Interpreting a Workplace Roster Change
A café worker reads a roster notice: "From next Monday, the morning shift starts at 6:30 am instead of 7:00 am. Staff on the morning shift must arrive 15 minutes before opening to set up. The afternoon shift is unchanged. Any staff member who cannot work the new start time must speak to the manager by Friday of this week. Requests made after Friday cannot be guaranteed." The worker is rostered for three morning shifts next week and one afternoon shift. They catch a bus that arrives at 6:40 am.
1. Work out what time the worker must arrive for a morning shift under the new roster, and explain whether their bus arrival time works.
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The new morning shift starts at 6:30 am. Staff must arrive 15 minutes before opening, which means arriving at 6:15 am.
The worker's bus arrives at 6:40 am, which is 25 minutes after the required arrival time of 6:15 am. So the bus arrival does not work; the worker would be late for setup.
The worker needs an earlier bus or another arrangement, and should raise this with the manager.
2. State the deadline for the worker to speak to the manager and explain what happens if they miss it.
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The deadline is Friday of this week. The notice says requests made after Friday "cannot be guaranteed".
This means the worker should not rely on a late request being accepted. If they miss the Friday deadline, they may still ask, but the manager is not obliged to accommodate them, and the worker could be rostered for the earlier start anyway. The safest action is to speak to the manager before Friday so the issue is raised in time.
3. The worker says, "The afternoon shift is unchanged, so my whole roster is fine." Is this reasoning sound? Explain.
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The reasoning is not sound. The notice changes only the morning shift, and the worker has three morning shifts next week. Those three shifts are affected by the new 6:15 am arrival requirement, even though the afternoon shift is unchanged.
The worker has focused on the one shift that is unaffected and ignored the three that are affected. A sound reading of the notice would identify that most of their roster is impacted, and that they need to act before Friday.