Do I have to work a Saturday external event after handing in notice?

cottonsocks

Hi all,

I handed in my notice to my job this week, and to be honest, it hasn't been the best experience. I told my boss Monday I had been offered another job, and that I was letting him know and before I took the other job I wanted to find out if there was anything we could do with my current role, as I am very underpaid in it. All he said was that he 'might be able to give me a pay increase in Sept' and that was it.

He never contacted me the rest of the day, nor Tuesday, until Wednesday, when I had my regular catch up with him Wednesday afternoon. In this, he had a normal meeting with me, and then last thing moved back to the topic of me leaving, asking if I had 'thought about things'.

Right before this in the meeting, he asked if I was free next Sat to come to an external event. I am not essential. He just wants company and assistance really. I said I could come, and now I'm kicking myself. I have no idea why I said yes. I handed my written notice in Thursday and he hasn't as much as acknowledged it - why should I now spend my Saturday at something for a company which I am in the notice period of? How can I get out of this?

I feel upset and disrespected at how this week has gone, and completely not valued.

lawred2

Well while it might not be pleasant - you are still employed by this company..

joeguevara

Is Saturday a working day or is it additional. If additional say that something has come up and are unavailable. If it is a working day then work it.

cottonsocks

lawred2 wrote: »

Well while it might not be pleasant - you are still employed by this company..

Hi - this would be for a day in lieu, so not essential, he asked as a favour.

lawred2

cottonsocks wrote: »

Hi - this would be for a day in lieu, so not essential, he asked as a favour.

just say that something family related came up...

is_that_so

cottonsocks wrote: »

Hi - this would be for a day in lieu, so not essential, he asked as a favour.

Depends how strongly you feel about it IMO. Leaving as a bigger person and with dignity is always a good thing.

deandean

Do it. Work the Saturday.
He still has your reference to write

El_Duderino 09

You have the new job and you're working your notice so you have nothing to lose by pulling out with a lie as an excuse. But you said you'd do it so it's just a matter of whether you'll do what you said or not.

If you had thought about it and refused to do the Saturday, that would have been completely fair enough in my opinion. But you said you'd do it so I think you should probably soldier on and do it.

cottonsocks

joeguevara wrote: »

Is Saturday a working day or is it additional. If additional say that something has come up and are unavailable. If it is a working day then work it.

Hi! It's not a working day. I work Mon - Fri. I would get a day in lieu. However, I am moving from London to Dublin in April and to be honest, knowing now that my weekends in London are limited I REALLY don't want to give one up to a boss who doesn't even respect me enough to properly look into the prospect of getting me more money for my already underpaid role.

cottonsocks

deandean wrote: »

Do it. Work the Saturday.
He still has your reference to write

Luckily this part is already done!

pwurple

You shouldn't have said yes then.

But you did, so stick by your word. Finish up a day early as your day in lieu.

stoneill

Don't leave a job by burning bridges, you never know what the future has in store and you may be back there.

spurious

It's one day. Keep your word and let that be the last memory of you - someone who gave a dig out when not strictly required to.

Johnny Sausage

your word obvioulsy means nothing, if you are moving to a job in the same industry word can spead informally

also bad form to be doing this on a friday and he will have to find a replacement last minute, a bit of notice wouldnt go astray

cottonsocks

Johnny Sausage wrote: »

your word obvioulsy means nothing, if you are moving to a job in the same industry word can spead informally

also bad form to be doing this on a friday and he will have to find a replacement last minute, a bit of notice wouldnt go astray

Sorry - it's Saturday next week, the 8th Feb. I'm moving to a different country and different industry

Johnny Sausage

cottonsocks wrote: »

Sorry - it's Saturday next week, the 8th Feb. I'm moving to a different country and different industry

ah right, sorry, well a weeks notice is plenty of time for him to find somone else, just explain to him that youhave had a change of heart, be honest, no need to lie,

best of luck with the move

cottonsocks

Johnny Sausage wrote: »

ah right, sorry, well a weeks notice is plenty of time for him to find somone else, just explain to him that youhave had a change of heart, be honest, no need to lie,

best of luck with the move

Thanks very much! Yeah I do feel like my heart would not be in being there at all!

Jim2007

cottonsocks wrote: »

one up to a boss who doesn't even respect me enough to properly look into the prospect of getting me more money for my already underpaid role.

Nobody owes you a living, you took on this role at a certain salary, it was not forced upon you and you stayed in it until now... the reason he has not come back to you is that you and/or role are not worth much more to them and they feel you can be easily replaced.

