Did I say..

[Seahorse]

...Ive got all of December off, and a bit of November,just thought Id share that with the group.
No idea what Im going to do, maybe bead hunting, Christmas shopping etc, any suggestions?

[Katianne]

Wow!!! Is that all leave you've saved up? That sounds like heaven to me :D

[caketopper]

Alright for some! Gives you a chance to make lots more jewelry

[Seahorse]

Wow!!! Is that all leave you've saved up? That sounds like heaven to me :D

Yep, I told myself not to take a day off if I had nothing to do(shows how empty my life is)now I have over a months worth of holiday, plus added days due to not getting lunch hours making up 7 extra days worth.

Id love to make loads of jewellery but Id need £700 worth of goodies a day to keep me occupied each day, all day.

[goldy1]

Day 1. scouer house for beads findings anythings jewelry related. you'd be surprised how much you'll find.

[Seahorse]

Day 1. scouer house for beads findings anythings jewelry related. you'd be surprised how much you'll find.

hehe, that would be quick, Im up to my eyeballs in beady stuff.

[candles by lisa]

Well that is great news - gets you away from the place for a while after the time you have had.

Enjoy it.

Cheers.

Lisa

:D

[Rodeo Lady]

Enjoy !!!! Enjoy !!!!! Enjoy!!!!!!

Cheers Janice:)

[Apple Tree Crafts]

Enjoy !!!! Enjoy !!!!! Enjoy!!!!!!

Cheers Janice:)

I agree with Janice...go for it, you sooooooo deserve a nice long break!

Jules

[swirlyarts]

Can you escape anywhere for a while? A break might be just what you need!

[icecreamgirl]

Wow lucky you!! bet it will fly by..
You'd think in my line of work that i'd hav Nov and Dec off wouldn't you??
I do usually just work weekends at this time of year but with the new shop opening in Dec (hopefully) thats kind of gone out the window!!
Ah well Good job i love it.

[Seahorse]

Can you escape anywhere for a while? A break might be just what you need!

Wouldnt mind a few nights in London but with my posh standards doubt I could afford anywhere.

[Rodeo Lady]

I'd try some of the last minute hotel sites. We went last year to London at this time and it was O.K price wise for hotels.

Also went to a show and got that at a good price through a web - site stiil got the sites if you need them. I will P.M them to you if you like.

Cheers Janice.:horse:

[Tip Top]

Well, I've got 4 days off next week!!

Sorting out and making more stock for Craft Fair on 9 Dec:mf:

[Seahorse]

Well, I've got 4 days off next week!!

Sorting out and making more stock for Craft Fair on 9 Dec:mf:


Now thats what I call a holiday, just being crafty for days on end!!

[Sommerwood]

Wow, you lucky thing, mind you if you haven't had any days off so far this year you must be climbing the walls and ready for it!! I think I have one day left to take before Christmas and could really do with a good week off to catch up on orders, want to throw some my way??;)

[Seahorse]

mind you if you haven't had any days off so far this year you must be climbing the walls and ready for it!!

Ready for a break for more than 1 reason.

[Seahorse]

Does anybody know of any laws/rules that says I cant take my holiday in a block.

My boss(you know the one)is going to 'address' the issue.

Admittedly ive decided not to take days off if Ive not planned to do anything but also because its such a pollavar if i want time off, like its a big hassle for them, it puts me off taking time off.

[Debeadz]

It all depends what your contract of employment states.

I know that where I work they limit employees to the maximum of 3 weeks at any one time unless it is a special circumstance and authorised by your line manager.

I think it is different in all companies.

[Seahorse]

Contract of employment!!?? the contract that says I work 45 hours a week but only get paid for 40, and for the first 2 years i got no lunch break!!!

Ive been given no holiday info in the same way Ive had no discipline info.

Im sure Ive made my feeling clear about where I work, i think this is even more proof of how naff it is.

