Practise this conversation
How to tell staff their hours are being cut
The first time you have one shouldn’t be the first time you’ve said the words.
Bev is waiting for you
Before you go in
Bev is contracted for 16 hours but has worked about 30 a week for two years. From next month the extra hours stop and the rota is fixed, a decision made above you that you only partly agree with. She relies on those hours, and she’ll hear it from you first.
Good luck.
Your goal
Tell Bev plainly that the extra hours stop next month, say what her shifts have meant, and leave her knowing exactly what happens next.
Up to 8 turns, about five minutes, then feedback from our AI coach. Your first go at this conversation is free. After that, one credit a go (packs from £3).
Want the full rehearsal? (Pro, 6 credits for both)
What you’ll practise
- Saying the news clearly in the first minute, with the date.
- Giving the reason without arguing for it or against it, and saying it’s the same for everyone.
- Being honest about what you don’t know, and naming the day she’ll hear more.
Your goal
Your free go at this one is used
One credit runs the whole conversation
Each new go costs one credit: a full conversation with Bev and the coach’s feedback. Your free go at the other conversations is still there.
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What worked
Where it slipped
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One thing to practise
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Ready for the real one?
Rehearse it with Bev until you’re ready
Practise the conversation until it feels like the second time, not the first, and walk in with your best words.
- Two full rehearsals: up to 20 turns each, out loud or typed
- On the second, a hint from the coach after each reply
- Your own best lines on a card to take in with you
With the Best value pack (50 credits), 6 credits is about £1.45 · $1.90 · €1.70 · A$2.90. After that, one more go with hints is 2 credits. Private: use made-up names, and nothing you say is kept.
What we keep: nothing you typed. Your conversation stays in your browser and goes to our AI coach only to write the next reply and your feedback. Use a made-up name for the person you’re thinking of. The feedback is written by AI from your conversation and is a second pair of eyes, not a verdict on you.
Practice for reflection, not legal or HR advice. If it involves harassment, discrimination, health or safety, talk to HR or ACAS.
The full picture
Bev has worked at the store for nine years. She's on a 16-hour contract, but for the last two years she's done about 30 hours a week, picking up every extra shift going. Deliveries, cover, stocktake, the Sunday nobody wants. If a shift needed filling, you asked Bev.
From the start of next month the extra hours stop across the whole team and the rota moves to a fixed pattern. The decision came from head office after a labour review and it applies to every store in the area. You agree with the fixed rota. You don't agree with the timing, and you weren't asked. There's talk of a few contract-hour increases later in the year, but nothing is confirmed and you don't know whether Bev would be one of them.
She relies on those hours, and she'll hear this from you first. You've asked her into the office before her shift. From the look on her face as she sits down, she's already guessed it's not good news. How you tell her will shape how she feels about the job, and about you, long after the rota settles.
Why it's hard
You can't change the decision, so it's tempting to hide behind it ("it's come from head office, nothing I can do") or to apologise so much she thinks it might be reversed. Neither helps her. She'll want to know why, whether it's the same for everyone, what it means for her money and whether there's any way back. Some of those answers you won't have. Saying "I don't know yet, and I'll find out by Friday" is part of doing it well, not a failure. There's one more thing to hold. Nine years of picking up every shift bought the store a lot. This is the moment she finds out whether anyone noticed.
82% of people who enter management have had no formal management and leadership training.
Chartered Management Institute with YouGov, Taking Responsibility, October 2023Two-thirds of managers say they're uncomfortable communicating with the people they manage.
Lou Solomon, Harvard Business Review, March 2016 (survey by Interact and Harris Poll)What usually goes wrong, and what you'll practise
What usually goes wrong
- Building up to it so slowly that she guesses before you've said it, and hears you working up the nerve.
- Blaming head office so completely that you sound powerless, which makes her wonder why she's talking to you.
- Promising to get the hours back, or hinting at contract increases you can't confirm.
- Treating it as a rota notice and missing what two years of extra shifts meant.
What you'll practise
- Saying the news clearly in the first minute, with the date.
- Giving the reason without arguing for it or against it, and saying it's the same for everyone.
- Being honest about what you don't know, and naming the day she'll hear more.
Read before you practise
Questions people ask
Should I tell her before the team meeting?
Yes, if she's the one it hits hardest. Hearing it in a room with twelve other people, or from the rota on the wall, is the worst version of this. One to one first, then the team, then the rota. That order is most of the respect.
What if she gets upset or angry?
Let her. Don't rush to fix the feeling or fill the silence with reasons. Say the news, say it's the same for everyone, then stop talking and listen. If she wants to end the conversation and come back to it, let her do that too.
Can my employer cut contracted hours?
That's a question for HR, your manager or ACAS, not for practice. This conversation is about extra hours above contract and a rota change that has already been agreed.
Credits here are BOM Credits: packs from 10 for £3 to 100 for £20, and one code works across every coach tool on the site. Full refund within 14 days if you haven't used a credit. Anything wrong, email [email protected]. How credits work