I work part-time in a branch and have been told I have to change my hours to meet business needs – can I be forced to change?

The Branch_Network_Working_Arrangements_Policy places an obligation on you to exercise ‘reasonable flexibility’ in respect of your working patter, your work location and the hours of operation for your branch.  The Policy does not give the Society absolute discretion to impose a change on you, rather it places an obligation on your manager to consult with you about any proposed change to your working pattern and follow the process set out in the Working Arrangements – Manager Guide.

This process requires your manager to listen to any concerns you may have about their proposal and to be open to reviewing it based on your response. For Example, you may have commitments outside of work that would make it difficult for you to work the proposed hours. You should be given reasonable time to consider the proposal and a reasonable notice period if the change is to go ahead. If your concerns haven’t been listened to, and the new hours cause a problem, you can raise your concerns using the Grievance_Policy.