statutory work breaks?

Sazzyukrafc

We get paid for all our day, but the again, none of us really leave our desks or office for dinner.

It also annoys me that smokers get to go off for 10 mins every couple of hours. In my old job, where I sat was where people had to walk past to get outside and I would see some people every hour smoking for 15/20mins.

I don't think it's at all fair that smokers are allowed to do this, yet us who don't smoke aren't allowed breaks like that. At the end of the day, you choose to smoke, so do it in your own time, not work time.

Mr rant over! lol!

Any

geordie_joe wrote: »

I have worked with many non smokers who are jealous when smokers go for a fag.

They think nothing of standing in the kitchen, or a corridor and talking to a colleague about football/hair styles for half an hour. But complain when a smoker goes out for a smoke.

I no longer smoke myself but I fully agree with this comment.
At my old job everyone kept going on about smokers going outside for a cigarette, though the managers are not stupid and they always monitor who does what and when and comes work review day and payrises and everyone gets paid according to their work.
I know my husband smokes outside at his job and he always makes phone calls while there which are work related. While his secretary doesn't smoke and also spends time on the phone - most of her day actually and those are definitely not work related. Also I know from my own experience that being outside for a fag you find out more about companies going ons then sitting at your desk and waiting for something to happen.
I think for many it's time to realise that we don't get paid just for sitting in front of the computer all day but also what we actualy create while sitting in front of the computer. That is what our managers see and pay for.

geordie_joe

woohoo_postingid wrote: »

"Eventually we were told we could only smoke in the fire escape stairwell."

Am I the only one that thinks this is rather ironic?

Probably not, but it was just a steel staircase in a concrete shaft with a large space at the bottom. There was nothing in there that could burn, not counting smokers, and if the fire alarm had gone off we would simply step out of the fire door and be long gone before anyone else got near the fire escape.

cassy

i work from 9 to 16:42 and get paid for all of the day apart from 20mins

i can take a break and lunch when i want and im a smoker and have 1-2 cig breaks a day....

but on the flip side i do works banking and postal runs on my way home or a saturday when im in town

its all give and take and it depends on who you work for and how they treat you. i work with a pc and i dont have to have breaks every hour....just do tasks that are not infront of my pc. i feel lucky for the company i work for they are very fair (just wish i got paid a bit more)

MrsE_2

Callum wrote: »

In the public sector i get paid for 7 hours 10 and have a 50 minute unpaid lunchbreak.

Think yourself lucky all the money you've gotten.

Same here.

But I only take a 30 min lunch break, I used to only take 20 mins the legal minimum - but my new manager thinks we should take at least 30 mins.

Smokers p me off too:mad:

Glittermonkey

Our staff work a 10 hour 45 min day and get an unpaid 45 min break.

If I was the manager on shift then I would turn a blind eye to smokers breaks and non smokers tea breaks as they worked a very long day.

Obviously, they weren't allowed to take the p***, they could only go if it was quiet and as long as the majority of work was done.

**dancingbutterfly**

im a receptionist at an opticians and i work 9 to 5.30 and get paid for 8 hours, i take a 30 min lunch break obviousley unpaid. my old job i used to get paid for my lunch HOUR! id work 9-6 and get paid for 9 hours! the company went bust in the end! haha!

madmalteaser

I used to work 12 hours a day in an office, surrounded by 4 computer screens on my desk. We were never given the official info about "screen breaks" and since I'm a smoker, I would take a 10 minute break every 2 hours and explain I was on a "screen break" if anyone questioned it! Over the course of a shift that meant I was out of the room for 50 minutes and since we were only allowed a 45 minute unpaid lunch break I wouldn't take any other breaks. The other 5 minutes? I was always in 20 minutes before the start of my shift anyway!

The point I'm trying to make is that not all smokers take the pee!

rugbychick81

mrbrown wrote: »

We've just had a meeting with our boss and he said that he's going to stop paying us for our lunch hours! Is this legal!? We dont smoke and dont take any breaks, our lunch is the only time we spend away from the computer. If our boss can stop paying us for lunch, then what are our statutory rights on breaks? Are we legally allowed 15 minutes off in the morning and in the afternoon? I think if hes allowed to stop paying us for our lunch hour (which is normally only 30 minutes or so anyway!) then its a massive dent in moral and Im certainly going to take advantage of any breaks that I have a legal right to!

In this economic climate, maybe this is the only way your boss can ensure that you all get to keep your jobs atm?

sonnsonn

Can anyone help? Everywhere I look it just mentions working 6 hrs entitles you to 20 mins break. Unfortunately this is not helping me solve my problem.

I work 9 hours per day and get paid for my 1 hour lunch break...So I am then working an 8 hour day, am I still entitled to a coffee break legally?