Can my boss force me to work outside of my availability?
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Can my boss force me to work outside of my availability?
My available hours are between 7 am and 6 pm Monday-Friday. Outside those hours daycare is closed and I have two small children 3 years and 6 months old. My employer has known my availability for two years when they changed and agreed to them, but recently started scheduling me to work weekends when I do not have child care, and scheduling me at 6 am when daycare doesn’t open until 6:30 am. My boss is also threatening to write me up, force me to step down from my position even though my available hours were agreed upon when I took the position, transfer my to a different store or fire me. When I tell my boss that I cannot work these hours when the schedule is made, she says,
Asked on April 16, 2017 under Employment Labor Law, Florida
Answers:
M.D., Member, California and New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
Unless you have an employment contract or union agreement that provides otherwise, your company is free to set your scheduled hours (or any other condition of your employment) much as it sees fit. This is known as "at will" employment. Accordingly, absent some form of actionable discrimination, you must comply or be subject to discipline, up to and including supension or even termination.
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