If you don't want to work at the weekend then make your excuses and stop whining.

sondagefaux

cottonsocks wrote: »

Hi all,

I handed in my notice to my job this week, and to be honest, it hasn't been the best experience. I told my boss Monday I had been offered another job, and that I was letting him know and before I took the other job I wanted to find out if there was anything we could do with my current role, as I am very underpaid in it. All he said was that he 'might be able to give me a pay increase in Sept' and that was it.

He never contacted me the rest of the day, nor Tuesday, until Wednesday, when I had my regular catch up with him Wednesday afternoon. In this, he had a normal meeting with me, and then last thing moved back to the topic of me leaving, asking if I had 'thought about things'.

Right before this in the meeting, he asked if I was free next Sat to come to an external event. I am not essential. He just wants company and assistance really. I said I could come, and now I'm kicking myself. I have no idea why I said yes. I handed my written notice in Thursday and he hasn't as much as acknowledged it - why should I now spend my Saturday at something for a company which I am in the notice period of? How can I get out of this?

I feel upset and disrespected at how this week has gone, and completely not valued.

Either tell him you've changed your mind or call in sick.

What's he going to do? Fire you?

sondagefaux

cottonsocks wrote: »

Luckily this part is already done!

Then he's got no power over you. Do as you want.

Seanachai

deandean wrote: »

Do it. Work the Saturday.
He still has your reference to write

Are written references not now restricted to just a confirmation that you were employed by a company and the time period you worked there?

skallywag

cottonsocks wrote: »

Hi - this would be for a day in lieu, so not essential, he asked as a favour.

Be that as it may, I do not see anywhere in your post where you say he put you under pressure to accept, it sounds like you did so completely voluntarily. To change your mind now, with nothing having happened in the meantime to move the goalposts, just comes across as completely unprofessional, and points towards someone who cannot be trusted. I think you need to learn that when you make a commitment to someone you then need to follow though on it.

skallywag

Seanachai wrote: »

Are written references not now restricted to just a confirmation that you were employed by a company and the time period you worked there?

In some companies, yes, though anyone really wanting to know how the employee performed is going to call the referee as opposed to requesting something in writing. I myself will always call a referee.

Jim2007

sondagefaux wrote: »

Then he's got no power over you. Do as you want.

Unless a future employer decides to check up on your reference letters... never burn a bridge you don't have to.

28064212

Seanachai wrote: »

Are written references not now restricted to just a confirmation that you were employed by a company and the time period you worked there?

No. Some companies have instituted that policy to avoid the possibility of being sued for defamation. If you say something that would damage a person's reputation, the person can sue for defamation, and the onus is on you to prove that your statement is true.

Say you mention in a reference that an employee was regularly late. If they take you to court over it, and you can't produce actual records showing that they were regularly late, you're going to lose the case

There's no real benefit to a company to provide an accurate reference, and in cases like the above it could backfire, so most of them have started playing it safe and doing the bare minimum

Seanachai

Seanachai wrote: »

Are written references not now restricted to just a confirmation that you were employed by a company and the time period you worked there?

Written references tend to confirm duration of employment. A phone call with the loaded question “would you employ him/her again?” Is a killer.

Always Tired

Would I fudge go in on a Saturday under those circumstances. I always hear this arse licking nonsense about people saying, 'don't burn bridges', 'you never know' blah blah. This isn't burning a bridge. Expecting an employee who is leaving because they are underpaid to give up free time on their way out the door is a joke, not turning up to some stupid thing you dont need to be at isnt burning a bridge, it's silly of your boss to ask you if you are leaving.

They already skimped you on your time for however long you were there, and you left because you wanted to call time on that, you've done that successfully, you owe them no favors, and in fact you already did them one by letting them know you were offered another job and giving them the chance to keep you on. When they didn't take that chance then I don't know why they would expect you to work a Saturday.

Always Tired

Always Tired wrote: »

Would I fudge go in on a Saturday under those circumstances. I always hear this arse licking nonsense about people saying, 'don't burn bridges', 'you never know' blah blah. This isn't burning a bridge. Expecting an employee who is leaving because they are underpaid to give up free time on their way out the door is a joke, not turning up to some stupid thing you dont need to be at isnt burning a bridge, it's silly of your boss to ask you if you are leaving.

They already skimped you on your time for however long you were there, and you left because you wanted to call time on that, you've done that successfully, you owe them no favors, and in fact you already did them one by letting them know you were offered another job and giving them the chance to keep you on. When they didn't take that chance then I don't know why they would expect you to work a Saturday.

I don’t get the sense that it is expected, though I could be wrong, and I thought I read earlier it will be given back time enlieu, but again, I could be wrong.

As for the blah blah part, a lot of employers do think references are important.

You are only underpaid if the market says so.

