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Am I working illegally?

Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
in Work & Study
Right, where to start? ...I'm doing an apprentice and work more than 8hour shifts at work, which i know is illegal but what can i do about it, i also have no contract... any ideas???

Comments

  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Why is that illegal?

    Does your apprenticeship agreement state what hours you should be working?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    By law I should only do an 8 hour shit at a time, and should i not have a contract of employment??

    http://www.thesite.org/workandstudy/working/workersrights/workforunder18s
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    ah cheers for pointing that out - havent actually looked at the main site :o

    Notsure how it works with apprenticeships and contracts - hopefully someone with first hand experience will be along soon!
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    LilMizME wrote: »
    By law I should only do an 8 hour shit at a time

    sounds like hard work
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    That cant be right, I used to work 14/15 hours when I was 17 year old. Not all the time, but if i needed cash.

    How old are you ?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    If you are 16-17, or above school-leaving age:

    * You must not work more than eight hours a day, or more than 40 hours a week.
    * You must have 12 hours' rest between each working day, and two rest days per working week.
    * You are also entitled to a 30-minute rest break when you work for longer than four-and-a-half hours.

    Not sure on the veracity of this as I haven't heard about it before.

    She's 16 as it turns out.

    If it doesn't bother you then fine, but if it is a hassle then bring it up with whoever is above ya. So your immediate boss. They should bounce it up to the top boss.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    There might be different rules for an apprenticeship, there certainly are when it comes to minimum wage, as it's classed as training.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Take it up with your boss. Did you ask for a contract to sign or anything when you started working where you currently are? I do a placement 2 days a week and when I started (In October) I was given a contract type thing to sign and paper work to fill in, even though I wasn't actually employed by them.
  • smitherzsmitherz Posts: 968 Part of The Mix Family
    LilMizME wrote: »
    Right, where to start? ...I'm doing an apprentice and work more than 8hour shifts at work, which i know is illegal but what can i do about it, i also have no contract... any ideas???

    Simply speak to your assessor from your training provider, they will be able to point you in the right direction.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    olaola wrote: »
    sounds like hard work

    HAHAHA POTW!
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    LilMizME wrote: »
    By law I should only do an 8 hour shit at a time...
    I was unaware of this clause in my contract...
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    spoke 2 my boss she completely ignored the 8hr thing, and rambled on about the contract saying that i have no contract with her, as i have a contract with my training advisor, and that im jst being "housed" there :confused: so i lied and said the tax man was coming round and i needed to prove i was workin and she is goin to write up my hours and stuff, but stil what do i do about the hours?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    stargalaxy wrote: »
    I was unaware of this clause in my contract...
    I think it's age dependant. I do 9 hour shifts every Saturday, and that's certainly not illegal.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    xsazx wrote: »
    he was being sarcastic cause "shift" was changed to "shit" in the post :)
    Oh :o.

    I read it as that the first time I read this thread, as well :o.

    I blame my tiredness :yes:.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Franki wrote: »
    I think it's age dependant. I do 9 hour shifts every Saturday, and that's certainly not illegal.
    On a serious note, it does depend on whether you're in school or not. I do know a few 17-year olds who left school after their GCSEs and now do around 40-hours a week. That's pretty much the same as I normally do.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Everytime I see the thread title it just makes me think of illegal immigrant spiel.

    Well anyway, talk to your educational suervisor, they should make sure your placement is fair and within the confines of the law, it would be their head that would roll if someone found it wasn't.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I'm not sure if the rules for under 18 work apply to apprenticeship schemes, but I would think they should. From what I've read, most people on apprenticeships have terms of employment, which should give you the same workers' rights.

    Check out this government site about apprenticeships for some good info.

    This PDF from Work Smart gives you more info about what's required legally.

    Probably the best thing to do is to have a read through all this, then talk to your employers to find out how you can get a fairer deal. Good luck.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    appentiships have very faint and flexible working hours from what I know. My sister is in a hairdressing apprentaship and she can work 9am till 7pm on a friday night. At the end of the day I wouldn't throw a hissy fit (not suggesting you were before I get shouted at :razz:) about working over 8 hours, they are getting you a feel for real work and to be honest you are lucky to have an apprentaship, they are well sought after nowadays and can be really hard to get.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I agree with Ashlee, i wouldn't moan about it, your lucky to be getting the experience and the chance to do such a thing, unless they were making you work 24 hours a day I'd just get all that you can out of it.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Franki wrote: »
    I think it's age dependant. I do 9 hour shifts every Saturday, and that's certainly not illegal.

    Do you not take an hour off for lunch though?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I can answer the whole signing the contract bit,

    YOU do not need to sign a contract to work for a company, its not a LEGAL requirement, they just need to provide a "letter of appointment"
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