The days are getting shorter and the nights much darker and longer and now the clocks going back this weekend marks the inevitable march towards the depths of winter.
But while the clocks going back on Sunday mean an extra hour in bed for most of us, there are some people who will lose out big time thanks to the changing of the clocks.
Those who are unlucky enough to be working on Sunday, October 27, could find themselves legally out of pocket, just because the clocks are changing.
The clocks will change at 2am on Sunday, October 27, moving the time back to 1am again.
For those sleeping through the night, not much will feel any different except you might find yourself waking up ‘an hour earlier than normal’ and being able to turn over and enjoy another hour in bed.
But if you’re working, you might find that you’re forced to work the extra hour, but you won’t get paid for it.
According to Personnel Today: “Employers don’t necessarily have to pay employees for working an hour longer on a particular shift. The situation can differ for hourly paid and salaried employees.”
If your shift requires you to work from, say, 10pm to 6am, it may mean you have to work the extra hour and if you’re salaried, you may not be paid any differently.
This is a bit like how salaried workers – ie those paid monthly rather than per hour worked – will be paid the same for working a leap day, February 29, as they would on a year where there is no February 29, making you work the extra day ‘for free’.
Personnel Today adds: “For some workers, the position will even out when they gain an hour when the clocks go forward again.
“But this won’t always be the case – a worker who works an extra hour in October might not be working the night shift when the clocks go forward again in March.
“Nevertheless, in the interests of fairness, employers that require employees to work by the clock in October should do the same in March, when they will be able to go home after working an hour less.”
So if you think your shift is being unfairly swept up in the clock change, you should contact your employer and seek a fair solution.