WORKING
TIME REGULATIONS
SECTION 2: WORKING
TIME LIMITS
- Workers
cannot be forced to work for more than 48 hours a week on average.
- Young Workers may not ordinarily work
more
than 8 hours a day or 40 hours a week, although there are
certain permitted exceptions (please see Special
daily and weekly working time limits).
- Working time limits for doctors
in training are being phased in gradually (please
see Special daily and weekly working time
limits)
- Working
time includes travelling where it is part of the job, working
lunches and job-related training.
- Working
time does not include travelling between home and work, lunch
breaks, evening classes or day-release courses.
- The average
weekly working time is normally calculated over 17 weeks. This
can be longer in certain situations (26 weeks) and it can be extended
by agreement (up to 52 weeks [more]).
- Workers
can agree to work longer than the 48-hour limit. An agreement
must be in writing and signed by the worker. This is generally
referred to as an opt-out. It can be for a specified period or
a indefinite period. There is no opt-out available from the
Young Workers limits.
- Workers
can cancel the opt-out agreement whenever they want, although
they must give their employer at least seven days’ notice, or
longer (up to three months) if this has been agreed.
- The working
time limits do not apply if workers
can decide how long they work [more].
Employers
must check:
- What counts as working
time.
- How much time each worker
spends working.
- If a worker is working
more than an average of 48 hours a week, whether to
reduce his or her hours or whether the worker wishes
to sign an opt-out from the working time limit
- What records need to be
kept [more].
|
More
detailed information
If you are
an employer, you must take all reasonable steps to ensure that
workers you employ are not required to work more than an average of 48 hours
a week, unless they have signed an opt-out agreement.
Special
daily and weekly working time limits
Young
workers
Young
workers may not ordinarily work more than:
-
8
hours a day
-
40
hours a week
These
hours worked cannot be averaged out and there is no opt-out
available.
They
may work longer hours where this is necessary to either:
-
maintain
continuity of service or production, or
-
respond
to a surge in demand for a service or product
and
provided that:
Doctors
in training
From
1 August 2004, doctors in training will be subject to weekly
working time limits, which will be phased in as follows:
- 58
hours from 1 August 2004 to 31 July 2007
- 56
hours from 1 August 2007 to 31 July 2009
- 48
hours from 1 August 2009
Their
average weekly working time is calculated using a 26-week
reference period (see section How
is the average weekly working time calculated? for information on how the average
weekly working time is calculated).
What is
‘working time’?
The Working
Time Regulations state that working time is when someone is "working,
at his employer’s disposal and carrying out his activity or
duties".
This includes:
- Working
lunches, such as business lunches.
- When a
worker has to travel as part of his or her work, for example
a 24-hour mobile repairman or travelling salesman.
- When a
worker is undertaking training that is job-related
- Time spent
abroad working if a worker works for an employer who carries
on business in Great Britain.
This does
not include:
- Routine
travel between home and work.
- Rest breaks
when no work is done.
- Time spent
travelling outside normal working time.
- Training
such as non-job-related evening classes or day-release courses.
On
3 October 2000 the European Court of Justice gave judgement in a
case concerning the status of 'on-call' time.1 The judgement related to doctors employed in primary
health care teams though a similar approach may now be taken in
other areas.
It indicated that 'on-call' time would be working time when
a worker is required to be at his place of work.
When a worker is permitted to be away from the workplace
when 'on-call' and accordingly free to pursue leisure activities,
on-call time is not 'working time'.
How
is
the average weekly working time calculated?
The number
of hours worked each week should be averaged out over 17 weeks
or however long a worker has been working for their employer if
this is less than 17 weeks. This period of time is called the
‘reference period’.
Workers and
employers can agree to calculate the average weekly working time
over a period of up to 52 weeks under a workforce or collective
agreement. The reference period is also extended to 26 weeks
in other circumstances [more].
- Doctors
in training have a 26-week reference period
- The
offshore sector has a 52-week reference period
The average
weekly working time is calculated by dividing the number of hours
worked by the number of weeks over which the average working week
is being calculated, for
example 17.
When calculating
the average weekly working time, if the worker is away during
the reference period because he or she is taking paid annual leave,
maternity, paternity, adoption or parental leave, or is off sick you will need to make up for this
time in your calculation. Do this by adding the hours worked during
the days which immediately followed the 17-week period – use the
same number of days as those when work was missed.
| Example 1:
A worker has a standard working
week of 40 hours and does overtime of 12 hours a week
for the first 10 weeks of the 17-week reference period.
No leave is taken during the reference period.
The total hours worked is:
17 weeks of 40 hours and
10 weeks of 12 hours of overtime
(17 x 40) + (10 x 12) = 800
Therefore their average (total
hours divided by number of weeks):
|
800
|
|
|
=
47.1 hours a week |
|
17
|
|
The average limit of 48 hours
has been complied with.
|
| Example 2:
A worker has a standard working
week of 40 hours (8 hours a day) and does overtime of
8 hours a week for the first 12 weeks of the 17-week reference
period. 4 days’ leave are also taken during the reference
period.
The total hours worked in
the reference period is:
16 weeks and 1 day (40 hours
a week and 8 hours a day) and 12
weeks of 8 hours of overtime
(16 x 40) + (1 x 8) + (12
x 8) = 744
Add the time worked to compensate
for the 4-day leave, taken from the first 4 working days
after the reference period. The worker does no overtime,
so 4 days of 8 hours (4 x 8 = 32 ) should be added to
the total.
Therefore their average is
(total hours divided by number of weeks):
|
744
+ 32
|
|
|
=
45.6 hours per week |
|
17
|
|
The average limit of 48 hours
has been complied with.
|
What if
a worker agrees to work longer hours?
An individual
worker may agree to work more than 48 hours a week. If so, he
or she should sign an opt-out agreement, which they can cancel
at any time. The employer and worker can agree how much notice
is needed to cancel the agreement, which can be up to three months.
In the absence of an agreed notice period, the worker needs to
give a minimum of seven days' notice of cancellation.
Employers
cannot force a worker to sign an opt-out. Any opt-out must be
agreed to. Workers cannot be fairly dismissed or subjected to
detriment for refusing to sign an opt-out.
Employers
must keep a record of who has agreed to work longer hours.
| Example
of opt-out agreement
I
(name) agree that I may
work for more than an average of 48 hours a week. If I
change my mind, I will give my employer (amount of time
– up to three months) notice in writing to end this agreement.
Signed……..............
Dated………...............
|
When
do these rules not apply?
What
to do if you are not receiving your rights as a worker
What
records do employers need to keep?
|
