I'm a minor. I know I'm not allowed to operate the baler or the trash compactor. I had to use the compactor yesterday though, management asked me to use it I work in front end as a CC and realised this May not have been suitable for someone my age, the person who told me to do it basically left me outside to do it alone while she talked on the phone (not sure if it was personal or work related, also it was around midnight at this time). So my question is could I get in trouble? Could they get in trouble? Could I complain to somebody? Also could they get in trouble for scheduling me till midnight? It was a school day and on my availability I put unavailable till after 10:30. just something that was I was wondering. Thanks!
I'm a minor. I know I'm not allowed to operate the baler or the trash compactor. I had to use the compactor yesterday though, management asked me to use it I work in front end as a CC and realised this May not have been suitable for someone my age, the person who told me to do it basically left me outside to do it alone while she talked on the phone (not sure if it was personal or work related, also it was around midnight at this time). So my question is could I get in trouble? Could they get in trouble? Could I complain to somebody? Also could they get in trouble for scheduling me till midnight? It was a school day and on my availability I put unavailable till after 10:30. just something that was I was wondering. Thanks!
They could get in some serious trouble, for starters its againist Child Labor Laws. You shouldnt get in trouble because you were following orders. The thing is management doesnt care, they had me doing floor maintance and they would have a 17 year old handling bodily fluids [I had PPE training and Bloodborne pathogen training in a school medicine program] and using the compactor and floor buffers. They KNEW i was 17 but they cant keep enough warm bodies that they'll break the law hust to make sure the work gets done. Also about the hours i dont know. I would work the closing shift from 4 or 6 to midnight, the thing is that I had late start and early release so i would start school at 10 and get out at 2:30. If they tell you to use it again let them know your underage.
So my question is could I get in trouble? Could they get in trouble? Could I complain to somebody? Also could they get in trouble for scheduling me till midnight? It was a school day and on my availability I put unavailable till after 10:30. just something that was I was wondering. Thanks!
1. Yes. If this issue persists and someone from higher up finds out you're operating machinery (large jacks, balers, compactors, etc.) while being under 18, you could get in trouble. You can dump trash in the compactor, but you're not allowed to operate it.
2. YES. Same as above, your manager(s) would get in trouble, too.
3. Yes. If you're uncomfortable with constantly being asked to operate machines you have no knowledge of, report them to ethicspoint or to your local labor office.
4. Yes, most likely. Most jurisdictions have laws that regulate how long can minors work. Again, you can report them to ethics point or to the Department of Labor if they constantly schedule you outside of prescribed hours for minors.
However, I first recommend talking with management directly. Believe it or not, management actually forgets that there are minors working in the store. xD
My guess is the person didn't realize you were a minor and you probably didn't say anything because you were afraid it would make you look like you didn't want to work. The best was I've seen them solve this problem in store level is by making the minor wear a different color badge.