Employee rights regarding standby/on call

The Magnificent Falcowboys

Is there a maximum amount of time a company can expect an employee to be on call for without breaking the law

I work on a lab team that supports a 24/7 manufacturing facility On call , there are 2 shifts in place which allows for onsite cover which spans from 7am to 11pm Monday to Friday , all other times outside of this has to be covered on call

We used to have a team of 8 people doing this which rotated 2 people being on call every 4 weekends , last year due to head count loss this team of 8 was cut to 6 so our oncall period was increased from every 4 to every 3 weekends

This team is being further hit by head count which aren't being replaced , we lost a girl to maternity leave a few weeks ago , 2 of the lads have gotten jobs else where so will be leaving in 4-6 weeks and there's no plans to replace them , the training also takes 3 or 4 weeks , so we are looking at the very real situation of a team of only 3 people covering what a team of 8 used to which will mean having to be on call in service to this company every 2 out of 3 weekends 24/7

The current policy was written for 12 people but allows for less , 8 was grand . 6 was tough. But only having 3 is taking the piss.

Surely this can't be legal ?

Stheno

Do you get paidpaid for being on call?

The Magnificent Falcowboys

Stheno wrote: »

Do you get paidpaid for being on call?

Yes

Stheno

The Magnificent Falcowboys wrote: »

Yes

I don't think there are regulations covering on call hours tbh it's a bit of a grey area

Someone else may know more

Mrs OBumble

When you are on call, what are the chances of getting called? And if you do, how long are you generally working for?

K.Flyer

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

When you are on call, what are the chances of getting called? And if you do, how long are you generally working for?

And are you paid a premium rate or standard rate?

Stheno

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

When you are on call, what are the chances of getting called? And if you do, how long are you generally working for?

That's what I'd be more concerned about that hours of actual work are not going to be excessive

Manach

Offhand merely being on call is not counted towards your average weekly statutory hours unless you need to be physically present at work, or actually been called for work. So to show any thing illegal occurs, an accurate record of such call outs need be compilied.

The Magnificent Falcowboys

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

When you are on call, what are the chances of getting called? And if you do, how long are you generally working for?

We get called a lot, its routine QC work supporting manufacturing. I know when most people think of oncall they think if something breaks down and only occurs once in a blue moon, this is not the case for us. We would be called in on average 5 times over the weekend , we could be on site from 1 to 4 hrs but we get paid 4 hrs DT for every call out

Its not so much the frequency of being called in that bothers, its not being able to go very far from work when we are oncall and if this is to happen 2 out of 3 weekends we have to plan our lives to service this

The Magnificent Falcowboys

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

When you are on call, what are the chances of getting called? And if you do, how long are you generally working for?

We get called a lot, its routine QC work supporting manufacturing. I know when most people think of oncall they think if something breaks down and only occurs once in a blue moon, this is not the case for us. We would be called in on average 5 times over the weekend , we could be on site from 1 to 4 hrs but we get paid 4 hrs DT for every call out

Its not so much the frequency of being called in that bothers, its not being able to go very far from work when we are oncall and if this is to happen 2 out of 3 weekends we have to plan our lives to service this

Last year when there was 8 people doing it, it was grand. Every 4th weekend was sacrificed and I had to stay close to work but with the way things are going having to stay near work in service to this company 2 out of 3 weekends does not seem right

Stheno

The Magnificent Falcowboys wrote: »

We get called a lot, its routine QC work supporting manufacturing. I know when most people think of oncall they think if something breaks down and only occurs once in a blue moon, this is not the case for us. We would be called in on average 5 times over the weekend , we could be on site from 1 to 4 hrs but we get paid 4 hrs DT for every call out

Its not so much the frequency of being called in that bothers, its not being able to go very far from work when we are oncall and if this is to happen 2 out of 3 weekends we have to plan our lives to service this

Could just one of you be on call or does it have to be two?

And do you include your time onsite at weekends in your overall working hours?

If you log it and it starts to exceed 48 hours a week between call outs and your regular week you can use that to make a case for more resources

Buona Fortuna

The Magnificent Falcowboys wrote: »

We get called a lot, its routine QC work supporting manufacturing.

How often do you end up working more than 48 hours in a week?

