Does anyone know the regulations on hours worked & lunch breaks ?

thats a little bit like asking does anybody know anything about computers.


Are you worrting about the right to have one, when you can take one, how long, rights for full time employees or temps?

yep that sort of thing.

Average hours 8am-5.30/6pm

where do you stand when the boss says to you, sorry you can't have a break today as someone needs to stay in the building

I think there is a difference between a break and staying in the building.


Is your boss saying you [b]have[/b] to stay in the building and continue working without a break?

Or can you stop working, and remain in the building, eating your sandwiches, and reading the LOC site?


Why has your boss said this?

Is it a regular thing, whereby you should have a rota to make sure someone is always in the building?



As well as employment law, you should also look into the health and safety rules, as you are clearly sat in front of a computer screen - so are entitled to regular breaks from the screen (10 minutes for every hour worked if I remember correctly)

There are times when I am the only person in the office, therefore the only one to answer the phone.
There is no staff room and no where apart from my desk to eat lunch.

[quote][i]Originally posted by Red[/i]
There are times when I am the only person in the office, therefore the only one to answer the phone.
There is no staff room and no where apart from my desk to eat lunch.[/quote]


Clearly this is not right.

The details below can vary according to your age (pivoting around being 18 or under and whether you are a school leaver or not)


You are entitled to a rest break of at least 20 minutes if you work more than six hours in a row.

You must be given 'adequate rest breaks' if your work is particularly monotonous

You are entitled to a minimum of a half hour rest break if you work more than four and half hours in a row.


You must be allowed a break, at least every ten minutes [b]away from your screen[/b] and a decent lunch time break.

Additionally, working 8 to 6 without a lunch break equates to 50 hours a week.

The European Working Time Directive is supposed to protect anybody who averages more than 48 hours a week over a 17 week period (again from memory - may have changed)


Why are you the only person in the office?

How many other people in the company are there?

Are you being treated unfairly by your boss, or are your colleagues taking advantge of you by just going out and leaving you?



Of course - all the caveats you can think of here apply - always remember that any advice you get from forums like this are work exactly what you paid for it!

I manage the office,which incorporates the sales staff,which are out and about throughout the day. A few of the staff also work on site for different customers.

If I sound a bit vague its because this is my first real week in the job, and there are a number of things which I feel are being mis-managed but wanted to check legality

If you start work at 8:00am, then at 12:30 you are entitled by law to an half hour rest period.


The problem is how pedantic and 'troublesome' do you wish to be about this?

This rule is a knife that cuts both ways.

You can insist on leaving the building and having a lunch break during this half hour.

But similarly, your boss can insist that you have exactly only that half hour, and start instigating disclpinary proceedings should you consistently overrun that half hour.


At this stage, this sounds like a management issue.

Come up with a rota or some such thing whereby [b]everybody[/b] gets a decent shot at a lunchtime yet ensures someone is always there to answer the phone.

There's also the issue of how many hours you are contracted to work. I'm paid for 7.5 hours per day but I'm in the office from 8 to 4.30 (8.5 hours) so 1 hour of that time is my own time which I can spend at my desk eating/resting or out of the building.

Ive had a look at the Factorys Act 1974 and i cannot see any mention of a break time or limit although i agree with Matthew that after 6 hours you are entitled to a break. The DSE Regs 1992 say a)"It is not appropriate to lay down requirements for breaks" ;also B)"short, frequent breaks are more satisfoctory than occasional longer breaks:e.g, a 5-10 minute break after 50-60 mins continuous screen and/or keyboard work is likely to be better than a 15 min break every 2 hours". The trouble with the European working Law (6 pack)is that many things are not laid down in black and white.

Here endeth the lesson! ( Health and Safety Rep at B.T.)

I never used to set times for my staff.. they used to please themselves

However, if they had a problem they always used to vent it to me.. which I prefer rather than someone talking behind my back

If i was you I would talk to the boss... he is not gonna fire you... in fact he is prolly gonna appreciate you talking to him.

Tell him you would like to take a break outside... he knows that if he says no that he is breaking regulations.

There is a regulation.. but I am not sure what it is.

Look in the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. Staff using computers must be given periodic breaks from screen work. Rest areas must offer protection to non-smokers from discomfort caused by tobacco smoke. Where food may become contaminated in the work place there must be a rest area. Staff using VDU's must be given training and free eye tests every 10 years. and free specs when they are to be used only for VDU work.

Red - Tuesday 8th October, head up the A64 to York, Elmbank Hotel, 7.15 for 7.30pm start.

Ron Drake of Cobbetts Solicitors is doing a presentation on Employment Law. There has been a myriad of changes in the past few years (from UK and Europe).

Will be an interesting presentation for employers and employees.

It is a FREE presentation organised by the York and District branch of CIMA - I am the branch secretary and if you just say that you had a verbal invitation from me (Sam Ashton) you will be made very welcome. Dennis or Tim will be chairing the event as I unfortunately will be a few hundred miles south on business.

I thought your contract gave hours of work and time included for lunch ?

However I would talk to the bloke (Boss)first..............