[Debeadz]

This link might help you, it's from the Citizen's Advice Bureau

http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/index/life/employment/holidays_and_holiday_pay.htm

[Seahorse]

Thanks for the link.

Some of it is really cruddy,like the emplyer making you take a certain day off until youve used up your holiday, this must be agreed but what happens if you dont agree!!!.Does the agreement have to be in writing or verbal?

[Seahorse]

Read more, holiday info are all meant to be in a written contract, if its not after 2 months of employment then they are breaking the law.wooo and hooo.

[Debeadz]

Everything should be in writing I would have thought otherwise there is no proof of anything.

You can't take anyone's word for it these days as people always stretch the truth, as you found out last week.

You're entitled to your leave and they have to accept that. Annual leave is part of your salary/working conditions.

[goldy1]

As far as I'm aware if you haven't got a written contract then you have no working rites on the other hand you don't have to give notice of leaving either.


http://www.simply-docs.co.uk/DocumentSubfolder.aspx?documentSubfolderID=47&gclid=CN3-nJaa3I8CFQ6ZQwod8lKR7w



OOOHHHHH :o I stand corected you don't need it in writing. http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/index/life/employment/contracts_of_employment.htm#what_is_a_contact_of_e mployment

[Debeadz]

The thing is as soon as you take wages from them you are accepting their working terms and conditions, I think?! Even if it's not in writing :confused:

[Seahorse]

Thanks Debeadz.

I still have 5 days to take off in the next 3 weeks(pre december).
I actually asked my boss yesterday what holiday I could take as I know they need me to be here as for some days they will actually be working(could you detect the sarcasm there?)

Being the egotistical person I am I thought it was quite nice of me to ask when it would be convenient for them for me to take hols, this then led to my boss wanting to 'address' the issue of me taking off such a big block of the year.

Grrrr, makes my blood boil.Do you think other companies run like this?

[candles by lisa]

I don't know of any laws or rules but that's not to say there isn't but what I do know that if your employer knows you haven't taken holidays it is up to them point out that you haven't taken any yet and if you don't take them you run the risk of loosing them and make arrangements to take them whether in a block or staggered.

Not much use but hope it helps.

Cheers.

Lisa

[nattynetty]

what I do know that if your employer knows you haven't taken holidays it is up to them point out that you haven't taken any yet

Completely agree! Where I used to work we'd get an email about 6 months and then 3 months before the end of the holiday year outlining what days we had left.

I'd imagine you are in a very strong position Seahorse and it could be worth jotting down a few points before you meet with your boss to 'address' the issue just so you don't forget anything.

1) There is nothing in your contract (ha!) that states you can't take leave in a block.
2) If your leave is an issue then it is their responsibility to deal with it BEFORE it gets towards the end of the year.
3) I'm sure others will help with a few more points to make to your boss.

If they refuse point blank to let you how about suggesting you carry some over to next year or that they pay you for those days you can't take? My hubby used to work for a company that worked such a skeleton staff that he just couldn't fit in all his holiday one year so they paid him for the 7 days leave he had left - was a nice extra in his pay packet :D

[Seahorse]

I may need to use alot of '****'s' for this.

My top boss just came in-

top boss-have you got 5 weeks off?
Me-yes
top boss-who said you could have that?
me-(insert name of ****** boss here)
top boss-You CANT have 5 weeks off, nobody has 5 weeks off, 2 weeks at the most....
me-its not a case of 'I CANT have 5 weeks off'... I HAVE to take my holiday.

boss walks off without resolving anything.

Im happy to only have the 4 weeks (or less but dont feel like doing them any favours)and get paid for the rest but oh no, they dont want to suggest that.

[Debeadz]

Your boss obviously doesn't have people skills or management skills for that matter if he just walks away from the situation and not resolving anything.

Stick to your guns!! You're entitled to your holiday leave :D

[Debeadz]

If you left the company (giving the correct notice) they would HAVE to pay you for all the leave you're entitled to.

What's the issue with you taking the time off. They're the ones that have given you holiday entitlement in the first place.

