Change in working hours/pay

Question regarding company trying to change my cousin's working hours and pay:
He currently works compressed days and gets paid 30% shift allowance
(Sun-Tues one week then Sun-Wed next week)

Company have said that come Feb 1st he has 2 options:
Work regular shift Mon-Fri and lose his 30% shift allowance.
Work compressed days/nights and have 50% shift allowance, this is the same shift as his present except he alternates between days/nights every other month.

Point is
1 He has been on his present shift for 6 years
2 All his childcare arrangements are fixed for this shift
3 Commute would be 3 hours a day so Mon-Fri is not option
4 Wife currently works nights so nights isn't an option
5 Has a contract stating his hours of pay/work

What are his options?

If he has the Original hours in the contract, the management have to negotiate it out.

It really depends on the wording in the contract, has he spoken to his superiors about his predicament ????


The 6 years could be termed as "custom and practise" in a LRC hearing , hopefully it won,t go that far.

He and the other 30 work colleagues have all spoken to their manager, basically the manager/company is using bully boy tactics to try and force the staff back onto night-shift or out of the company.
One manager has told him that if he went to the LRC he would probably win his case but he would never get a pay rise again.
Is their anywhere to go for advice on employment issues??

Jabber2 said:

One manager has told him that if he went to the LRC he would probably win his case but he would never get a pay rise again.

Click to expand...

That sounds like a request for a constructive dismissal case. If the manager was stupid enough to say this in front of any witnesses, it would probably significantly weaken the company's negotiating power.

What reason has the company offered for the changes?

Have you considered joining a Union ???? , try to join a smaller Union , generally more receptive to new groups and will work harder to keep you.


If the company refuse to negotiate on your contract, and play hardball with wage rises , you may be in a battle for the forseeable future ....

Reasons for his change:

1. He works in Installations, site now fully built so project has come to end of life.
2. Reduce overheads by reducing staff numbers.
3. Need for additional headcount in the MFG department.

Company doesn't recognise Unions, American Multinational.
He doesn't want to go down route of unfair dismissal, but also doesn't want to be seen to be lying down and taking IT...

He really wanted to know is there legislation he could point his managers too and relate his case to it. Generally good company to work for, but like all multinationals only good in good times.

As they are technically making his position redundant is there some piece of legislation he come use as a bargaining tool

They have offered him another job, they are not making him redundant.

Do not believe any legislation for this, they need to organize and call a meeting with management, and put across their points.

As for Union recignition, Irish Law recognises Union rights, MN is based in Ireland.HP had same stance until they employed BOI IT Workers.

Technically it is the position that's made redundant and not the employee. In many cases obviously the employee is let go but as an alternative he/she can legitimately be offered another position provided that there is a genuine intention to scrap the old position.

It doesn't sound like redundancy in this case though but rather a change in the nature of the position. Here's the situation:-

"Changes to your contract of employment in Ireland can occur due to a change in the law, but otherwise, changes must be agreed between your employer and yourself. Neither party can unilaterally decide to change the contract. The rights of employees and employers regarding changes to contracts are set out under the Terms of Employment (Information) Act, 1994 .
For more information see:-



http://www.citizensinformation.ie/categories/employment/employment-rights-and-conditions/contracts-of-employment/change_job_contract/?searchterm=contract


The employer in question therefore is attempting to bully the staff into accepting changes and this is illegal. A unified front is essential but it's not unreasonable for the employees to expect to have to enter into negotiations as the employer may well have a genuine reason for wanting to make the changes.

[Forgot to mention that the contract should be checked to ensure that the employer doesn't have the right to make certain changes - to shift patterns for example!]