What are the legal requirements for breaks when doing a 12.5 hour shift three to four times per week?

Chris King
Answered by Chris King

Under the Working Time Regulations, an employee or worker is entitled to a minimum of 20 minutes break when working a shift of more than 6 hours. The employer should also ensure however that any employee/worker has adequate work breaks where the work done may put a strain on their health and safety which may include giving them additional short breaks from work throughout the day.

 

However, as an RGN it may be the case that your wife is a “Special Case” worker. Special Case workers are those whose “activities involve the need for continuity of service or production”. In practice this means circumstances where there is a need to ensure there are no gaps in treatment or care of service users. This may mean therefore that it is not always possible for a Special Case worker to have a full minimum 20 minute break as it may be interrupted for urgent treatment or care. In those circumstances, the employer should ensure that they make note of the period of time the worker has been unable to take a break and ensure that this is given back to them as “compensatory rest” at another point in the shift.

About Chris King

Chris is one of our Employment Law Specialists from Napthens Solicitors.
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