Employers really bug me with things like this!!

Grrr!! I'm getting annoyed for you :D

[Seahorse]

What annoys me is that I got angry and shaky againwhen he 'kicked off'.I hate getting riled(sp)over their incompetence.
Its usually my top boss that covers for me when Im off so youd think he'd realise he hasnt covered me much this year.

They are getting more and more unaproachable by the second.I feel sick.

[nattynetty]

Reading about your rubbish employers reminds me of hubby’s last place of work and how shocking they were too. He’d been there nearly 10 years and used to have about 3 days off sick a year if that. When his dad died he understandably wasn’t up for work and the doc signed him off for a month, the company didn’t like it and were constantly phoning him to see when he’d be back. He even got summonded to a meeting with personnel (which I attended with him) and they were downright awful to him – basically saying he’d had enough time off and if he was so bad then why hadn’t we cancelled our holiday (and wedding) due in a few weeks time.

We then got a letter from them saying some rubbish about how they hadn’t realised it was John’s step-dad not his natural dad that had died. Final straw for me this, it WAS his natural dad (was his half-brother’s step-dad) and I didn’t see why this would’ve made any difference anyway. I wrote a fantastic letter questioning their professionalism for acting on shop-floor gossip and used lots of very long words – I also thanked them for the letter they initially sent offering their condolences which had NO STAMP on it and I asked to be refunded the £1.20 I had to pay to collect it!

It must've done the trick as when he was off work later that year after having an op we were half expecting his P45 but instead they sent him some wine as a get well soon gift! I never forgave them though and found him his current job the following year. His new employers are brilliant and actually care about the staff, he lost his mum last year and they were so supportive of him it really brought home how awful his previous company had been.

Sorry, I went off on one there a bit didn’t I? but I guess what I’m saying (apart from how poo his old employers were) is that don’t put up with it Seahorse, maybe it is time to bite the bullet and start looking for another job.

[Seahorse]

Oh believe me Im very much considering a new job, still have no idea what wont be dull tho.

Id like to think I was a fab employee, any 'attitude' they think I have is down to them and their awful attitude towards me/their work.

I have had about 3 days off sick this year, Im more on time than they are and i put up with crud from customers because of their bad management.

I tried to sort out a problem yesterday, which * bosser was supposed to be dealing with pre midday, he didnt, I tried to get top boss to help, he said he knew nothing about it and left.In the meantime * boss came back VERY late and attended to it.Then top boss came back he said 'il do that job you were on about now', I said '* is doing it' and top boss says 'I rushed all the way back to do it, I said I was going to do it'.................errr no he didnt.

And breeeaaaath.

[swirlyarts]

Even if you get out of this job and into a similar line of work it must be better than putting up with all this rubbish from them surely?? Even if it is boring at least you won't have to be putting up with this amount of rubbish and downright unprofessionalism from them.

[Seahorse]

Even if you get out of this job and into a similar line of work it must be better than putting up with all this rubbish from them surely?? Even if it is boring at least you won't have to be putting up with this amount of rubbish and downright unprofessionalism from them.


I totally see what you mean and do agree, but now i play th e'Im shy' card and I hate interviews, I cant pretend to like a job I dont want.Plus Im not trained in anything so I doubt id be able to get a job that even pays what I get now or more.
All I can picture is me stacking shelves part time in a supermarket.Not ideal.

Bleurgh excuses excuses, I annoy myself.

[swirlyarts]

If you don't want to leave would you be able to sit down in a meeting with your bosses and have a big talk with them? Don't make any mention of the fact that you might want to leave or they might try and wangle that in their favour. Just state that you want to discuss with them your role etc and recent issues. It might clear the air and then your job would be bearable. I'm also thinking that if they are starting to pick you up on things then they might start to think about the craft stuff that you do at work and may want you to stop doing it at work.

