On Nov 12, 5:22*pm, Roland Perry wrote:
In message
I don't understand this - you say Sundays are different, but then "paid
at time".


I work a 37 hour week covering Monday to Saturday all shifts (early
late and nights) This requires 4 people to cover the shifts and one
extra as a "relief". Over 8 weeks there are 8 hours left in the kitty
of a training day.

For these shifts I receive a fixed salary with no enhancements for
unsocial hours.

I am required to work 2 Sundays in the 4 week period, both 12 hours,
one night and one day. These are paid at "time". As I said before I am
required to work these unless they are part of a leave week, some
people will work them for you - but it is your responsibilty to get
them "covered" and of course the company don't lose out financially.
It is as close to rostered overtime as you can get. If I am required
to do any overtime (stay on 4 hours, work a rest day, attend a meeting
on my day off) this is paid at time.

I have spent 27 years doing shift work and I suspect about 24/25 of
these have been on 24/7 rosters. Back in the 80s and 90s I worked to
"the red book" (which still exists) and covers "BR" style grades which
attracted much lower salaries and much higher enhancements, for
example a Saturday night rest day worked attracted double time after
midnight. But of course being a lower salary attracts a lower pension
contribution.

And going slightly further away from the original point......

The type of salary and roster I am on were pretty much invented by
CONnex and whilst a lot of people struggled, indeed some still do to
this day, to come to terms with it, I actually find it most agreeable.
My pensionable pay is now 100% so on a much higher "clean" salary it
is no bad thing and despite all of the recent horror stories, railway
pensions are still regarded very highly. I found it very easy indeed
to adapt to the "new way"and very rarely find myself thinking about
what I would have been getting on rest day works or Sundays.

An awful lot of the staff that were regraded into management grades
were on the "red book" conditions and had some quite good redundancy
terms so these were swept away and records in Croydon Courts will show
that the summary dismissal of numerous regraded staff after they had
signed contracts, and thus lost a hell of a lot of money, did not save
CONnex the money they originally envisaged !

All of that said I know that some of what I have said may come over as
being a grump, but actually I am genuinely VERY happy with my lot, and
despite the foibles of Christmas I personally dont have a problem with
the conditions at all. It is a fairly unique position to be in, as
just about all non shift working managers won't get a penny extra for
doing extra hours and most importantly I am lucky to have a job that I
genuinely enjoy and I think I would struggle to adapt to a 9-5 life.

Richard