Working Time And Rest Breaks: Do You Know Your Rights?
A large number of betting shops are open across a long day and many staff work long hours, but the law sets out certain requirements around working time and rest breaks that employers have to stick to. Whilst the law on working time can be complex, we thought it would be useful to give members a reminder about the key aspects of what they’re entitled to under the law.
Your Rights Under the Law
Working Time
The law on working time is called the Working Time Regulations 1998. This sets out a number of important rules on working time to protect the health, safety and wellbeing of employees.
Working time is any time where someone is working at the employer’s disposal and carrying out the employer’s activities or duties. It does not usually include the time that an employee spends travelling to work or rest breaks.
The law sets a maximum working week of 48 hours (on average), although employees can choose to opt out of this and agree to work longer hours. If you are working more than 48 hours per week on a regular basis but you do not think you have opted out of working more than 48 hours, please contact the union’s Advice Team using the contact details provided below.
Rest Periods
The law also says that employees have the right to the following rest periods:
A 20 minute rest break if employees are expected to work more than 6 hours during the day. The rest break must have a clear beginning and end and during that time, the employee should not be subject to being recalled to the employer; it has to be a proper break. The rests need to be planned in advance and taken during the day (not at the start or end of the day).
In some cases, employers have made separate agreements with staff to give longer rest breaks; if those agreements are in place then they must not be broken by employers.
Between working days, employees must have a rest of 11 hours or more between finishing work and starting work again.
Between working weeks, employees must have a 24 hour rest period every 7 working days or 48 hours every 14 working days.
Sometimes, a situation might arise where an employee has to work through a rest period, but this should not be something that happens on a regular basis and there must be a valid reason for the missed break. In these circumstances, the employee must always get compensatory rest to make up for the missed break.
Holiday Entitlement
Employees also have the right to paid holiday, which builds up based on the number of hours worked. Some employers also agree a certain amount of paid holiday with staff.
The law says that employees are entitled to 5.6 weeks’ paid holiday per year (which might include Bank Holidays). If employees work part time, their entitlement will be proportionate to the number of hours worked.
Paid holiday also builds up whilst an employee is in a probationary period, on sick leave or on maternity, paternity, adoption or shared parental leave.
What You Need To Do If You Think Your Employer Is In Breach Of The Law
This newsletter is a reminder of the law and what’s expected of employers. If you think your employer is in breach of the law, you must contact our Advice Team straight away so that we can advise you on what action you can take.
Our team can be contacted from 8.00 am to 6.00 pm, Monday to Friday on 01234 716005. Alternatively you can email us at 24hours@workaffinity.co.uk. Remember we are completely independent and anything you tell us is entirely confidential.
You should also make sure that you have a copy of your employment contract; if you do not have a copy you should request one from HR. If you need help with obtaining your contract for any reason, please contact the Advice Team.
Watch Out For Contract Changes
From time-to-time, employers make changes to employment contracts. In some cases, the changes have no material effect on employees but very often employers make changes which ultimately have a detrimental effect in some way. When that happens, employees should be consulted and compensated. If your employer asks you to sign a new contract, STOP! It’s essential that you contact the Advice Team so we can advise you on the change before you sign. Once you’ve signed and accepted the contract, it’s too late.