Changes in works contract

[sammmo]

My employer wants to change my contract of employment.. He is introducing a banked hrs scheme..He wants to be able to tell us to take a day off when work is short. He will bank those hrs for us and when work picks up we can pay them back. He wants to be able to do this by only giving us 2 days notice. And we must agree to pay back the hours on any shift in any department.. Is this legal?

[ojread2]

yes

He must follow some rules in order to change your working hours etc but as long as he does this it is legal
http://www.direct.gov...onditions/dg_10028079

Of course you dont have to agree but you may find yourself unemplyed

Try ACAS http://www.acas.org.u...x.aspx?articleid=1461 for further discussions

[tonyav]

I would give ACAS a phone call if I were you, I don't think 2 days is right.

[tonyav]

Crossed threads there :-)

[ojread2]

great minds n all that ..

Tony, I read the op as, after changing the contract the employer wants to include giving 2 days notice of whether the op is needed for work? Could be wrong - OP, could you clarify as this would not be following the 'rules'

[sammmo]

My employer wants to be able to give us 2 days notice of the day he wants us to take off..

[sammmo]

I can see what he wants.. If there is not enough work for everyone for a full week he would tell some of us to say take Friday off. He would then bank those hours the maybe a few weeks or months later, he could ask us to payback those hours by working overtime without paying us for it because he has already paid for those hrs.

[bednobs]

it sounds like a reasonably sensible alternative to either all going on short hours or some people being made redundant then being replaced by casual staff when times are good

[EDDIE51]

I worked the same system for a few years , it worked well, we got told on Wednesday if we were needed on Friday or not.

[stokemaveric]

tupe????

[sammmo]

Is it legal to just give us 2 days notice?

[tonyav]

Not sure sammmo, has I said earlier on, give ACAS a call, they will tell you for sure.

[IggyB]

If you agree to the change in your contract then it is indeed "legal"

[tonywiltshire]

As has been said it is possible if you agree to the changes to your contract of employment. Under the Employment Rights Act 1996, there are a number of ways of varying the terms of the contract which can happen quite frequently the most likely being by agreement. It should not be done unilaterally and by dismissal and re-engagement can be dangerous.
If it assists your company and possibly helps them to stay in business it may be to your advantage. I suggest you talk to your colleagues as there is strength in numbers and if you are a member of a trade union get them involved. If you wish to see what can happen where an employer seeks to vary the terms of contract unilaterally look at the well known case of Robertson v British Gas Corp 1983.

[pink-kittens]

Once your new contract is in place, yes, it will be perfectly legal
As has already been stated, you do not have to agree to this new contract or type of working hours but you may well find your self unemployed