Question: As a caretaker, can the committee dictate what hours I work?
I am a caretaker. Can the committee dictate what hours I work?
I currently clean from 5 am to 7 am. The pool and BBQ areas are open to occupiers from 7 am to 10 pm. So, I do all the work I can outside those hours to better manage my workplace health and safety obligations.
My work does not disturb anyone or create noise or security issues.
The committee sent me an email stating, “Effective immediately: you are not allowed to work inside the estate before 7 am and after 5 pm.
The contract contains no clause dictating when I can and can’t work.
Answer: The simple answer to this is ‘no’ subject to the terms of the agreement.
The simple answer to this is ‘no’ subject to the terms of the agreement. A caretaker’s hours are governed by the agreement with the body corporate. If that doesn’t dictate hours, then the roles required by the agreement need to be performed at times that the caretaker decides, with the caveat that (say) pressure washing footpaths at 1 am wouldn’t be sensible.
Most caretaking agreements do allow a body corporate to provide reasonable directions about the duties, but off the cuff I don’t see that it would be a reasonable direction to start your job at 7 am when it could be started at 5 am and not interrupt residents, especially in the summer heat!
This post appears in Strata News #678.
Frank Higginson
Redchip Strata Law
E: FrankH@redchip.com.au
P: 07 3193 0500
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