Teller Job Unable to Leave on Time What Are My Options?

flatwhitepls on 07/05/2020 - 19:54
Last edited 07/05/2020 - 19:58

My partner works in a bank branch in Victoria as a teller aka Customer Representative part time 6 hours a day. Her contractual working hours is 9:30 to 4pm. The branch close at 4pm. Everyday she finishes at 4:10-4:45 and unable to leave because:

  • The last customer may come and at 4pm and the manager is busy.
  • An employee inside the bank branch had to let her out for security reasons. Because they are busy she can't leave.
  • she needs to do additional work before she can leave. E.g. atm refill. Because she is busy whole day serving customers. She needs to do these additional work before she can leave.

She already discussed with her manager 3 times that she needs to leave on time because of her commitments. But no support been given.

Additional info:

  • There are other staffs who are full-time they finish at 5pm
  • Always on time around 9:15-9:25 to start
Education & Work

Comments

  • [Deactivated] on 07/05/2020 - 20:04
    +3

    Paid hourly or salary?

    • flatwhitepls on 07/05/2020 - 20:06

      Salary.

      • dizzle on 08/05/2020 - 08:07
        +69

        Salaried jobs are normally for X hours a week plus reasonable overtime.

        However working until the last customer leaves is a standard for most customer service jobs. That's just what you do otherwise you're not serving the customer.

        For hourly staff that means they should get paid the extra 10-45 minutes whenever required, for salaried staff, it's absorbed into the reasonable overtime. If it gets to 5 hours extra a week, that's where I'd start consider it unreasonable.

        Where it becomes illegal, is where those extra hours bring your pay below the award wage, so you can work out how much they work and how much per hour that comes to, and you can take that to HR.

        • njastar on 08/05/2020 - 11:03
          +21

          I think 15 minutes is okay but anything over 30 minutes is too much to expect, especially if this is every day and not once a week.

        • Harold Halfprice on 09/05/2020 - 23:22
          +1

          Where it becomes illegal, is where those extra hours bring your pay below the award wage, so you can work out how much they work and how much per hour that comes to, and you can take that to HR.

          Question - what about people who don't have an award to go by, and don't have a HR department?

          • Parentheses on 10/05/2020 - 09:43
            +2

            @Harold Halfprice: If you aren't employed under an award you are employed with some sort of contract that stipulates what you will be paid - which must be above minimum wage for the hours worked.

            Every business has an HR department, it's just some of them haven't split that department away from 'your boss' and 'your boss's boss' and so on.

            • Harold Halfprice on 10/05/2020 - 10:49

              @Parentheses:

              If you aren't employed under an award you are employed with some sort of contract that stipulates what you will be paid - which must be above minimum wage for the hours worked.

              So what does that mean? If you're a salaried employee without an award wage (which a lot of professional jobs don't) you can be reasonably expected to work additional overtime as long as your wage doesn't fall under $19.49 an hour?

        • Blitz001 on 10/05/2020 - 13:22

          So you’re ok working an extra hour per day free? Wish my employer would be ok with me coming in an hour late everyday.

          • dizzle on 10/05/2020 - 20:24
            +1

            @Blitz001: It all comes down to what is considered "reasonable overtime".

            A quick search on fair work says the award for an adult full timer is $20.73 an hour (junior can go as low as $10.36). Glass door shows wages going from $25-38 an hour for bank tellers in the main banks, but even using a comparative $23, a 38 hour week would come to $874. OP says partner is working 15-45 minutes extra a day so say 40.5 hours a week. The award would say that's acceptable since it works out at $21.58 an hour. Whether or not that's what is expected from the employee is another matter.

            Of course this still depends on whether OP is correct that they are paid just the award. If they get $20.73 an hour, they would need to be paid overtime or time in lieu

            It's not always the case but most people working on salary rather than hourly wage will tend to be specialists, supervisors or management. They would be paid according for the extra work as well as the extra skills.

        • Gunther on 08/05/2020 - 09:30
          +123

          Double standards - your personal time is your personal time regardless of having kids or not!

          • barghunt1 on 08/05/2020 - 09:49
            +4

            @Gunther: Agree!!!!!!

