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I wonder if anyone out there with experience in Employment Law can advise on the following:
My better half has worked for several years in a Care Home as a Senior Care Worker. During that time, she often took on extra hours to make some extra money.
Recently, there has been a change in Manager at the Care Home at which she works. This new Manager has forbidden any Senior Care Worker from covering the hours of other 'Non-Senior Care' workers except as a last resort. The reason being that Senior Staff 'cost too much' (unbelievable since even Senior Care Staff barely earn much more than the minimum wage).
Bear in mind that there always has to be a Senior Care member present on EVERY shift, then that means that she is unable to take on extra hours if she so chooses because this new Manager will not allow it (there will never be extra 'Senior Care Hours' since there is always at least one Senior Care on shift).
This new manager has even gone further by stating to the Senior Care Staff that they must now sign a new contract stating that they 'will not take on extra work elsewhere'.
My OH has thus far refused to sign this new contract as she believes it to be illegal in Employment Law (I also think this must be the case, but would go further to say that it is also morally wrong).
Basically, because my OH only has to work 3 and a bit days to cover her hours (three 12-hour shifts and one 6 hour shift), she is seriously looking at registering with a Care Agency and doing some extra work through them as a second income (lots of Care Workers do this as a way of supplementing their earnings) on the days on which she is not working if she so chooses.
My question is, can this new manager insist on her signing the new contract ? Is this not illegal ? ... especially as she has worked at her current workplace for at least 7 years.
I can see where an Employer could forbid the taking of a second job if there is a conflict of interest, but there cannot be any conflict of interest in this type of role.
I've tried Googling on this subject, but cannot find anything specific regarding Employment Law in regard to taking a second job/source of income. If anyone can advise then I would be grateful.
Cheers
P.S. I did find this, but find it inconclusive:
Contractual requirements
You might like to believe what you do outside your working hours is up to you , but unfortunately it's not like that.
Your contract of employment may well have a clause preventing you from doing anything that could cause a potential conflict of interest or could bring your employer into disrepute. What your contract states will depend on where you work, but it's worth checking before you take up a second job.
Your employer is not going to be happy if you're doing some extra hours at a rival company and they are unlikely to look favourably upon you spending evenings as a lap-dancer if you're a school teacher by day. There could be legal problems if you are working for a company that supplies or buys from your employer, particularly if you are involved in the transactions. And whatever your day job is, don't be tempted to do work for job two while you're on job one's time, premises or equipment.
If your full-time role involves creating or inventing, whether that's graphic design, journalism or writing computer programs, you'll need to check your contract very carefully. It's not unusual to find a clause that says your employer owns all your creations of that type, even if you come up with them when you're nowhere near work. Some employers may be OK with you doing the same kind of work for other companies, but if they give permission, it's best to get this in writing.
It's worth being open with your employer about your other life; they'll often see it as a good way to develop your skills and keep you motivated, particularly if there aren't a lot of opportunities within your company. So if you're doing a spot of DJing, wedding photography or some bar work to bring in some extra cash your employer may well not see it as a problem.
Your employer can't simply bar you from taking a second job if there's nothing in your contract that prohibits it and there isn't any obvious deterioration in your performance. If they attempt to, it is worth getting specialist advice from Acas or a local Citizens Advice Bureau.
My better half has worked for several years in a Care Home as a Senior Care Worker. During that time, she often took on extra hours to make some extra money.
Recently, there has been a change in Manager at the Care Home at which she works. This new Manager has forbidden any Senior Care Worker from covering the hours of other 'Non-Senior Care' workers except as a last resort. The reason being that Senior Staff 'cost too much' (unbelievable since even Senior Care Staff barely earn much more than the minimum wage).
Bear in mind that there always has to be a Senior Care member present on EVERY shift, then that means that she is unable to take on extra hours if she so chooses because this new Manager will not allow it (there will never be extra 'Senior Care Hours' since there is always at least one Senior Care on shift).
This new manager has even gone further by stating to the Senior Care Staff that they must now sign a new contract stating that they 'will not take on extra work elsewhere'.
My OH has thus far refused to sign this new contract as she believes it to be illegal in Employment Law (I also think this must be the case, but would go further to say that it is also morally wrong).
Basically, because my OH only has to work 3 and a bit days to cover her hours (three 12-hour shifts and one 6 hour shift), she is seriously looking at registering with a Care Agency and doing some extra work through them as a second income (lots of Care Workers do this as a way of supplementing their earnings) on the days on which she is not working if she so chooses.
My question is, can this new manager insist on her signing the new contract ? Is this not illegal ? ... especially as she has worked at her current workplace for at least 7 years.
I can see where an Employer could forbid the taking of a second job if there is a conflict of interest, but there cannot be any conflict of interest in this type of role.
I've tried Googling on this subject, but cannot find anything specific regarding Employment Law in regard to taking a second job/source of income. If anyone can advise then I would be grateful.
Cheers
P.S. I did find this, but find it inconclusive:
Contractual requirements
You might like to believe what you do outside your working hours is up to you , but unfortunately it's not like that.
Your contract of employment may well have a clause preventing you from doing anything that could cause a potential conflict of interest or could bring your employer into disrepute. What your contract states will depend on where you work, but it's worth checking before you take up a second job.
Your employer is not going to be happy if you're doing some extra hours at a rival company and they are unlikely to look favourably upon you spending evenings as a lap-dancer if you're a school teacher by day. There could be legal problems if you are working for a company that supplies or buys from your employer, particularly if you are involved in the transactions. And whatever your day job is, don't be tempted to do work for job two while you're on job one's time, premises or equipment.
If your full-time role involves creating or inventing, whether that's graphic design, journalism or writing computer programs, you'll need to check your contract very carefully. It's not unusual to find a clause that says your employer owns all your creations of that type, even if you come up with them when you're nowhere near work. Some employers may be OK with you doing the same kind of work for other companies, but if they give permission, it's best to get this in writing.
It's worth being open with your employer about your other life; they'll often see it as a good way to develop your skills and keep you motivated, particularly if there aren't a lot of opportunities within your company. So if you're doing a spot of DJing, wedding photography or some bar work to bring in some extra cash your employer may well not see it as a problem.
Your employer can't simply bar you from taking a second job if there's nothing in your contract that prohibits it and there isn't any obvious deterioration in your performance. If they attempt to, it is worth getting specialist advice from Acas or a local Citizens Advice Bureau.
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