.

arthurday2013

You guys are completely missing the point. The OP is brand new in the job. He/she has to prove their worth. And that sometimes involves going an extra mile - coming in early, going home late, etc. But the fact that the OP refused suggests a lack of flexibility.

I agree the op should record these activities because they will be very useful ammunition when pay rise/promotion times come around

Scortho

arthurday2013 wrote: »

You guys are completely missing the point. The OP is brand new in the job. He/she has to prove their worth. And that sometimes involves going an extra mile - coming in early, going home late, etc. But the fact that the OP refused suggests a lack of flexibility.

I agree the op should record these activities because they will be very useful ammunition when pay rise/promotion times come around

And staying an extra 4 hours showed flexibility.

pickarooney

All it will prove is that he's a sucker who they can expect to walk all over whenever they like.

arthurday2013

Scortho wrote: »

And staying an extra 4 hours showed flexibility.

Yes.

April O Neill

arthurday2013 wrote: »

I think Bill Cullen was right - no work ethic, a mollycoddled generation

Yep, that worked out really well for him...

arthurday2013

I think it worked out pretty well for him

The consensus on here seems to be that his employer is exploiting him in some fashion. While I think this is probably partly true, it does not detract from the fact that he is still new in the company, and that being non-agreeable to coming in he is signalling, at a very early stage, he is inflexible.

OF course if this were to happen on every day off then the OP would have an issue, but since he hasn't posted since, it appears to be an isolated incident.

arthurday2013

Kaysen Tall Pimple wrote: »

Yep, anyone trying to exploit people for their own gains would say that. Human rights? What human rights? What's wrong with making people come into work when you want them to? Why should anyone get to have any sort of home life? See their family? Go to the doctor or dentist? Just have a day off after working 7 days in a row so they don't get ill? :rolleyes:

You are taking this to an extreme Izzy. This is hardly a human rights issue :rolleyes:

SpaceTime

I had a boss who used to do stuff like phone our house landline at 7am on a Sunday
My other half answered the phone one morning and absolutely let her have it.

I turned up at work on Monday and she had it in for me.
I was given the most menial, degrading tasks that were absolutely nothing to do with my job like sweeping out a basement and wrapping stuff! My job was "online communications exec".
It escalated and I asked her straight out what her problem was and went to HR.

Luckily, it was a large organisation and they dealt with it.

(Some details changed to preserve anonymity)

michael999999

arthurday2013 wrote: »

I think Bill Cullen was right - no work ethic, a mollycoddled generation

Ya bills business plan is certainly one to follow.

How much is he worth now?

arthurday2013

arthurday2013 wrote: »

You are taking this to an extreme Izzy. This is hardly a human rights issue :rolleyes:

Of course it is. Expecting someone to essentially be available to work 7 days a week when it's not in their contract to be on call (and they're not compensated for being on call) is violating their right to a personal life.

Nobody should feel bullied into going into work when they were not scheduled to do so and nobody should be 'punished' (as SpaceTime was) for not caving in to their boss's every demand. The guy has only been in the job a week and it's already the second time he's been asked to do extra hours. That doesn't bode very well for the future, does it?

There's nothing wrong with going the extra mile, but there is something wrong with letting yourself be a pushover. Contrary to popular belief, I don't even think pushovers end up doing well. They usually get looked over and are totally under-appreciated because the boss just starts to expect that they'll do anything. There's a girl at work who says yes to everything and the management just don't respect her. They call her first when they need cover and the funniest thing is that she hardly gets given any good hours, because they want her to be available to cover all the crap shifts. She complains that she's not appreciated, but she does it to herself. I say yes to cover/extra hours when I genuinely have nothing planned and it isn't too much trouble, but by no means would I say yes more than about 1/3 of the time. I'm entitled to a life!

P_1

Agent Smith wrote: »

I worked for a large Retailer that like to call people to come in to work when they were off.

Just say your out of the state. "I'm in newry" works well.*





*not so well if your living in dundalk

Unfortunately sometimes even that doesn't work. I remember once in a previous job I went to London on a weekend off and when I was in Luton waiting for the train from the airport my phone rang, the conversation went something like this:

Me: Hello
Work: Hi can you come in today, we're a bit stuck?
Me: Sorry I can't, i'm actually in Luton at the moment.
work: Yeah, can you come in?
Me: Em, I'm in Luton [slight pause] in England.
Work: Oh right, I guess that means you wont be in then.
Me: Yep, pretty much.
Work: [hangs up]