            • Eeples on 08/05/2020 - 19:31
              +25

              @berry580: Aren't you the one showing the sense of entitlement because you have kids?

                • Eeples on 09/05/2020 - 06:51
                  +20

                  @berry580: You did and you are still saying it.

                  You are saying having kids justifies you to seek an advantage, to seek special, different treatment from the employer; than someone who doesn’t.

                  That is entitlement.

                  • Other on 11/05/2020 - 14:31
                    -3

                    @Eeples: Having kids is an entitlement???

                    I, like you, also see massive privilege in having kids, just think when their kids get cancer how many days they could have off!

                    • Eeples on 13/05/2020 - 00:11

                      @Other: Seeking an advantage or special, different treatment. Ie. leaving earlier than others because you have kids.

                      Is being entitled.

                      • Other on 13/05/2020 - 14:46

                        @Eeples: Yes having kids is being entitled.

                        Especially all the money you have to spend on them = privilege.

                        Hang on a second…

                        If you have kids and its a net cost to you in time & money but society benefits (from being future tax payers) is that privilege?

                        And people not having kids, but relying on future tax payers for health care and retirement payments is that privilege???????

                        So parents have massive privilege, and those who don't are victims of that privilege. Yep…. ok, of course why not???
                        Yay!

                • shreav on 11/05/2020 - 11:34

                  @berry580: I'd like to know what business you work for or operate because I'd like to give you a very wide berth.

                  • Other on 11/05/2020 - 14:35
                    +1

                    @shreav: If I had an employee with Kids I would give them more leeway, because children are an entitlement and people who have them are privileged. People without children are the biggest victims I know. For one they don't get any day care subsidies - Right there victimisation on display - pushed into their faces via advertising! - its formal Government policy! Like apartheid. I know the great civil rights leaders would be against it.

                    I work in the legal industry.

                    Please, please give us a wide, wide birth.

                    Did you see what I did then?

                    • shreav on 11/05/2020 - 15:44

                      @Other: Yes, you're rambling. What it has to do with my comment, I have no idea.

              • cameldownunder on 11/05/2020 - 09:58

                @Eeples: I was just mirroring the employer attitude. They don't care if you are late for a drink, but they are more willing to allow you to attend to family issues, like picking up the kids. ( Don't care about the neg )

            • ozbjunkie on 09/05/2020 - 20:55
              +2

              @berry580: If you were my employer I'd duck out a half hour early every day to hit the bars.

              How am I going to get kids to pickup? Need to pickup a girl somewhere first.

              You'd be understanding right? Because since a half hour doesn't matter, surely it can be in my favour and not yours?

            • Hardlyworkin on 09/05/2020 - 11:28
              +9

              @Zonty: This is how exploitation starts, workers who don't stand up for their rights.

              Given Australia has one of the lowest rates of cigarette smokers in the world, not sure your argument stacks up. Maybe it's that Australians stop for a smoke break though in other countries they smoke during work?

            • buffalo bill on 09/05/2020 - 18:08

              @Zonty: Maybe you get job at IELTS school checking for grammar errors and idiocy

              • Zonty on 10/05/2020 - 00:05
                -6

                @buffalo bill: Ty for opinion but I make more then you $$$ so I will pass .

            • shreav on 11/05/2020 - 11:36

              @Zonty: I'm an immigrant too. The different between us is that you have no self-respect.

              • Zonty on 12/05/2020 - 18:44
                -1

                @shreav: Self respect I just saying no need go English learning when I make enough$$$ why you dip in this chat? I see you are indian love to put nose.

                • shreav on 12/05/2020 - 20:27

                  @Zonty: You make a lot of money and that's great homie. But you're part of a problematic system where some employers take advantage of their employees, including those on a work-visa. Instead of standing up for your rights and the rights of others, you're happy to bend over for a couple of bucks. As I said, there's nothing to be prideful about in that - so no self-respect. Judging your comment on my race, perhaps you're a racist too.

                  On that note I'm not Indian, but nice try? This chat is on a public forum. You're putting yourself out there so prepare to be criticised. If you're feeling sore about it, the pharmacies are open and you can get yourself some burn cream.

