Restaurant using teenagers & not paying them unpaid trial not explained to youngsters

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bullwinkle

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Hi,

I have a query regarding something that happened to my nephew. He is 16 and has been looking for a restaurant job for a while, just for the summer and then in the evenings/weekends when he returns to school.

Anyway he dropped in a lot of C.V.s and got a call back to one restaurant in Dublin City Centre. They interviewed him and then about a week later rang him to say he got the job and would be covering holidays for the summer. So, she said turn up Wednesday evening and have a chef uniform i.e trousers, white jacket and hat - so he runs around gets the uniform etc and arrives in to work.

He did a six hour shift in the kitchen and the boss comes out to him and says okay you're finished now if we need you again we'll ring you, you won't be getting paid for this?. So, he left and was very confused by all of this so immediately his mother rang the restaurant to see what was going on.

Eventually the manager rings her back and says look we have different people in every night covering a shift and we don't have to pay them - we're perfectly entitled to do that. So, in other words they take on these young kids, they all go get a uniform sorted because they've been told they got the job and then they are given one night without pay. Surely to god this isn't legal, can anyone advise on who you could make a complaint to.

The manager in the restaurant just hung up the phone, didn't care whatsoever about it.
 
Contact NERA [broken link removed]

Alternatively, have your nephew make up a big sign saying that he worked 6 hours and got no pay and stand outside the restaraunt on their busiest night.

He should get his money.
 
Alternatively, have your nephew make up a big sign saying that he worked 6 hours and got no pay and stand outside the restaraunt on their busiest night.

He should get his money.
+1 - disgraceful behavior - even if every restaurant does it! They shouldn't and they should pay the staff!!!
 
Silly restaurant - Why don't they just call it an 'internship' and the nice Government will pay for their staff?
 
He could return to the restaurant with some friends and family for a slap up meal with all the trimmings. When it comes to paying, he can say "I won't be paying for that", and leave.
 
I rang NERA there and the girl stated that this is fairly routine practice - she said they often have restaurants getting teenagers to cover a whole weekend - and then being told it was a trial that they failed.

She gave me a form to fill out to get the Commissioner to review the case, he will look at it and see if anything can be done. It's truly not about the money, its the fact that she made him get a uniform knowing that he would only be working for four hours, he feels very humiliated by all of it.

Of course it's a learning curve for him but that doesn't mean the restaurant should get away scot free with it. I'd absolutely love to Name and Shame them
 
Serious question, where could you name and shame them or how could I get word out there? I was thinking of leaving reviews etc on the various websites stating what happened. Do you think this would make a point?
 
Please do. I certainly won't eat there if that is what they are doing and I have no problem telling them why.

+1. Name them, I won't eat there either. Disgraceful behaviour. Also agree with you about noting it on TripAdvisor.
 
you could always ring Joe Duffy, sounds like this would be right up his street.
 
Silly restaurant - Why don't they just call it an 'internship' and the nice Government will pay for their staff?

Because it has to be an approved position and training has to be provided. I thought you'd know that.
 
Contact NERA [broken link removed]

Alternatively, have your nephew make up a big sign saying that he worked 6 hours and got no pay and stand outside the restaraunt on their busiest night.

He should get his money.

He could return to the restaurant with some friends and family for a slap up meal with all the trimmings. When it comes to paying, he can say "I won't be paying for that", and leave.

Why not contact one of the national media?

you could always ring Joe Duffy, sounds like this would be right up his street.
I'd do all of the above.
 
It is quite common in the industry for chefs to trial for a position and do a shift or two without pay, however this is professional chefs and they certainly know about it first. Sounds like this restaurant is trying to extend this to take advantage of teenagers.
 
Shocking behaviour ... call it what you like. It was theft.

This young man was led to believe he'd be paid for work he did only to be given a cock and bull story after the fact.

Name and shame on Joe Duffy ... that will hit the restaurant where it should ... in the pocket!

The place should be damn glad to be operating in these times and should have more cop on than to try this on.

It's totally shameful.

Don't let this lie. Pure exploitation of this young lad who took steps to do something positive with his time.

Is there any review site out there like tripadvisor but for restaurants? That would be another way to express dissatisfaction.
 
It might be on [broken link removed] check it out

Don't let them away with it. It's disgraceful behaviour.
 
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