Irene was feeling tired and, to be honest, a bit irritable. Someone had taken one of her yoghurts from the staff room fridge even though she had put her name on it.
sociology
Description
Irene was feeling tired and, to be honest, a bit irritable. Someone had taken one of her
yoghurts from the staff room fridge even though she had put her name on it. Now, instead
of getting a full break, they all had to attend a meeting about the new schedules.
She had tried to look over the proposal last night after work, but it seemed really
complicated. Every schedule varied over a 13 week cycle so that the unsocial hours were
spread among the staff. She tried to compare it to her current schedule. She wouldn’t have
to work so many early morning shifts. But she had become more used to them over the
last year. The thing that stood out for her was that she lost a few of her long weekends. She
would really miss that. Why couldn’t they just leave it alone, she thought.
The Director explained that the new schedules were being introduced to ensure that the
right number of staff were available when needed and to distribute the unsocial hours
more fairly. There had been a lot of complaints about the old schedule, she said, and they
were trying to make schedules that worked for everyone
It didn’t seem especially fair to Irene. When she had joined the organization she had started
without any guaranteed hours at all. Then she had worked a night shift to get a permanent
position. Having been there a lot longer than most of the other staff, now, she thought she
should have more choice what schedule she worked.
The Director said that this was just a draft, that they hadn’t made final decisions and asked
for feedback. One of the other staff members asked if she could swap some of her
mornings for someone else’s evenings to fit with her childcare. The Director said that all
swaps would need to be approved. It seemed to Irene as if the decision had already been
made and they were just pretending to consult.
Irene was sitting in the front and she could feel the Director looking at her. She knew that
they were expected to look enthusiastic, and, to tell the truth, she did enjoy working there
usually. But she didn’t feel very enthusiastic at the moment. She raised her hand, although
she already knew the answer. ‘Can we choose to stay with our current schedule?’ she
asked.
