Changes to shift patterns

Q: Our employer is planning to change our shifts, and is relying on a clause in the contract that says an employee can be required to undertake any shifts as required. Can they insist that we change, even though we have been working the same shifts for years?

A: If there is a clear term in a contract stating that an employee can be asked to work other shifts as required, this is likely to be lawful and the employer can insist you work the new shift patterns.

Where there is a "flexibility clause" such as this, the terms must be clear so that the employees know what may be expected of them. And the employer cannot impose the change in a way that breaches the implied duty not to destroy trust and confidence, according to the Employment Appeal Tribunal in the case of White v Reflecting Roadstuds Ltd [1991] IRLR 331.

Additionally, the changes allowed by such a clause are not unlimited. In the case of Land Securities Trillium v Thornley [2005] IRLR 765, a contractual clause required an architect to carry out "the duties of this post ... and any other duties that may reasonably be required of you". But the EAT said the employer could not use this as a reason to downgrade her and she did not have to accept a major job change. (In that case, part of the written contract did require the employer to act reasonably in implementing it.)