A disability support worker says her rare days off no longer feel like a break, after repeated early morning calls from her workplace left her feeling anxious and pressured to pick up extra shifts.
The woman, who goes by the Reddit username Maleficent-Gap948, shared a screenshot of six missed calls from “Scheduling” within a 20 minute window. The calls, she wrote, typically come between 6:30 a.m. and 9 a.m. on days she is not rostered to work.
‘They guilt me’
“For context, I work in disability support. I love my job. I hate being called six times on my days off,” the original poster (OP) shared.
“When I have a day off, I feel stressed all morning because there’s a 60 percent chance I’m going to be called to cover a shift.”
The worker, who describes herself as part time relief staff, said that when she declines a shift she is apparently met with pushback.
“When I tell them I can’t work the shift, they guilt me, even suggesting that I cancels appointments to come to the shift,” she wrote.
If she still refuses, she said scheduling staff contact her supervisor, who then calls to “discuss” why she cannot pick up the work.
“It seems so disrespectful and honestly I’m so tired of it,” the OP admitted, asking other online contributors if she was overreacting.
Amid more than 400 comments, a supporter responded bluntly on Reddit: “This seems so unprofessional on their part plus what you said in the caption is extremely gross. Trying to get you to cancel appointments or guilt tripping you into taking over shifts is disrespectful.”
Another offered a technical workaround. “Fun fact—you can make a [do not disturb] setting and turn it on and when certain people call it will send it right to voice mail. I do this AND you’ll never noticed they called either because it doesn’t show on your screen so no guilt.”
‘It’s against the law’
The issue of work calls outside scheduled hours has become a flashpoint for many hourly and part-time employees. According to Goldman & Ehrlich, an Illinois employment law firm, “Off-the-clock work refers to any time you spend on job-related tasks outside of your official working hours without compensation.
“It could be checking emails after work, answering job-related calls or completing tasks from home.”
The firm added: “You should not be afraid of employer retaliation for reporting concerns about your pay; it’s against the law.”
Federal labor officials also outline options for workers who believe their rights are being violated.
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division states on its website that, “An employer cannot retaliate against a worker for exercising their rights, filing a complaint or cooperating with an investigation.”
The department notes that many investigations are initiated by complaints, which are confidential.
A Familiar Tension
While the Reddit poster did not indicate whether she is being paid for time spent fielding the calls, her account reflects a tension familiar to many shift workers who rely on flexible schedules for income, but still expect uninterrupted time off.
For now, the OP says the repeated calls have changed how she experiences her days away from work. Instead of rest, she wakes up anticipating the next ring of her phone.
Newsweek has reached out to Maleficent-Gap948 for comment via Reddit. We could not verify the details of the case.
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