Employment Law, Rights, and Contracts

SplitCartridge

Hi,

I've a question that some people here may be able to help me with.

I'll explain my situation. I'm currently working for a shop in a large chain in the retail industry in the Republic. Here's the relevant information.

> I've been with the company for nearly a year and a half.

> I'm on a part time contract.

> For the first 6 months of the contract I was placed on a 'probation'.

> I passed my probation with no issues.

> My wage per hour in the contract is E8.65 per hour, and time and a quarter on Sundays.

> My minimum hours per week in my contract is either 4 or 8 (I'm not too sure to be honest but that's not majorly relevant)

> I'm 21 years old and have a bachelors degree and a masters degree.

> I've been legally working on and off since I was 16 years old.

> The contract that I am on is not the same as the contract that other part time and full time workers are on in the company. Other staff members are on different wages per hour because of having signed older contracts.

> People who have joined the company in recent years are on the minimum wage contract like me.

> The people who are on better pay than those of us who signed the more recent contracts and joined the company do duties and tasks no different to the rest of us.

> Within my contract there is a point made that I have to be willing to cover shifts in other stores within an hours drive of my home store without ANY form of compensation, pay, mileage, or subsidence paid.

> In the past three weeks I've been asked to cover shifts in shops roughly 40 minutes away, a total of five times. I've had to pay for the petrol myself, and on one occasion I came out from work to find my car with a nice little prang on the door because of someones negligence in the car park.

> I'm currently paying off college fees and struggling to keep my car on the road because my hours are so varying and poor in the company and on one occasion actually had to lie and pretend my car was unavailable to cover in a different store because it was empty and I genuinely could not afford to put the 15 euro's petrol into it. (My account was -7 on pay day because of bills that needed to be paid that day too).

> (Little bit less relevant), the company are monsters to work for and have the highest turnover of staff at all ranks that I have ever seen in the private sector.


1) What I'm wondering is, despite what it says in my contract, am I entitled to any wage increase?



2) Am I entitled to any sort of compensation, pay, mileage, or subsidence for travelling?

3) Even if a company is acting within the confines of Irish employment law, is there ANY way of legally getting a company to treat you a little bit better than they do?

EDIT: I may have posted this on a forum that may not be the most relevant on this site. MODs feel free to move to a more appropriate forum area, and posters, please feel free to let me know if you know of a forum area where I would be better off posting this. Cheers.

Stheno

SplitCartridge wrote: »

1) What I'm wondering is, despite what it says in my contract, am I entitled to any wage increase?



2) Am I entitled to any sort of compensation, pay, mileage, or subsidence for travelling?

3) Even if a company is acting within the confines of Irish employment law, is there ANY way of legally getting a company to treat you a little bit better than they do?

1. Not that I am aware of, as you are on minimum wage which does not increase once you hit the age limits. The min. wage for you is €8.65 per hour
2. Not from the sounds of your contract which clearly states that your place of work may vary within limits. I'd have a similar contract, but sometimes am required to travel over weekends or evenings to be onsite on a Monday morning, and get no pay for that time, and no mileage unless it exceeds a certain distance.

No idea on 3, your company don't seem to be doing anything illegal tbh, just leveraging the law to their advantage.

SplitCartridge

Stheno wrote: »

your company don't seem to be doing anything illegal tbh, just leveraging the law to their advantage.

Thanks for the reply. You are certainly correct on that one. Its unfortunate that what's right and wrong doesn't always match with the law. They truly are horrible to work for.

Mrs OBumble

So how many other jobs have you applied for?

Seriously, labour markets are all about supply and demand. You're working for one of the worst, surely you can move to somewhere better.

SplitCartridge

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

So how many other jobs have you applied for?

Seriously, labour markets are all about supply and demand. You're working for one of the worst, surely you can move to somewhere better.

I've applied for quite a few. Its just hard to get something at the moment. I was originally working in one of the company's biggest stores in a city. I could get plenty of other work but unfortunately it was all bar work and that clashed with college etc.

Now that I'm in one of the company's smaller stores in the midlands its harder to find other options for work. I'm skilled and experienced in retail, sales, bar work, warehouse work, and delivery work, so its not like I have a poor CV. Things are just very slow here at the moment compared to in the cities.

Since I've moved to the midlands (a couple of weeks ago) I've applied for 3 other jobs (just did so on Friday evening so probably won't hear anything until tomorrow or some time after).

diana123

Really dismal condition of labor market