                  • Zonty on 12/05/2020 - 23:22

                    @shreav: That was my opinion buddy someone replay with my opinion go English class so I replay respectfully I make more then you where is disrespectful? If you do not like my opinion say so no need tell you how to write opinion that was chat and you dive in volunteer.

        • Tambani on 08/05/2020 - 13:44
          +2

          Would love to see this argument thrown out by an employer at the Fair Work Commission.

        • Belts on 08/05/2020 - 15:56
          +13

          Soooo…my time is less valuable because I don’t have children? My colleagues with families can leave before me and arrive after me, but we still get paid the same amount?

          Get a grip. If I want to stay back that should my choice because a) I like my job, or b) I have deadlines that need to be met. It shouldn’t be a sacrifice that I’m expected to make out of everyone in the office, just because I haven’t yet given birth to crotch fruit.

          • lonewolf on 08/05/2020 - 17:04
            -3

            @Belts: That may be true but in work places and HR etc all give preferential treatment to families with kids as opposed to ones without. My colleague who had a kid has been rorting the system for the past few years and the rest of the team has to keep covering for him and working more hours / longer hours (all salary based jobs)

            • Belts on 08/05/2020 - 18:28
              +1

              @lonewolf: Yes, Captain Obvious. That was the reason for the rant. It affects me on a daily basis and has done so for years. It just really bothers me that people can be so blasé in suggesting that because they have children they deserve preferential treatment over those who don’t, and then they make judgement calls on what constitutes meaningful personal time.

              How many weeks into lock-down and they still view exercise, self-care and socialising with loved ones as frivolous in comparison to child-rearing? These are human needs as well and they are not secondary to those of someone who has chosen spend their time taking children to after school football, swim classes, or tutoring.

              Some parents sicken me.

              • lonewolf on 08/05/2020 - 20:21

                @Belts: i was actually agreeing with you but anyway

                • Belts on 08/05/2020 - 20:59

                  @lonewolf: Yeah. Got that. I’m elaborating further as to why idiots such as @cameldownunder and @berry580 are the entitled ones who expect the world to bend over backwards for their life choices.

                  This is a very sore topic….

                  • hayne on 08/05/2020 - 22:36
                    +4

                    @Belts: Yeah. Before I had kids, I would have completely agreed.

                    I'm sure I'll get negged for this…

                    …but being 30 minutes late to catch up with my mates at the pub just makes me fashionably late. Being 30 minutes late to pick up a distraught 3-year old because she's the last one left at day care while her carers have to do unpaid overtime because they're waiting for the only late parent just makes me a selfish prick and a sh*t parent.

                    That's why employers are inclined to make allowances for employees who have child pick-up duties and not for employees who have friends waiting for them for a drink.

                    • Belts on 08/05/2020 - 23:10
                      +1

                      @hayne: I’m not at all bothered if you’ve made alternate arrangement with your employer and have an agreement to do the pick-ups, drop-offs, and then make up time later. That’s your business and you do what you do, as long as you don’t negatively impact your colleagues. In fact I think flexible work arrangements should be recognised in more workplaces and it’s great that these social distancing measures are demonstrating to employers that this is very much possible.

                      However, where I draw the line and what I detest is the attitude some parents have that child-less colleagues should just pick up the slack because they don’t have children, that their time is less valuable and their personal activities are less important. This is usually done in the form of an offhand but deliberately dismissive comment such as “You don’t have anything better to do, right?” or “It’s just a drinks date, right?”. That’s BS and unfairly devalues the child-less person.

                      • hayne on 08/05/2020 - 23:33

                        @Belts: @Belts. Fair enough.

                        I have to say in my 20+ years of working across several companies (both before and after I was a parent), I haven't come across any parents who feel childless people should pick up their slack while they should work less than they're paid for just because they're parents, so I'm not sure how widespread that is… but maybe that's just in my sector. I'm sure there must be some people out there with that attitude.

