Can anyone help me to understand this logic?

[smahala1991]

It just seems last week we were short on staff but now they can't hardly give anyone hours. It's been open 3 months now, the drive through is pretty steady, and they are only running on 3 people my manager told me. So I fail to understand the logic in cutting hours knowing we need those to pay bills. Somebody thow me a bone here!

Updates

+1 y

I do have an idea. How about I get some friends and family to call up there and demand I be out back on schedule? They can't hang up on people so the louder the voices the more they have to give in.

[abc3643]

Sure, the issue, I believe, is simple.

They need you folks to work more hours to cover the work.
But, if they give you too many hours a week, then they have to change your status and/or give you more benefits and overtime.
So, instead, it is just easier to add another person.

Here's an example:

McDeath has 3 employees. Each one works 6-hour shifts for 5 days / week for $15/hour. So, the total number of hours for the crew is 90 hours / week.

The weekly wages for each employee are $450, so the entire payroll for the 3 and their 90 hours of work each week is $1350.

Because these 3 employees only work 30 hours / week, they are all legally part-time workers, McDeath doesn't have to offer them health care or any other benefits.

OK, so, now, McDeath management realizes that business is growing and they really need a total of 115 hours out of the crew.

Three Options:

OPTION 1. Expand the hours of the 3-person crew. Each crew member now will work and extra hour each day for 5 extra hours each week. With 3 people, that extra hour each day will make up the 15 extra hours needed. However, each employee will now be working 35 hours / week.

OPTION 2. Hire a new person for 15 hours; 3 hours/day for 5 days/week.

OPTION 3. Hire a new person giving them the same number of hours as all other crew members.

Let's talk about these options from McDeath's perspective...

Option 1 is very problematic. At 35 hours/week, that's more than 32 hours/week and so the employee is not considered full-time and all sorts of rights and privileges and obligations kick in. For instance, if the McDeath is large enough, it must now offer health care to the workers. That increases McDeath's expenses and cuts their profit margin. It might even be more economical to just not have those extra 15 hours from the crew.

Option 2 is the simplest, but most unrealistic. Most people want to work more than 15 hours / week and, if they were hired, they'd leave for another job which has more hours and thus more take-home pay.

This leaves Option 3...

Before, we had 3 employees each working 30 hrs/week for a total of 90 man-hours.

With hiring a new person and making them equal to the other crew members, we have...

4 employees each working 115/4 = 28.75 hours / week for a total of 115 man-hours.

Why is this the best from McDeath's perspective?

1. All the employees are still part-time employees. (No Option 1 problems.)
2. But they all get enough hours to still have this be their primary if not only job. (No Option 2 problems.)
3. The extra 15 hours of work from the crew is easily covered. (The original problem of needing labor for 15 more hours a week is met.)

==========
I am not saying this is your situation, but this is the typical mindset of HR or management.

[LiamJHayden]

Simply, and unfortunately harshly, they don't care that you need more hours. Manager tries to keep costs down. As abc3643 explained, that often means keeping people permanently classified as part time. Simple fact is that three 40 hour people cost more than four 30 hour people, precisely because those four are considered "part time."

[artsy_dragon]

I hated working fast food as well. After 4 years in McDonald's I handed in my notice. Luckily I picked up a job but yes it was awful. Time to move on for you as well I think.

[KostasKouvalis]

I don't know, the same thing happened at my Park's job. They let a bunch of people go at the start of peak season, then we were hella short staffed and they didn't bring on new people until August when peak season was ending. I stopped trying to make sense of anything they do.

[WhiteSteve]

You’re at a Popeye’s now, right? The bigger the company, the more heartless and bottom-line oriented they’ll be. Might want to start looking elsewhere where you can get more work.

[GoodGuyBreakingBad]

Time to find a new job that is dependable, no offense to anyone.