What to do?

[scoobydoo]

Hi,

I am a reserve and work a 40 hour contract. I have worked for RM for 5 and a half years and am still a reserve despite people starting after me and having/sitting on their own rounds. Next week I have been told I have to do a duty with a 6.30 start time instead of my usual 5 (sometimes 5.30) which I am unable to do as I have recently started a business in the afternoons and have clients who rely on me, and this duty will make me an hour and a half later home. RM are refusing to put someone else on the duty, stating 'operational needs' but this just doesn't seem fair as I shouldn't even be a reserve! My union rep wasn't much help at the time and when I bumped into him later that day he asked 'if i was in a better mood now' making me feel like he just thought I woke up on the wrong side of the bed/being a typical woman. I have spoken to my area union rep and he has suggested putting in a stage 1 grievance, but is this right? I am worried about being seen as a trouble maker. Any advice gratefully received :-)

[Sippin40oz]

One thing i would be careful with is some contracts have a clause in them that state your not allowed to take any employment that interfears with your RM post. Would avoid using your self employment as an excuse for not starting later as you dont want to cause your self any more hassle!

[sheff postie]

In my opinion RM are not going to help you much because they pay you for 40 hours so can say with in reason when you start, does your contract state a 5.30 am start? also have you declared this extra work? i believe you have to tell them when you have other employment. Im sure a rep will be along to advise you better.

[Lounge Lizard]

"despite people starting after me and having/sitting on their own rounds" - why is that ?
Have they applied for and been accepted for rounds that you didn't want ?

[scoobydoo]

Surely RM can't expect me to be available 6 days a week 24 hours a day? They only gave me 4 days notice of being put on this later start duty for next week. Regardless of my business or not, I am allowed to have a social life and make arrangements and having worked 5/5.30 starts for the past 5 and a half years, its reasonable to have commitments that fall outside of my usual working hours.

No reason for the more recent employees to have been given their own rounds (favoritism perhaps?). I am unsure whether they have technically 'signed' for the rounds they are on, but regardless they have 'sat' on the same rounds for a good couple of years now.

[scoobydoo]

I should point out I have not been offered any of these rounds....

[sheff postie]

Surely RM can't expect me to be available 6 days a week 24 hours a day?

No they can't, they can expect you to do 40 hours work to fit in with staffing requirments at your office, i asume you are a leave reserve which means you will be required to do rounds that need covering week to week.

You could go down the route that you are not being treated fairly as the others are sitting in rounds and not covering other duty's and you are being required to be flexable, there is also the fact that if there are duties vacent they should be advertised for everyone to apply for. Your union rep should be pushing for vacant duty's to be advertised. Do you know anyone you can swap duty's with as a favour?

[SexyLegs]

Childcare or ill family would be your best cards to play, or you could go in the office and say the situation is stressing you out and you're going to go to see your GP, get signed off and go sick for a week, when you come back explain that the change of hours affected you and you would prefer it in future if you were left on your normal start time.

Worth a try :)

[Lounge Lizard]

As well as answering the question "Have they applied for and been accepted for rounds that you didn't want ?" can you also explain if the hours you are now being asked to work are outside those stipulated in the contract you accepted on joining Royal Mail ?

[POSTMAN]

Why the discrepancy in the start times at your place?
PS:Need to get rid of the rep.

and having worked 5/5.30 starts for the past 5 and a half years,

That 'should' cover you.