Students need to protect their rights

It's the time of year when many students are out looking for a summer job or, if they are lucky, have already found one. If you are lucky, you've managed to find a decent job with a fair boss that will let you stick around until school goes back in September; however, many students are not that lucky.

Many students get stuck in low wage positions and many end up working for people who think the Labour Stands Code is a quaint document that they don't really need to worry about. I have had a few jobs and bosses like these and, like many of you, I have contemplated quitting because of something the boss or a manager had done that I was convinced was unfair (and possible illegal).

The Labour Standards Code is what is used to determine if a business, bosses or managers actions are unfair and illegal. Summer students don't have unions to protect them, but every employee in the province is protected by the rules and regulations laid out in the Code. I want to take some time to highlight important sections that students should be aware of:

Seeing as it is the summer, an important area to touch on is vacation time. While not all students work year round, those that do are eligible for vacation time – two weeks after 12 months of work. You should also be earning vacation pay and building it up year round, unless you have it included in your hourly rate, and you can use that to fund your week or two of time off. If you end up quitting a job and you have unused vacation pay, the employees is required to pay you the balance within 10 business days.

Since we take summer jobs to make money, the section of the Code dealing with pay protection is important. According to part of the Code, you must be paid at least twice a month and you must receive your pay no longer than five business days from the end of the pay period.

I'm not sure how many people end up at McDonald's or Tim's or any other place that requires a uniform, but if you do you should know that the employer is not allowed to deduct the cost of the uniform if it results in you earning less than a minimum wage.

I can't explain the entire Code in the 600 words I am allotted this week, but you can get a brochure on the Internet that explains the Labour Standard Code in detail if you want to know more. If you want the brochure enter http://www.gov.ns.ca/lwd/employmentrights/docs/labourstandardscodeguide.pdf in the address bar of your web browser and it will give you a pdf document. Read it, know it and make sure you act if your employer doe something they shouldn't.

If your employer does do something that is against the Code, don't be afraid to speak out. Confront them, raise the issue and find out how they respond. If it was a mistake, they'll probably fix it. If they don't fix it, know you still have other avenues.

Summer jobs are bad enough without having to worry about employers breaking the law and violating your rights as outlined by the province. The best way to protect yourself this summer is to know your rights, make sure you tell the students you are working with about their rights and take action of something happens.