King Duck
join:2005-04-10
Elizabeth City, NC
| Do what we say, depends on who does the saying
I recall working at a certain Auto insurance company where, due to Systems limitations, we were required to begin work at least 15 minutes before our scheduled start time in order to be up and running on the phones at our scheduled start.
I was at a general meeting once where the CEO of the company was giving a talk to staff.
A colleague asked about the requirement that we start work before our start time.
The CEO's answer was that Systems problems were the Company's problem, not ours, and if it took us 15 minutes after our start to be ready to make calls then so be it.
Within 48 hours we were given verbal feedback through our Supervisors to ignore what the CEO said, we were still required to conform with the early starts.
The Company was subsequently subject to a class-action suit for requiring people to work unpaid overtime in this manner... |
|
morbo
Complete Your Transaction
join:2002-01-22
00000
clubs: | as it should be. |
|
JammerMan79
Premium,VIP
join:2004-05-13
Prince George, BC | damn right! |
|
warthunder2k
join:2002-04-20
canada
 ·Colbanet
| reply to King Duck
said by King Duck  :I recall working at a certain Auto insurance company where, due to Systems limitations, we were required to begin work at least 15 minutes before our scheduled start time in order to be up and running on the phones at our scheduled start. I was at a general meeting once where the CEO of the company was giving a talk to staff. A colleague asked about the requirement that we start work before our start time. The CEO's answer was that Systems problems were the Company's problem, not ours, and if it took us 15 minutes after our start to be ready to make calls then so be it. Within 48 hours we were given verbal feedback through our Supervisors to ignore what the CEO said, we were still required to conform with the early starts. The Company was subsequently subject to a class-action suit for requiring people to work unpaid overtime in this manner... Is this legal? Because as a student I work at shitty places when they require us to do the same, be there 15 mins before the work hour and we have to leave 15 mins after. This majorly sucks when you are doing a 3hrs shifts, you lose 30 min on the shift plus all the transport etc. I'm thinking it should be paid, I mean, I'm required to be there, why is it my fault your shitty system takes so much time to be ready? 
Anyone knows the law on this? |
|
Fireshield
join:2001-10-08
Champlin, MN
| Laws are different in each state so you may want to verify, but I believe that the only thing a company can require is that you are available and prepared for work at the time you are scheduled to be there.
Now for the answer you don't want to hear - if they require you to be there 15 minutes early and don't pay you then your only real option is to pursue it legally either through the court system or the state employment offices. Both will probably be bureaucratic nightmares and time consuming. |
|
NOCMan
Verizon Fios User
Premium
join:2004-09-30
Flower Mound, TX
| reply to King Duck
Yeah chip manufacturers were sued for the 45 minutes it took an employee to suit up for the clean room. They required them to suit up unpaid and then work their 8 hour shift and take the clothes off which took nearly as long unpaid.
They won so good luck with your suit.
--
Mac Chatter
»www.macchatter.net |
|
warthunder2k
join:2002-04-20
canada | reply to Fireshield
yeah though so 
Perhaps the anonymous ''note'' on the diner table that highlights the illegal part would be helpful. I can always try. |
|
ReVeLaTeD
Premium
join:2001-11-10
San Diego, CA
| reply to King Duck
That lawsuit must not have been too long ago, if you're talking about the same auto insurance company that I'm thinking of. I know a sup at my current job who used to work there and when she left there roughly 4-5 years ago, that was the case.
I think the cavemen were the ones that filed that class action lawsuit. But then again maybe you're talking about a different auto insurance company. |
|
KrK
Heavy Artillery For The Little Guy
Premium
join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK
·AT&T Yahoo
·AT&T DSL Service
 ·Cox HSI
·AT&T Southwest
| reply to warthunder2k
said by warthunder2k :Is this legal? Because as a student I work at shitty places when they require us to do the same, be there 15 mins before the work hour and we have to leave 15 mins after. This majorly sucks when you are doing a 3hrs shifts, you lose 30 min on the shift plus all the transport etc. I'm thinking it should be paid, I mean, I'm required to be there, why is it my fault your shitty system takes so much time to be ready? Anyone knows the law on this? Transportation time and getting to work is on you. However if they make you work before you clock in or after you clock out then it's MAJOR penalties for them--- Completely Illegal and incredibly stupid because it's a super easy crime to allege and provide proof of... so they get caught and fined for it... Plus lawsuits, etc etc
Working off the clock is a no-no.
And it's really common.... When I was young I had jobs where I was told that X and X and X task must be done BUT you must leave at xx:xx time or else they'd "find someone else" (ie fire you). Problem is the tasks weren't possible in that amount of time. Of course their attitude is that you were a lazy slacker employee who didn't work hard enough. When I was told that by the manager I told him "You do it then" and walked. Ah, the good old days....
Anyway, I rambled off topic there. Yep, it's illegal.
--
"Regulatory capitalism is when companies invest in lawyers, lobbyists, and politicians, instead of plant, people, and customer service." - former FCC Chairman William Kennard (A real FCC Chairman, unlike the current Corporate Spokesperson in the job!) |
|
sivran
Long Live The Suite
Premium
join:2003-09-15
Arlington, TX
clubs:
·RoadRunner Cable
| Indeed. I know of a few places where they have strict rules against working off the clock. One of them, a callcenter, actually tied their timeclock system to their phones so that it would be impossible to be taking calls off the clock.
--
Think outside the fox...Seamonkey |
|
BillIsAThief
@comcast.net
| reply to KrK
Yeah, I once worked at Goldman Sachs (AKA Goldman Sucks) in IT. I remember my boss there, Jim Gabriel, tried to pull that shit on me twice. I sent him an email asking him to confirm that what he'd told me to do was what he wanted me to do - that is, only book 40 hours a week, even though I was expected to, and did, work more than that. Of course, he declined to confirm in writing what he'd told me to do orally. Google says he's still at Goldman... |
|