The Magnificent Falcowboys

Stheno wrote: »

Could just one of you be on call or does it have to be two?

And do you include your time onsite at weekends in your overall working hours?

If you log it and it starts to exceed 48 hours a week between call outs and your regular week you can use that to make a case for more resources

It rotates between a primary and secondary person, the secondary person is needed to review paperwork but may only need to come in once over the weekend

Yes it far exceeds 48 hours a week because we also do our 39 hour week as standard and we are also oncall between 11pm-7am on the week nights

Stheno

The Magnificent Falcowboys wrote: »

It rotates between a primary and secondary person, the secondary person is needed to review paperwork but may only need to come in once over the weekend

Yes it far exceeds 48 hours a week because we are also do our 39 hour week as standard and we are also oncall between 11pm-7am

On call doesn't count it's the hours you are in work when on call

So if you do more than ten hours in work while on call on a regular basis and can prove that it's an issue in relation to the working hours act

The Magnificent Falcowboys

Stheno wrote: »

On call doesn't count it's the hours you are in work when on call

So if you do more than ten hours in work while on call on a regular basis and can prove that it's an issue in relation to the working hours act

it should count if there are only 3 people doing it, there are 52 weekends in a year so your saying after working a 39 hour week its ok to be on call 35 out of 52 weekends. I may not be called in but I am limited to what I can do with my time, I cant go to cork or dublin or the uk for any of these weekends, stags, parties weddings are all out because A. I have to be close by and B. I need to be fit to work so cant drink etc

Your basically living your life in service to the company

Stheno

The Magnificent Falcowboys wrote: »

it should count if there are only 3 people doing it, there are 52 weekends in a year so your saying after working a 39 hour week its ok to be on call 35 out of 52 weekends. I may not be called in but I am limited to what I can do with my time, I cant go to cork or dublin or the uk for any of these weekends, stags, parties weddings are all out because A. I have to be close by and B. I need to be fit to work so cant drink etc

Your basically living your life in service to the company

You need to raise it with your manager tbh

Mehapoy

The Magnificent Falcowboys wrote: »

it should count if there are only 3 people doing it, there are 52 weekends in a year so your saying after working a 39 hour week its ok to be on call 35 out of 52 weekends. I may not be called in but I am limited to what I can do with my time, I cant go to cork or dublin or the uk for any of these weekends, stags, parties weddings are all out because A. I have to be close by and B. I need to be fit to work so cant drink etc

Your basically living your life in service to the company

Yes I know the feeling very well, I done it for quite a few years in IT, becomes a real drag when you can't plan anything for the oncall weeks and weekends, and that was 1 in 3 or 4 weeks, and working from home, 2 out of 3 weeks means you're tied to the job an unacceptable amount of time, I'd definitely be bringing it up with the management.

therecklessone

The Magnificent Falcowboys wrote: »

it should count if there are only 3 people doing it, there are 52 weekends in a year so your saying after working a 39 hour week its ok to be on call 35 out of 52 weekends. I may not be called in but I am limited to what I can do with my time, I cant go to cork or dublin or the uk for any of these weekends, stags, parties weddings are all out because A. I have to be close by and B. I need to be fit to work so cant drink etc

Your basically living your life in service to the company

Hi OP,

I've trawled the net looking for any reference to on-call hours and to be honest there is very little of substance.

What I did find was an IBEC link explaining legal requirements for contracts which states:

The legislation limits the maximum average working week to 48 hours. Weekly working time can be averaged out over a four, six or up to 12 month reference period (please seek Ibec advice as to on what reference period would apply to your company). Working time is defined as net working time, i.e. exclusive of breaks, on call or standby time.

Another link I've recently seen suggested that on-call time counts as working time only if required to be immediately available, i.e. on-site.

That being the case the only legal recourse to you is the 48hr limit on your working week taking into account actual time spent at work during your on-call periods.

To be honest, I suggest you start considering alternative employment.

Best of luck regardless.

shivral

Maybe you could ask your employer to implement the On Call Log? this will allow you to log each call, it's duration and action taken - you could then negotiate TOIL with your employer if your weekend was actually spent on work related issues.

I suggested it in my previous job - worked well for all of us, although the senior managers weren't overly happy when it came to toil.

best of luck!