CelticRambler

Try for a win-win: go back to him and say that instead of being paid for a day in lieu, you'd like to take that day on the [Friday|Monday of your choosing] before you leave. If he agrees, work the Saturday knowing that you've kept the moral high ground and you're going to get a long weekend for yourself out of it; if he doesn't, ask him if it's really necessary, because there are things you'd appreciate having the extra time for before you leave London.

I've burnt bridges before, thinking that it'd never matter in the future, only to find out that time and geography doesn't matter; now I make a determined effort not to go back on my word, even if it causes me some short-term inconvenience.

skallywag

Dav010 wrote: »

A phone call with the loaded question “would you employ him/her again?” Is a killer.

It's always the last question I ask. Just a yes/no answer. speaks volumes without any comeback on anyone if it's a no.

joeguevara

Although the OP has had their question clearly answered, it should be noted than a new employer can only request a reference or contact a referee from the referees provided by the applicant. They can’t ring up or email everyone on the CV.

Also, if you are in employment and moving without your employer knowing, a different referee is normally used.

joeguevara

joeguevara wrote: »

Although the OP has had their question clearly answered, it should be noted than a new employer can only request a reference or contact a referee from the referees provided by the applicant. They can’t ring up or email everyone on the CV.

Also, if you are in employment and moving without your employer knowing, a different referee is normally used.

That is very interesting. In reality, what is to stop a new employer phoning whomever they choose on the applicants CV?

If the op moves again in 12 months time, wouldn’t his/her current employer be the one most likely contacted?

joeguevara

Dav010 wrote: »

That is very interesting. In reality, what is to stop a new employer phoning whomever they choose on the applicants CV?

If the op moves again in 12 months time, wouldn’t his/her current employer be the one most likely contacted?

Data Protection prohibits a new employer contacting anyone to access personal data without the consent of the person. If they choose to disregard that then it’s a bigger issue.

References are different though than confirmation of employment. As part of an offer the new company may make it a condition that the reference is provided by the most recent employer.

Although I am surprised how often employers provide reference/employment details when requested by companies who are seeking a reference without checking with the person whether they have consented to this.

joeguevara

joeguevara wrote: »

Data Protection prohibits a new employer contacting anyone to access personal data without the consent of the person. If they choose to disregard that then it’s a bigger issue.

References are different though than confirmation of employment. As part of an offer the new company may make it a condition that the reference is provided by the most recent employer.

Although I am surprised how often employers provide reference/employment details when requested by companies who are seeking a reference without checking with the person whether they have consented to this.

Employers could be sued for saying something derogatory about an employee, but in reality, are quite prepared to answer that killer question during a phone call. So I doubt DP concerns would prevent many from taking a phone call.

joeguevara

Dav010 wrote: »

Employers could be sued for saying something derogatory about an employee, but in reality, are quite prepared to answer that killer question during a phone call. So I doubt DP concerns would prevent many from taking a phone call.

That was my point. Employers rarely even think about Data Protection when a reference is requested. For example I have never been asked by anyone did I consent to a particular company/person requesting access to my personal data. They would have known they were referees but wouldn’t know specific companies.

If it transpired that an employee lost an opportunity due to a breach of data protection (no consent) then it is an issue. But my point was that prospective employers can’t contact companies and request personal information without being authorised to do so.

joeguevara

joeguevara wrote: »

That was my point. Employers rarely even think about Data Protection when a reference is requested. For example I have never been asked by anyone did I consent to a particular company/person requesting access to my personal data. They would have known they were referees but wouldn’t know specific companies.

If it transpired that an employee lost an opportunity due to a breach of data protection (no consent) then it is an issue. But my point was that prospective employers can’t contact companies and request personal information without being authorised to do so.

As a matter of interest, how many employers do you think keep contemporaneous notes of phone calls they receive about former employees? And how many prospective employers tell employees they didn’t hire about the content of those calls?

ted1

Have you signed an actual contract ? Is there a probation period.
Done jobs fall through, don’t burn your bridges

joeguevara

Dav010 wrote: »

As a matter of interest, how many employers do you think keep contemporaneous notes of phone calls they receive about former employees? And how many prospective employers tell employees they didn’t hire about the content of those calls?

Prospective employers usually take notes of reference calls. A lot are on a template reference call document. They would be required to provide to the data subject if a data access request was submitted. Jobs are offered usually subject to reference.

But anyway, my original point was in response to a post that said his new employer could contact current. I pointed out that they would be restricted to only contacting named referees.

lapua20grain

If the date you have agreed to work is the 8th of February let them know now that you won't be there so they can plan for your absence. I all fairness I have managed plenty of operations and never expected anyone that has handed their notice in to do any extra hours from what I can see your notice should be discharged by that date so you should have no problem.