                    • digitalbargain on 08/05/2020 - 23:51
                      +1

                      @hayne: I actually really respect the grind that some of my colleagues with kids manage day in day out

                      Raising kids is a real important role in society

                      This is not to say people without kids are more or less important

                      But I don't mind cutting some slack for those with kids

                      And maybe it's something to do with being raised by a single mother of 3 who worked full time

        • legendary-noob on 09/05/2020 - 08:15
          -2

          Not sure why so many negs but I do agree.
          It’s not about double standard
          If you have better use of your personal time ie kids then you have no choice but if you don’t eh drinks those are non mandatory commitments that can be deferred whilst not compromising your career prospect.
          Maybe again different perspective

          • ozbjunkie on 09/05/2020 - 20:59

            @legendary-noob: And what if, in my opinion, I have an even better use of my personal time than raising kids?

            I deserve preferential treatment above that of parents due to my belief that my personal time is being used in a way that's more important than child-rearing, right?

            • legendary-noob on 22/05/2020 - 14:26

              @ozbjunkie: you could.
              no ones stopping you.
              the kids example is from above.
              its all up to you to prioritise what is important in your life
              but just be mindful that there are trade-offs
              no one gets the best of both worlds

        • ankor on 09/05/2020 - 09:32

          How severely judgmental of you and what a terrible attitude you have.

        • Erkel on 09/05/2020 - 17:12

          You don't get to decide how someone spends their spare time is 'important' or not.

          My commitment is sleeping uninterrupted 10+ hours a day and wake up feeling like a king. This is more important to me than some mum/dad picking up their kids after school.

  • Melb69 on 07/05/2020 - 20:04
    +33

    Quit the job.

    • capslock janitor on 08/05/2020 - 11:27

      miss ur old pic

      • Melb69 on 08/05/2020 - 13:58

        Kept getting pms

        • Daabido on 08/05/2020 - 17:54
          +9

          Changing avatars can help get rid of PMS? I'll have to let my doctor know.

        • [Deactivated] on 09/05/2020 - 19:53

          with everyone assuming you were a woman?

          • Melb69 on 09/05/2020 - 20:20
            +1

            @[Deactivated]: Had to correct the gender imbalance of my avatar. She was cute with her Wh-1000XM2s, but time to go as we are almost up to XM4s.

        • SpotTheOzzie on 12/05/2020 - 10:44

          You were getting DM'd on a bargaining website because of your DP was a female?

          Please post SSs

          • Melb69 on 12/05/2020 - 13:25

            @SpotTheOzzie: The DMs are not family friendly from the messengers. Didn't know this was a dating forum.

  • iforgotmysocks on 07/05/2020 - 20:05
    +17

    What did HR say when she teller-ed them about her situation?

    • flatwhitepls on 07/05/2020 - 20:07
      +1

      HR advised to speak with the manager.

      • Donaldhump on 07/05/2020 - 20:12
        +18

        And she did and got no reply so

        1.) go back to hr, so will finish on time, and risk future promotions and/or job indirectly
        2.) cop it, if it’s unusually 10 mins as opposed to 45 mins does it a matter so much, is there really commitments or is it the attitude that they can’t work for free that bothers her or you.
        3.) take extra long shit breaks and get another job, but clearly tell the truth in next interview so they are aware of where everone stands.
        4.) resign, sit at home, and earn no money

        • superuser on 09/05/2020 - 09:24
          -2

          5.) Dump her
          6.) Start a bank, open and close whenever you like

      • cameldownunder on 08/05/2020 - 09:24
        +24

        HR role has changed. HR not here to help employees, to assist them in speaking to manager.
        HR job now is to enforce what management has decided. Moved from Legislative to executive.
        My wife is HR and she is horrified at what is becoming of her profession, she has more and more
        a hard time with executive management, because they see HR as their tool.

        • StalkingIbis on 08/05/2020 - 11:34
          +15

          Of course HR is on the company's side…..the company hired them to manage their human resources, just like they would hire an IT guy to manage their IT resources.

          • cameldownunder on 08/05/2020 - 15:22
            -7

            @StalkingIbis: IT manages computers and networks. Humans are bit more complicated. Comparison does not hold

            • [Deactivated] on 08/05/2020 - 23:41
              +3

              @cameldownunder: Both are resources according to a company. Comparison holds.

              Your logic/intelligence is severely broken. You think single people deserve less leisure than those worth dependents.

  • JIMB0 on 07/05/2020 - 20:07
    +3

    I'd make up for it by starting late the next day. Either by showing up late or putting your feet up until the lost time is made up.

