Hi OzBargainers
I can't work this Saturday night and I'm rostered on. I gave the manager notice on Tuesday and he told me I had to find someone else to cover my shift.
I am a casual worker, is it me that has to go find another's person to replace my shift or the duty manager responsibility?
Am I entitled to take the day off or do I have to work?
You're supposed to find people to swap shift with if you can't work any particular day. If you can't swap, then you need to take leave.
Casuals don't get leave as such. Advance notice needs to be given so rosters can be done and posted. If you are sick then not much can be done but the point of casuals is they don't get the benefits of full/part time workers but they get the extra penalty to cover this.
It is not your responsibility to find a replacement however this is common practice in many businesses that run with a large casual workforce. You gave far too little notice in my opinion, rosters should be out 2 weeks in advance and I asked for as much notice as possible but minimum 2 weeks. You are casual and you can refuse to work the shift but good luck getting regular shifts. Reliability is number one with casuals, it even surpasses ability in many cases. Do the right thing and find a replacement or change your plans and turn up for your shift.
I don't think there's a hard and fast rule on this, it depends on the job.
But yeah, when I worked casual, we had to organise for someone else to cover our shifts.
Aren't there co-workers who need the money happy to take extra shifts?
(And casual also means they can just never roster you on again if you leave them understaffed often enough).
they give us 5 days notice of next weeks roster, so every wednesday the roster comes out
If you want to keep your job, find someone to replace you. While you dont have to find a replacement, your boss doesn't have to give you any shifts either.
This
It depends… is the reason you cant work just because of a social occasion that is more important than your job?
If it is something this petty then yes, they should tell you to make arrangements to cover your shift.
If it is an important matter then informing your employer of the details may result in a different arrangement to fill your position.
This right here is why jobs are going overseas. We have people that are causal employees, doesn't know any of their rights or responsibilities, after the roster came out they don't want to work a shift, don't want to cover their own shift, and wants to know if they are "entitled" to the day off.
Let's see. Casual job. Saturday night shift. Weekly rosters. Probably hospitality - like waiter, chef, bar staff. Those sorts of jobs a re definitely headed overseas.
I was making a much broader statement than just about OPs type of job. Was more to do with the sort of work ethic that I am seeing more and more of.
But if there are more and more unemployed or lower paid people, there will be less disposable income for people to go to bars and restaurants. So even for the types of jobs that don't go overseas, there will be a carry-on effect.
Your job to find someone. All my mates working casual/part time have a fb/whatsapp group with their co workers. Just swap with someone.
Do you have a roster with everyone's name and number on it in the store? Just call a co-worker and ask if they'll swap. Maybe throw in an extra incentive like you'll buy them lunch or something if you are struggling
If you're a casual, there are perks that come with no job security. Being able to cancel any shift you want is one of them. I've cancelled shifts the day before and had no issues. It's not up to you to find a replacement.
I think you're meant to give them notice before your roster comes out, depends on where you work though I guess. Mine was 4 weeks as the rosters were for 4 weeks in advanced.