[icecreamgirl]

My goodness seahorse i really couldn't go past this thread without putting my two pennies worth in..
You've got to wite a list of the pros and cons of your job.
Why do you put up with it? and is it really worth it at the end of the day.
There are plenty of jobs out there that you could walk into tomorrow.. they may not be the sort of job you would want long term but i would rather stack shelves in a supermarket than put up with the stuff you are putting up with daily.
Really, your blood pressure must be going sky high and it's just not worth it.
If it were me i'd give them a months notice,and walk out then and there as you are owed the holiday anyway.
It dosn't sound like they have the brain power to argue about it with you anyway, and if they did it sounds like there probably isn't anything in your 'contract' about giving notice any way!!
Good luck.

[Seahorse]

I really think it should be down to them to instigate a meeting.Yes it would make sense for me to do it but again, I really dont feel like doing them any favours.Plus i will probably cry in the meeting.

I have thought about the craft at work.
Ive NOT told them about me selling what I make as Im sure, just to be malicious, they would stop me form making anything.

If they ever want me to stop my crafty stuff THEY need to find me 8-9 hours worth of work a day.I really only started it as I have no 'proper' work to do.

I never let my craft work get in the way of 'proper' work.If the phone goes/I need to order soemthing etc I immediately stop what im doing and do the work.

Ive no doubt there will be a meeting of sorts with regards to the holiday.Im happy to be paid instead of take all the leave but they will probably just lay into me agian instaed of talk about it calmly like the are supposed to.


Ive worked out whats been bugging me.
My ** boss seems to have been taken over by an alien.
Ive tried to talk to him many times over the years as to how to run this place, he laughed in my face each time.

Now the last few days he has been taken over and is trying to run this place like a proper business, he has a sense of 'look at me, Im in control' and looking down on me/talking to me like crud and patronising me as tho its all new to me!!

Yesterday he said to me
boss' do you want to go for lunch then il go do some jobs'.
I suggested 'well you can go do the jobs and il stay here'.
boss 'well I could do if thats alright?'
me(admittedly said in a sarcy tone of voice) 'well, its normal'
he said 'its just polite ask'

I just thought, yes maybe it would have been polite to have asked me 40+ lunches ago when I first started to miss my lunches.

[icecreamgirl]

Have you thought about writting a letter.
I did that once in an old job i had.
A member of staff more senior to me really was out of line and i was soooo mad i could have spat.
I wrote a very to the point letter about what had happened and left it on my bosses desk for them to find, that way it's all written down and you don't feel on the spot, put in it everything you want to say re, missing lunch breaks holidays etc etc, then it's up to him to sort it with you. You could make a copy for your own reference.

[Seahorse]

Thanks guys.I really hope it doesnt sound like im ignoring your great advice.

I feel if i do anything other than just take it im whipping up a whole can off whoopbumm, and yes yuor right it is effecting my health.
Plus this is an ideal job for my jewellery.I could make stuff all day and if anybody buys anything theres a post office a 2 minute walk away.
Again, an excuse

Im painfully shy, thats my main reason for not leaving right this and getting another job.

Im going to look into other jobs while im off, then hopefully tell my so called bosses where to stick it.

[nattynetty]

Aw sweets, I'm gonna PM you in a min.

[Seahorse]

Hahahhehehehehehehohohoohoho, your gona love this.
One of my bosses is here, he is generally the nice but slow one.

I was looking at jobs on the net, he came over to talk to me about some stuff and totally saw that I was looking at jobs!!!!hehe.

[nattynetty]

What would be really funny now is if he looks over and sees you'd just described him as the 'generally nice but slow one' - or would he be too slow to figure out you were talking about him :D

[Seahorse]

What would be really funny now is if he looks over and sees you'd just described him as the 'generally nice but slow one' - or would he be too slow to figure out you were talking about him :D

hehehe, I think in comparison to what I call the others, he would be flattered by my discription.

[MrSwirl]

Is there an HR department? If so, then you need to be talking to someone there as well / instead of your bosses - ideally you need someone who is independent of the situation / relationship between you and your multiple bosses.