    • [Deactivated] on 07/05/2020 - 20:51
      +10

      That's just being passive-aggressive.

      • Oofy Doofy on 08/05/2020 - 09:53
        +11

        That's the only type of 'aggressive' allowed these days.

      • bmerigan on 08/05/2020 - 22:28

        I love passive-aggressive

        • [Deactivated] on 08/05/2020 - 22:45

          Does it ever work?

          • bmerigan on 09/05/2020 - 01:06
            +3

            @[Deactivated]: But it feels so good, and it's non-violent so you can't get in trouble

            • [Deactivated] on 09/05/2020 - 19:54

              @bmerigan: It is also a complete waste of your time and it gets you nowhere.

    • dizzle on 08/05/2020 - 12:32
      +7

      And that's a good way of being written up for late-attendance. As mentioned above, most salary roles include "reasonable" overtime. While that doesn't necessarily mean you have to stay late, it normally compensates you above the award wage for doing it. Turning up late is another thing entirely.

  • spackbace on 07/05/2020 - 20:13
    +51

    In the current employment environment I'd say a lot of people would wish they had that job and it wouldn't take much experience to secure a job like that…

    But it depends on the person. Some peoples' jobs see them start and finish on time, others do reasonable overtime.

    • 87percent on 07/05/2020 - 20:59
      +3

      This is good advice, I’d be keeping my mouth shut and not trying to rustle feathers

    • moo on 08/05/2020 - 17:59
      +2

      How’s the car sales going in the current climate?

      • spackbace on 08/05/2020 - 19:04
        +4

        Going gang-busters this month actually! Other dealers are reporting spikes of activity as well

        • cloudy on 08/05/2020 - 20:05

          Do you guys tend to give better prices if you are having terrible sales for a month or two?

          • spackbace on 08/05/2020 - 20:11

            @cloudy: Better prices are subjective. Many factors at play, even down to the customer's behaviour.

            • cloudy on 08/05/2020 - 20:17
              +2

              @spackbace: Let me ask this way, if I were to plot the average selling price of, lets say Prius, would it be on average lower after a few bad months, and higher during high sales month.

        • digitalbargain on 08/05/2020 - 23:57

          Fascinating.. Would not have expected that car sales would be doing so well.. what's driving it? (No pun intended)

          Or is there a lag effect and this may actually drop

        • digitalbargain on 09/05/2020 - 00:02

          Media reports are that car sales where basically halved in April,. Bit confused

          Or are you saying May is going well as compared to April?

          • spackbace on 09/05/2020 - 10:21
            +3

            @digitalbargain: May is going well compared to April

            • [Deactivated] on 09/05/2020 - 19:50

              @spackbace: Glad to hear that things are picking up again. This was in the paper recently:

              New car sales plunged a record 48.5% in April because of the coronavirus pandemic.It was the biggest fall recorded in almost 30 years of tracking the sales, as COVID-19 rattled consumer confidence and social movement restrictions kept people indoors.

              • spackbace on 09/05/2020 - 20:18
                +1

                @[Deactivated]: Certainly helps being part of a stable brand! Quicker to bounce back to normal

  • bobbified on 07/05/2020 - 20:36
    +28

    Salaried office jobs generally require a degree of flexibility. In my 20 years of employment there's always been times where I've left or worked outside my normal hours. However, when it's not busy, no-one cares what I do. No-one says anything when I come in late or take a longer lunch break either. I just do whatever I need to do to get my job done.

    There's got to be some give and take on both ends.

    How would you feel as a bank customer if you were working with an employee on a problem and they told you they had to leave now because it's their finishing time? Then you get handed over to another employee where you might have to start explaining everything again?

    The employment contract should have a clause on the requirement to work "reasonable overtime". It gets factored into your salary.

    Theoretically, it shouldn't, but these conversations with your manager will impact any potential future promotions or any internal job applications.

    • flatwhitepls on 07/05/2020 - 22:14

      Teller is a bit different from the usual office job. She is always on the counter (standing) and you can't just go away for a break. The work is non stop most days it's a busy branch.

