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Bosses Have To Pay Workers For Working Before And After Shifts

Bosses Have To Pay Workers For Working Before And After Shifts

Make sure you're getting paid for every hour worked

Tom Wood

Tom Wood

Bosses in Australia who make employees start early or finish late without paying them overtime have been breaking the law.

Under the Fair Work Act, employees have to be paid for every single minute that they dedicate to work - and that even includes opening or closing down a shop.

If you work in a coffee shop or a bar and are asked to be there at 8.45am for a 9am start, then you're owed payment for that, too.

PA

It's just the rules.

It might sound self-explanatory, but we all know that for a lot of people, this isn't happening.

The Australian Government's Fair Work Ombudsman took to Facebook to explain the law once and for all. They wrote: "So if you've been finding your pay packet is always a bit light because your boss rounds down your hours to the nearest 15 or 30 minutes or asks you to work ''off the clock'', know this isn't OK."

In fact, the organisation has been trying to bust all sorts of myths about when and what employees are to be paid for under the law.

You might want to take note of this, because - as we all know - bosses will often try to pull a fast one.

If you're going to a meeting or training outside of your agreed hours, you'd better be getting paid for that, too.

PA

According to that same Fair Work Act, if you've got to be there - that is, it's compulsory - then you're entitled to be paid for it.

The website states: "Employees are entitled to be paid for the time they are required to spend at any meeting or training."

As we're approaching the Christmas and New Year period, there are also rules regarding whether you can be told you can't have time off work as holiday. It turns out that being 'too busy' isn't a good enough excuse.

If you're a full-time worker in Australia, the likelihood is that you get four weeks off a year - five if you're a shift worker - and, while there are no specific rules in the Fair Work Act about annual leave bans, an employer can't 'unreasonably' refuse holiday requests for workers.

Anyway, there are a whole heap of rules involved in the Fair Work Act, and you'd be as well to have a look at them all to ensure you're getting a decent deal out of your employer.

After all, it's hard work.

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Interesting, Australia