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Working time directive and maximum weekly working hours including how to calculate your weekly working hours and working time limits if you're a young worker.
- Opting Out
Workers who cannot opt out. You cannot opt-out of the 48...
- Rest Breaks at Work
Overview. Workers over 18 are usually entitled to 3 types of...
- Calculating Your Working Hours
Exceptions. Some jobs have different reference periods, for...
- Print Entire Guide
We would like to show you a description here but the site...
- Child Employment
Minimum working age and pay for children, how to apply for...
- Employment Contracts
A contract is an agreement between employee and employer...
- ACAS Helpline
Acas provides free and confidential advice to employers,...
- Opting Out
- Rest breaks at work
- Daily rest
- Weekly rest
- Work that puts health and safety at risk
Workers have the right to one uninterrupted 20 minute rest break during their working day, if they work more than 6 hours a day. This could be a tea or lunch break.
The break doesn’t have to be paid - it depends on their employment contract.
Workers have the right to 11 hours rest between working days, eg if they finish work at 8pm, they shouldn’t start work again until 7am the next day.
Workers have the right to either:
•an uninterrupted 24 hours without any work each week
•an uninterrupted 48 hours without any work each fortnight
A worker’s employment contract may say they’re entitled to more or different rights to breaks from work.
An employer should give an employee enough breaks to make sure their health and safety isn’t at risk if that work is ‘monotonous’ (eg work on a production line).
Domestic workers in a private house (eg a cleaner or au pair) aren’t entitled to rest breaks for health and safety reasons.
Jan 14, 2024 · The Working Time Regulations in the UK do not set limits to how many 12-hour shifts you can work in a row but instead provide you with guaranteed rest periods that employers must respect. In addition to at least 11 hours of uninterrupted daily rest, you are entitled to a minimum of 24 consecutive hours of rest in each seven-day period or ...
Dec 9, 2023 · The regulations around legal working hours require that there should be a break of 11 consecutive hours between each shift which, in theory, means that someone can work a 13-hour shift, provided they have sufficient rest breaks during this time.
The law on working time (The Working Time Regulations 1998) sets rules for: the maximum weekly working hours, and how someone can work more hours if they choose. rest during the working day, week and year – find out more about the right to rest. young workers' maximum working hours and rest breaks. night work.
The UK's Working Time Regulations 1998 lay down the minimum conditions relating to weekly working time, rest entitlements and annual leave in the UK, although UK employees can opt in and out of the provisions relating to the minimum 48-hour working week. This factsheet outlines employees' basic rights and protections relating to working time.
Sleep-in shifts. The number of hours that workers get paid the National Minimum Wage depends on whether they’re expected to sleep or work for most of their shift.