      • Hardlyworkin on 07/05/2020 - 22:24

        Yes, but does her salary compensate for the extra hours? If she paid a bit above her award or agreement minimum wage to compensate for doing some extra minutes? If no then she needs to put her foot down and keep a log of the extra time. If it's not extra money then ask for flex, take this extra time as a paid day off.

        • flatwhitepls on 07/05/2020 - 22:27

          She is paid according the award rate. Not more.

          • afoveht on 07/05/2020 - 23:01
            +12

            @flatwhitepls: Award, if it means anything, refers to wages, not salary.

            It's nigh impossible to give and take in this type of role - it's only take by the employer

            Your partner is being ripped off. How she handles it may depend on various factors but it does not change the fact she is being ripped off.

          • Hardlyworkin on 08/05/2020 - 07:47
            +5

            @flatwhitepls: Ok, so if you add up the hours she works if she is paid less than the award then it's a HR problem. I suggest that she calculates the figure for each pay period and email HR with the specific amount of the underpayment. Escalate from there if not resolved. It's important that she keeps a contemporaneous record of her hours.

          • Zephyrus on 08/05/2020 - 09:19
            +2

            @flatwhitepls: If she's being paid award rates on a salary, then she should be getting overtime from the first minute as otherwise she'd be under the award rate.

  • Porker on 07/05/2020 - 20:44
    +16

    Work culture will probably have influence here, and is not been included in OP's post.

    I don't expect my guys to stay late, but they do so as they know it helps the overall team. I always reward the effort in the long run - maybe not with overtime, but letting them go early and/or extended breaks or personal time (and not count against leave)

    Annoys me when staff just clock watch and will literally leave or shut down 5 mins before they have to go. Again, there's no requirement for them to stay but unfortunately others will pick up the slack when (in most cases) its obvious that we're all struggling or behind.

    Any idea how she approached the manager and/or what the manager is like? Eg. does either one act entitled or both? Are they old school thinkers or 'what's in it for me?' type people?

    I suspect you're getting one side of the story here or have a biased opinion (as a partner would). Maybe if the manager had opportunity to provide comment here too, it would present a different side.

    • Jolakot on 07/05/2020 - 21:03
      +3

      Why not just hire enough people so that there is no slack that needs to be picked up? It seems like the problem is poor staffing if you're constantly struggling/behind if someone leaves when they're supposed to.

      • Porker on 07/05/2020 - 21:11
        +4

        Work isn't always consistent such that there is occasion when we're overloaded.

        I never said we were constantly behind, but when it's obvious we are, absences or those that leave are very much noticed by those that put in extra effort.

        I don't know what the OPs partners commitments are, but supporting work colleagues is a give and take item in my mind.

        • capslock janitor on 08/05/2020 - 11:34
          -4

          why not temps/casual or uni students to do the basic donkey work stuff? when busy

        • wtfnodeal on 10/05/2020 - 05:41

          But the OP here said "everyday…" so does it mean the branch is in fact not hiring enough people? Or at least she can request her paid hours be increased to 4.30pm due to short of staff?

      • 82norm on 08/05/2020 - 10:16
        +9

        It’s a bank. Thats how it’s done. Naive comment.

        Banks are always looking at ways to reduce costs and if it means screwing over their staff through subliminal ways by extra minutes here and there they’ll do it. I know 120% what OP is saying as my wife went through the same BS.

        Even after the Royal Commission they’re not learning and they never will. Screw both customers and staff.

        • arislan on 17/05/2020 - 15:25

          Its not just a bank thing. I've been in IT for more than 20 years in all sorts of industries, academia, telcos, banks, manufacturing, consumer goods, shipping, pure R&D, publishing, etc. Worked in Asia, North America, here in Oz. Its a norm that people don't clock out on time in IT regardless of which industry you're servicing.

          Heck most people don't clock out less than 30 minutes after the official end of day unless you're on operational shifts and your next shift's turned up but for shifts its typically between your colleagues following shifts - you cover for them now and then, they return the favour.

    • arkie0 on 07/05/2020 - 21:49

      Sometimes a 9-5 workhorse type can be a positive, as long as they're reliable and consistently productive in the 9-5.

Login or Join to leave a comment
Login Join