Working on Saturdays: rights and obligations in retail

Questioner

If you work in a store, can you be forced to work every Saturday?

Lawyer

In law, Saturday is considered a normal working day. So you have to check the collective labor agreement or your contract to see if an exception is made. Sometimes, based on the collective labor agreement, a surcharge must be paid for working on Saturday.

Lawyer

There are a large number of different collective labor agreements for shops. What type of shop do you work in? Furthermore, you can usually make agreements with the employer. Many shops have 2 Saturdays per month.

Questioner

I work in a clothing store. We fall under Mitex.

Lawyer

Since I do not know how many employees are employed in your store and what agreements have been made regarding working hours, I would advise you to have a conversation with your manager about working hours. You also understand that shopping Sundays, shopping evenings and Saturdays are important for the store. Otherwise, I think you do not have to work every Saturday if alternatives are possible.

Lawyer

Employers are generally not allowed to demand things that are unreasonable. For example, if you normally work in Amsterdam and are expected to work in Maastricht for the next six months, this could be unreasonable and you do not have to accept it. If the employer gives you compensation for travel time and travel expenses, it is less unreasonable and you may not be able to refuse it. Working on Saturdays in shops is generally not considered unreasonable. Not even when this is every Saturday. As a rule, Saturday is the busiest day of the week. Many shops also employ extra Saturday assistants. If your employer has to hire extra Saturday assistants because you do not work on Saturdays and therefore incurs more salary costs, this could even be unreasonable of you. You would then be better off taking your day off on a quiet Wednesday, for example. Of course, there are specific situations conceivable why you cannot be expected to work on Saturdays. Consultation with the employer can help.