Legal Advice on Hours and Schedules

Questioner

Hello I work for a care group and have a permanent contract of 32 hours. We have now switched to a new roster system and then the standard is that far too little is planned and then very quickly you have a lot of minus hours. I actually have 2 questions. Is the employer allowed to plan you far too little and then say that you are responsible for your own hours and then have to make yourself available. Question two, if you work 32 hours, are you allowed to have different guideline hours every month, so that in some months you have to work much more than 32 hours to get your hours. example: Guideline hours per month January 134.4 February 134.4 March 147.2 April 134.4 May 140.8 June 140.8 July 134.4 august 147.2 September 140.8 October 134.4 November 140.8 December 140.8. Our team leader even wants us to use our vacation hours to get our hours.

Lawyer

That depends entirely on the wording of your employment contract and any applicable collective labor agreement. Fixed hours are in principle fixed hours. You describe that your employer unilaterally changes the agreed working method. An employment contract cannot simply be changed unilaterally. There must be a reasonable reason for this and your employer must then take your personal circumstances into account. In addition, the Works Council (if your employer has more than 50 employees) must agree to this. Offsetting too few scheduled hours with leave hours is only legally permitted if it concerns only the statutory leave hours (4x 32 hours per year) and if this has been agreed with you in advance. If you do not agree to this (not even implicitly), this offsetting is not permitted. I advise you to object to this in writing (if possible with your colleagues).

Questioner

Our care group has multiple locations so many more than 50 employees. The roster change is implemented in the entire care group. The OR seems to agree with everything so you can do little about it as an individual. Is it also legally permitted to schedule my hours differently every month, plus less and then say that you are responsible for this yourself? The basic schedule is made with minus hours for everyone, but I have the most trouble with that with 32 hours. Since shorter services are also scheduled, at my location I am the only one with 32 hours, everyone has 24 hours or less. You have to make yourself available and that is very difficult due to various factors, I have my back against the wall. At the end of February, as it is now, I am already 61 hours in the minus, it is getting more every month.

Lawyer

1. You write that the Works Council SEEMS to agree to everything, but are you sure that is what happened here? It is worth checking this out exactly. 2. Once again: You are in any case entitled to payment for the agreed 32 hours per week, your employer may not change this unilaterally without your consent and if this threatens to happen I advise you to protest against this in writing. 3. You write that it is very difficult for you to be available for the remaining hours due to various factors. What are these factors? In principle, your employer will have to take your original personal home situation (such as children attending school) into account. You must make this clear to your employer.