i work at michaels as a seasonal sales associate. i've only been there since the end of october, so i know full well i'm still low on the totem pole (not as low as some other newbs, but very low none the less). i also know that that means crappy jobs and crappy shifts, and i've been totally fine with that, until now...
on sunday i'm scheduled to work 5 pm to 10:30 pm. that's fine.
on monday i'm scheduled to work 5 am to 3 pm. that would be fine, but they are consecutive days.
am i crazy to think that that's not okay to do to someone? getting off at 10:30 one night, not getting home and settled down until maybe 11:30. on top of that, i have sleeping issues so i wouldn't be asleep until maybe 12:30. only to have to wake up and be out of the house by 4:30 the next morning? (as i write this i realize that a lot of you pull these hours on a regular basis as bakers and cakers and whatnot. but for a regular retail job?)
also 5 am to 3 pm is 10 hours. wouldn't that be considered over time? i could be overracting and jumping the gun on my stress (which i'm very prone to do). the schedule changes from time to time before it's set in stone, so i'm hoping that's what's going on now.
but if it's not, am i right to be a little put off by this? should i talk to my manager to try to change it? or just deal with it?
I wouldn't mind a schedule like that occasionally, but I prefer to work early and get it done for the day. The 10 hour shift should include overtime. I would think you could take an hour for lunch, but that still leaves an hour OT. I would certainly ask. Employers should have workers' stuff posted in an obvious place for everyone to see (workers' comp, minimum wage statement, etc.). See if something is posted there.
Those are the kind of hours I used to have to work when I managed the gas station. It's fine once in a while but if you had to do it all the time, it would put a real strain on your body.
This probably isn't the advice that you're looking for, but if you want them to keep you on after the holidays, and if you want them to give you any hours after the Christmas rush, you should go ahead and work the shifts to show that you're willing to be there when they need you. If you've got any medical issues that would prevent you from working that many hours, by all means let them know, but otherwise try to do it if possible.
About overtime, it varies by state. Here, more than 40 hours in a week is overtime...so if you work two 18 hour days and one 4 hour shift, then you don't get any overtime pay for the week. It's different in some other states, you just need to look up the laws for yours.
Here I think you have to have 10 hours between shifts.
If you think it will help, talk to the manager about the schedule. I would just let him know your concern about working back to back like that, don't be angry or confrontational.
I'm a WMI at Michaels and I know that there are times when associates do have to come back in the morning to unload a truck or something. Maybe he/she wants you that night because they know you work hard, same as the next morning. After a while they get to know which people work better with which people. Which ones will get their stuff done and get out of there on time and which goof off, leave late then leave alot for the morning crew.
I will say this, when I was in the store the other day a couple a employees that have been there longer were saying that they were getting less hours than some of the newer Christmas help. One of them had already turned in his two week so that could be why he only got 12 hours for the whole week, but he has been there for a year and a half and is very good at his job. Which is the people you need this time of the year.
So there is an opposite side to it as well.
As far as the over time thing, I don't think you get over time hours until you hit 40 hours for the whole week and Michaels has very few people that get close to 40 hours.
I've worked retail and the schedules are what they are. As far as overtime, that would depend on your state. Overtime in Virginia is anything over 40 hours in a week. In California, overtime is anything over an 8 hour shift...and sometimes they even go back and forth with that labor law.
Now Andree313 I'm only saying this cause I care. You have been looking for a job for a long time as I recall. You've only worked there 2 months. This is a retail job. Sometimes, I think you have a little bit of an unrealistic attitude about jobs. They are not there to accomodate what you feel is fair. They just want you to work hard and work cheap, period. Sometimes you lean a little to the attitude of your generation and that attitude tends to be "Accomodate Me". Retail jobs, from Lane Bryant's to Michaels, do not care about what you think is fair. They care about covering their schedules at the lowest possible expense. And just so you know, totem pole doesn't mean nothing sometimes. Did you know a Footlocker manager is NEVER allowed an entire weekend off, EVER. That means even if you work 40 hours during the regular business hours, you still got to work somewhere in that weekend. Doesn't even matter if you have assistants that can cover a weekend. You would have to use actual vacation time.
In Idaho, an employer has to pay overtime if a person works more than 40 hours in one week, Sunday through Saturday. So no, it's not overtime unless you end up with over 40 hours.
It is an unreasonable schedule to work that late on Sunday and then that early on Monday. I'd ask the manager if s/he can switch you with someone else so you don't have such a short turnaround. Nobody can do their best work on so little sleep. If they can't switch the schedule this time, I'd try to work it but ask if they can avoid doing that any more. I don't mind working a ten hour shift, but it can be really long when you're on your feet AND when you're working with customers, especially this time of year. Ugh.
A skilled manager would not do this to employees. Unfortunately, it seems to happen a lot in retail. Hang in there! I hope it works itself out.
That's five hours of sleep at the most. Mike, you're not as passionate about a good night's sleep as I am!!!!
I am B * tchy!!! with a capital B when I only get that little sleep then have to work on my feet for 10 hours straight. Oh, my. Stand back. And dealing with the ever so cheerful Christmas shopping crowd? Lordy.
Although I have to add that I'd give anything to be working right now, and I'd probably do anything they asked because if you don't want to, there are plenty of people standing in line ready to do it. That's the attitude of employers right now, and they're right.
I've worked 8Am to 11:30PM to return at 8AM. If I factor in driving time those 16 hour shifts become 18 hour shifts. And I've done those shifts a week at a time. Was it easy, no. Was it something I had to do, yes.
And like you said Ruth, if you want a job, then you'll do what's neccessary. I also think Texas_Sugar has an excellent point. She is in a temp. position for the holidays. If I was her mangager (and I have been a retail manager) and she complained about the shift being too hard, I would be letting her go at the end of the season. Have I kept seasonal workers, yes. But only those that acted like they wanted the job, especially with the current work situation we are all in right now.
To answer your question, you get to deal with it or just quit.
When I was a seasonal worker, I worked 6 out of 7 days of the week and this was including a 13 hour day for the day after Thanksgiving sales and still had to show up the next day.
It's part of retail work.
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