Job Contract Change

[xix]

At work my hours got reduced to 20%. Basically I get Mondays off now.
I had a contract that I be working 5 days. Company can't apply for Work Share it is to young and not past 2 years.

1.Can I renegotiate my contract?
2. If they say yes will they try to give me a wage reduction?
3. Is it better to wait until they give me a different title to negotiate a new contract?

Thanks for your help.

 

[Moraff]

At work my hours got reduced to 20%. Basically I get Mondays off now.
I had a contract that I be working 5 days. Company can't apply for Work Share it is to young and not past 2 years.

1.Can I renegotiate my contract?
2. If they say yes will they try to give me a wage reduction?
3. Is it better to wait until they give me a different title to negotiate a new contract?

Thanks for your help.

I don't understand... if you have a contract stating you get 5 days a week) why are they cutting your hours? or has the contract expired? Did they give you any reason for the hour cutting? Is it permanent or temporary?

1. you can ask... but if they're not following this one what's the point?

2. of course

3. by different title I assume you mean a promotion? I would imagine a new contract would come with the promotion.

 

[xix]

no sales

I don't understand... if you have a contract stating you get 5 days a week) why are they cutting your hours? or has the contract expired? Did they give you any reason for the hour cutting? Is it permanent or temporary?


3. by different title I assume you mean a promotion? I would imagine a new contract would come with the promotion.

I got Mondays off since there isn't much to do, or the sales people are doing less work since all of them are buddies of GM(general management). to lazy to process paper then customers started to stay away from us.

 

[Damondean]

Make Monday your hobby day! )

 

[Never Compromised]

I got Mondays off since there isn't much to do, or the sales people are doing less work

That is a red flag. If sales are dropping and customers are staying away, it is time to look for a new position. Think of the new pay structure as UI with more money. You have Mondays to do interviews, and a full time search.

 

[Nickelodeon]

I think there is a lot of this going on, ie. management assumes you'll accept the 80% loaf of bread rather than leave.

xix can leave but he better have somewhere to go.

Plus judging by his posts, he has English languages skills challenges (I'm not trying to be the grammar police, but some visible problems).

 

[fuji]

Your employer can change the terms of your employment any time they like, provided that they give you sufficient notice. If there is a negative material change in the terms of your employment, and perhaps a reduction in hours will count as that, you could claim "constructive dismissal".

In that case you can resign your job but collect severance pay as though you had been laid off without cause.

As for renegotiating--you can ALWAYS negotiate. You can't force your employer to do anything, but if you can get them to agree to something, well then it's agreed to!

 

[buckwheat1]

Join A Union!!!!

 

[tboy]

I'm curious as to why you have a "contract" as opposed to an employment agreement. Whenever I started a job with a company I singed an agreement not a contract. Whenever I worked on contract to a company as a sub contractor/self employed person I signed a contract.

If you are the latter, they cannot change the terms of the contract at any time without buying out the previous contract. Unless of course there was a clause in there allowing them to and you agreeing to that clause by signing it.

First thing I'd do is refer back to your copy of the document you signed and verify whether there is any clause that allows them to adjust your work hours.

 

[Keebler Elf]

Your employer can change the terms of your employment any time they like, provided that they give you sufficient notice. If there is a negative material change in the terms of your employment, and perhaps a reduction in hours will count as that, you could claim "constructive dismissal".

Something to be aware of is that if you just "accept" the change in your hours and start taking Mondays off, it seriously hurts your ability to later claim constructive dismissal.

If you're going to claim constructive dismissal, you should immediately put the company on notice that you are not in agreement with the change in your terms of employment. If they refuse to renegotiate, you are better off quitting and then suing for constructive dismissal than you are to continue working.

Obviously the downside to this is that you have to quit your job, which is why a lot of people blindly accept the material changes in their terms and working conditions. It simply may not be worth suing over.

You may be better off trying to negotiate something better that satisfies the company's desire to have you take Monday off and your desire to work it. Perhaps every other Monday off. Sounds like the company has financial problems and is looking to make some cost savings. Just make sure they don't do it at your expense without your agreement.

Also re-read your employment contract. There may be some fine print in there that you're missing.

Finally, above all else, speak to a lawyer specialized in employment law!!! You should be able to get a free assessment to at least let you know which direction you should be taking.

p.s., how much time is left on your contract?

p.p.s., it's VERY important you speak to a lawyer because employers take advantage of naive workers all the time. It's a case of you snooze you lose. If you don't know your rights, chances are excellent your perspective employer isn't going to educate you in them. That's up to you to find out. I've seen plenty of contracts go out to potential employees that were full of bullshit terms that I would never sign in a million years and that the employer would promptly remove if the worker pushed back on them. But the workers often don't push back so the employer gets a sweet deal. You need an AGENT looking out for YOUR interests if you're not knowledgeable enough to do so yourself (and most people aren't; employment law isn't the bailey-wick of most people). Some people use unions, some people use agents, some people use lawyers... just make sure you have someone who knows what they're doing.

 

[Radio_Shack]

Employers can change the contract any way they like even though you have a written contract. There is likely also a clause that they can let you go with 2 weeks notice if they like. You don't have much room for negotiating unless they can't run without you which likely is not the case. You have 2 choices, grin and bear it or leave.

 

[tboy]

Employers can change the contract any way they like even though you have a written contract. There is likely also a clause that they can let you go with 2 weeks notice if they like. You don't have much room for negotiating unless they can't run without you which likely is not the case. You have 2 choices, grin and bear it or leave.

So, if that IS the case, why even have a contract to begin with?

I would never and have never signed a contract or agreement with a clause that allows the employer to change the contract at any time. Kind of defeats the purpose.

 

[Keebler Elf]

I would never and have never signed a contract or agreement with a clause that allows the employer to change the contract at any time. Kind of defeats the purpose.

Even if the contract did say that, it would be a worthless clause that would make the contract null and void.

I forget the legal term at the moment but in contract law there must be something in it for the employee. So if an employer makes a material change in the contract agreement, the employee must receive something in return. It can be money, days off, hours, whatever. But the employer can't just take something without giving something of value to the employee in return. That's assuming the employee pursues the matter; if you just accept what the employer did then you're shit outta luck.

Fuck, that legal term is bothering me now. I'm going to be thinking about it all day...

Edit: Consideration!!! I knew I'd remember. If an employer changes the terms and conditions, the employee must receive consideration in return (i.e., they must get something out of the change) for it to be a legitimate change in the agreement. And if you think about it, that makes sense. Otherwise employers would just sign a sweetheart deal agreement initially and then change everything afterward.

 

[Radio_Shack]

So, if that IS the case, why even have a contract to begin with?

I would never and have never signed a contract or agreement with a clause that allows the employer to change the contract at any time. Kind of defeats the purpose.

It's pretty standard in the IT world where employer does stuff like cut your rate, make you take vacation with no pay etc and you can do nothing but grin and bear it or leave. They don't give a flying fuck about you and legally you can take them to court about it but you risk getting a reputation as a hastle to hire and likely you will spend a lot on legal fees and get no where. Just move on if the terms are changed to the point where they are unacceptable. Trust me, been there, done that..