If you want to stay there (and I'm not talking about just sticking around for no good reason) then you need to do something to sort out the situation. Talk to whoever is the most senior boss there about it, and try and get some degree of resolution there. If necessary, take someone else in with you, preferably someone from HR - just to sit there, record what is said, and help you to remain calm about it. When the meeting is over, make sure that you document what was said by everyone there - and send a copy of the notes to those present, so no-one can dispute it. It also sounds like they could do with some degree of organization chart revamp, so that you only report to one person - having multiple (conflicting) managers is no good for you.

If you don't want to stay there, then you should leave as soon as you can. Whilst the prospect of not having anything to go to / not being good at interviews etc. is not good, if you don't want to be there then you need to get out as soon as possible before it makes you ill and / or impacts your self-confidence.

You might want to contact Jeremy in The Guardian (Saturday paper) in the Work section (can't remember his surname) who does an employee advice column.

Also, have a look at the Employee Working Time Directive, which (unless you signed an opt out) dictates the maximum number of hours you can work, and also when you are entitled to breaks etc. It sounds like your company is relying on you not pushing the issue / knowing your rights - that needs to stop.

[Seahorse]

Thanks Mr Swirl.

Oh yes, the issue of who the heck do I 'report to'.I have 3 bosses.None of them know whats going on.They dont even talk to each other let alone me.

Just looked at my contract(in a file Im probably not allowed to go in)it says I am to report to the company secretary......I have no idea who that is.

HR department, the closest thing we have to HR is my lady boss who doesnt live in this country tho she was here whern the poo poo hit the fan.When I was in floods of tears she said 'Dont worry about it, he's under the thumb'.

[Seahorse]

Im in tears again, my top boss just laid into me about assigning calls.
He said once ive told someone it is their repsonsibility, bareing in mind that blows my ** boss's theory out of the water.
I said to him that the call isnt allocated when I tel someone as some calls dont get assigned by my ** boss for hours.

He also didnt like the fact that I updated calls saying that an engineers aware ie Ive done something about the call.He said it doesnt mean anything.

I am so numb.I told him I was close to walking out is he says 'NO, listen....'then says more stuff that is crud!!!

[Seahorse]

Ive written down the contradictions between the 2 cases of abuse, its so ridiculous!!!
So at least I can read it out of I cant say it right from my head.

[Debeadz]

Poor you :(

I think I would have to walk if that was me. You shouldn't have to put up with that at work, well anywhere.

If you don't get out you're going to make yourself really ill. I think it's time to bite the bullet and find something new, even if it's just temping for a while.

You'll feel a whole lot better for it.

I hope things get better for you.

Keep smiling.

[Rodeo Lady]

C'mon sweet. you really have to get yourself out of this situation once and for all.
Either take them on in a constructive way ie; through formal procedures or leave.
If you keep making excuses for why you can't you really will make yourself ill.
Nobody can tell you what to do but from experiance there is not a job in the world that is worth this grief.
Make a list of all the jobs you have wanted to do in the past and then ask yourself why you can't do them.

You are a fabby person and need to find a job where your valued.

cheers Janice:horse:

[Seahorse]

Ahhh, thanks.Yep my mind is definately in the 'new job' mode.

Primarily Id like to watch this place fall apart while Im still here.Ive just booked off my 5th week owed to me, if they dont like it they can put it in a place where the sun dont shine.

Also another colleague is having alot of time off in the upcoming weeks, apparently thats ok and nothing bad was said to him.
So they are down 2 staff with a couple more colleagues owed a few days still.

Also(and heres the fun bit)I have a hospital appointment(had heart problems for months, id like to think its stress) which I need to arrange for next week so il be off for a few hours then as well, days if I can get it.


Can you see my evil streak, can ya huh huh?

I had a thought.
If Im a crud as they think I am why havnt they fired me?

[Seahorse]

Sorry to go on.Just had to say thank you to suggestions of writing things down.
Im on my 6th piece of paper of scribbled anger.