I work in the care industry part time as I have a young child to take care of. How long should an employer give notice for shifts?

Answered by Sheila Scott

Dear A,

Thank you for your question.

I asked Chris King at Napthens Solicitors, our employment law experts, for his comments about your question. This is his response:

An employer should give an employee who works an irregular shift pattern reasonable notice of their hours. Normally this would be included in the contract of employment and the standard notice period is around 7 days. However, given your specific circumstances, if you feel you are not receiving adequate notice to take account of your caring responsibilities it would be worthwhile requesting an informal meeting with your manager to explain your personal circumstances and request that you are given additional advanced notice of shifts as appropriate.

Hopefully this resolves matters but should your employer fail to take a reasonable position on this your next step would be to raise a formal grievance.

I hope this is helpful.

Best wishes.

Sheila