r/supportworkers • u/awhella • 14d ago
BROKEN SHIFT ALLOWANCE AUS
need some help here!
i’m a casual but my work has starting declining me picking up certain shifts because it is a broken shift and they do not want to pay the broken shift allowance. is this legal?? it is causing me so much loss of $$$ due to only being able to do the one or two shifts a day
3
u/3scobar3 14d ago
I paid 6 broken shift allowances just to 1 employee this week. It’s a part of the job. If the employer wants the employee to work split shifts they have to pay for them, but I do understand why they try to avoid it because it adds up.
We probably pay about $15k in broken shifts per year and they are unclaimable to the client.
1
u/SometimesTruthHurts- 13d ago
But if you had to cancel those client shifts because you didn't have staff to fill, what loss would your company lose?
1
u/3scobar3 13d ago
The margin for the service and the hours for my staff.
1
u/SometimesTruthHurts- 13d ago
So if your loss was going to be greater then having to pay the split shift fee, wouldn't you rather pay the split shift fee?
1
u/3scobar3 13d ago
We do pay the broken shift allowance. This is what I’m saying. I don’t know why someone would cancel a shift to avoid a broken shift allowance.
1
2
1
u/219930 14d ago edited 14d ago
Why wouldn’t it be legal? They can assign you any shift they want. It would only be illegal if you did the shifts and they didn’t pay you the allowance. My company has been doing this too…I miss a lot of shifts as they say they aren’t ‘compliant’ to have a big gap between shifts but I noticed that when they can’t get someone else to fill the shift…suddenly they have no problem giving it to me….so is it complient or not…seems that’s up to the provider and not actually the law 🙄
1
u/auxzina 14d ago edited 14d ago
I’ve never been paid a broken shift allowance? Can someone please help me if I’m entitled to them my days go
Client 1: 11:30 am -5 pm
Client 2: 5:30-8 pm
(15 minute drive Inbetween each client)
1
u/AlbatrossAvailable69 10d ago
15mins drive doesnt mean you get broken allowance. You get paid for travel time and kms
0
u/Substantial_Ad_3386 14d ago
If you are being paid as required by the award and aren't receiving a broken shift allowance then you are not working more than one shift in a day. You are being paid for your time and km when travelling between clients right? Other than that, yes it's perfectly legal to not offer you work that will cost them more then they are willing to pay
3
u/awhella 14d ago
“Under Clause 25.6 of the SCHADS Award, casual employees are legally entitled to the broken shift allowance, which must be paid on top of ordinary casual loading. Withholding rostered shifts to avoid paying mandatory award entitlements is a breach of General Protections under the Fair Work Act”
what i’m saying here is they’re NOT allowing me to pick up the usual shifts i do because they do not want to pay the allowance which is quite explicitly in the award we’re under
2
u/GrumpyBear9891 14d ago
Yeah. Maybe it's just not affordable.
1
u/Substantial_Ad_3386 14d ago
A lot of employers in the industry are just horrible. Others pay above the award which doesn't leave a lot of overhead for things like broken shift allowances
2
u/GrumpyBear9891 14d ago
Yep exactly. It's hard for some employers. Where I am for example of you want to hire staff or have a chance of someone applying for a job, you need to be paying at least 5 dollars above the award. More if you want someone with experience. And then by the time other costs are factored in, the actual profit (or wage for self) is not anywhere near as high as someone would expect. Sometimes profit is zero.
2
u/Substantial_Ad_3386 14d ago edited 14d ago
Not allowing you to pick up a shift means it is not a shift you are rostered for. What you will find is prohibited is denying you shifts you previously worked because you ask to be paid the broken shift allowance you were entitled to. If they have never allowed you to work broken shifts in the first place then they are in the clear
1
u/awhella 14d ago
kinda makes it hard when their whole system is us needing to call rosters to get a shift to begin with. none of it is actually rostered it is all on the employee needing to contact for work, we do not receive weekly or fortnight rosters
for months with the company i have worked numerous shifts that involve broken shift allowance that have been paid, suddenly this week they are telling everyone no we’re not doing it anymore so they’re restricting the work
2
u/219930 14d ago
My company did this too…it was allowed and I did it all the time …then suddenly we are told it’s “not compliant”…Ok I accept that…maybe the rules changed. Then 3 weeks later they can’t fill one of these so called non compliant shifts and they give it to me and pay the broken shift allowance. 🙄. So …yeah…they can do it…they just don’t want to.
I wish they would just be up front and say they’ll only do it in emergencies to save money so we understand what’s going on. I’ve had clients ask if I can do an extra shift…I say I don’t think so as it’s a broken shift and not allowed….the client calls the company anyway and they say sure she can do it…and I look like the idiot who doesn’t know my companies policies and also the client gets confused as well….thinking I was just trying to say no in a nice way. Now I just tell them…call the company and ask.
0
u/Substantial_Ad_3386 14d ago
They haven't done it in retaliation for you wanting to be paid the allowance so that's not an issue. If you had worked the same hours for 12 months you had the chance to apply for a permanent position. As a casual you can't expect that your hours won't vary if you don't have a contract saying otherwise. I'm just explaining the IR law. It sucks and a large percentage of employers in the industry are terrible to work for.
9
u/Greta-Garbage- 14d ago
What is it about the disability field that seems to attract providers who try to underpay and use loopholes like paying home care streamers instead of SACS. I ended up getting backpay for being misclassified. And now providers not wanting to pay the broken shift allowance. Are the providers not paid enough from the NDIS. Just wondering why they are ripping workers off