Daily rest between shifts

MattyLTW · 13 March 2018 at 9:36AM

Hello all,

I currently work daily rotating shifts, one week would be
Mon - 10:30 - 19:30
Tue - 06:00 - 15:00
Wed - 10:30 - 19:30
Thurs - 06:00 - 15:00
Fri - 10:30 - 19:30
Sat - 06:00 - 10:00

The following week the shifts would be opposite with no Saturday.

My question is, does the 11 hour rest between shifts rule not apply to me? As when I finish at 19:30 I'm not getting 11 hours off before starting again at 06:00.

The GOV website states - Daily rest
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.

I have put this forward to my bosses and HR and HR have replied with the following...

Hi Matthew,

Having looked further in to your query over your shift pattern and rest between shifts, I can confirm that we are within the law to set the shift pattern you work, and that the rest obligations by law are being met.

A worker may be entitled to compensatory rest if:

· they’re a shift worker and can’t take daily or weekly rest breaks between ending one shift and starting another

Compensatory rest is allowed when a worker has to work through a rest period. The employee is entitled to take the rest when possible, the regulations suggest that, as long as a worker receives at least 90 hours' rest per week on average, then the rest obligations are being met.

The period of compensatory rest allowed should be equal to the interrupted portion of rest - not the entire break.

Your shifts are on a rolling cycle over 2 weeks as follows: (total rest in the 24 hour period in red)

Monday 0600-1500 15 hours

Tuesday 1030-1930 15 hours

Wednesday 0600-1500 15 hours

Thursday 1030-1930 15 hours

Friday 0600-1500 15 hours

Saturday 24 hours

Sunday 24 hours

TOTAL WEEKLY REST: 123 hours

Monday 1030-1930 15 hours

Tuesday 0600-1500 15 hours

Wednesday 1030-1930 15 hours

Thursday 0600-1500 15 hours

Friday 1030-1930 15 hours

Saturday 0800-1200 20 hours

Sunday 24 hours

TOTAL WEEKLY REST: 119 hours

So minimum daily rest between working shifts is 10.5 hours and the maximum is 19.5 hours so we easily compensate for the 30 minutes reduction from 11 hours on the back-to-back shifts (finish 1930 start 0600).

Minimum weekly rest between work shifts is 42 hours and the maximum is 67.5 hours, including your weekend rest, so again well within all legal requirements.

This information is taken from the ACAS website should you wish to review it.

I just wanted to check this is correct? Apologies for the long post, any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you

Smodlet · 13 March 2018 at 10:18AM

I don't suppose they could make it the same hours every day for one week, then the opposite pattern of hours the following week? Why do your hours change every other day? How disruptive that must be for you. Common sense chasm.

Sorry, I don't know the answer to your question but your employer seems to think they are doing nothing wrong. I guess your options are suck it up or find another job.

agrinnall · 13 March 2018 at 10:19AM

It appears to be correct, information on compensatory rest breaks on gov.uk confirm what ACAS say.

https://www.gov.uk/rest-breaks-work/compensatory-rest

getmore4less · 13 March 2018 at 10:50AM

this is what the actual law says.....

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1998/1833/part/III/made

see 22 then 24.

agrinnall · 13 March 2018 at 1:32PM

getmore4less wrote: »

this is what the actual law says.....

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1998/1833/part/III/made

see 22 then 24.

Interesting, at a fairly quick glance I can't see anything in those sections (or in 10 or 11) that mentions the 90 hours per week, so I wonder where gov.uk has got that from?

getmore4less · 13 March 2018 at 2:10PM

agrinnall wrote: »

Interesting, at a fairly quick glance I can't see anything in those sections (or in 10 or 11) that mentions the 90 hours per week, so I wonder where gov.uk has got that from?

11*6 + 24 is my guess.

but probably could/should be 5*11+24 as I suspect an 11 hr period and a 24hr period can be concurrent.

If someone can be bothered there is probably something out there that goes into more detail on compensatory breaks and there may be case law.

there are amendments to the act there might be something in those I have not remembered.

MattyLTW · 13 March 2018 at 3:23PM

I'd love to have it on a weekly rotation, unfortunately they like you to carry on in the morning from where you left at night but it's not needed.

MattyLTW · 13 March 2018 at 3:27PM

So I take it these shifts are legal and there's not much I can do. That's a shame. I don't understand where the 11 hour off rule comes into play then. It should be a rule for all really and not something that doesn't count if you're a shift worker. Judging by that, they'd be within their right to start me after 4/5 hours rest etc. It just seems a pointless rule but nevermind. Thank you all for your replies

Smodlet · 13 March 2018 at 5:48PM

Believe in better; you could look for another job if you wanted to. I do not think it is fair, I think they are taking the p!$$, tbh but it is an employers' market and I do not envisage a time when it will be anything different. The last time workers had any clout at all was pre-Thatcher.

Takeaway_Addict · 13 March 2018 at 7:45PM

Way to get your card marked...

chubsta · 13 March 2018 at 9:02PM

I work for a Government Department, twice a month when we move from day shifts to nights we finish at 3.30pm and start again later that evening at 11pm, a gap of just 7.5hours.

I am currently on nights, today we had to stay late so instead of finishing at 7am we didn't finish until just after 2pm (a 16 hours shift with no meal break as we had started at 10pm), I am now waiting to go back to work at 10pm, a gap of 8 hours.

So, I guess in practice there are really no rules enforced for 'gaps between shifts'...

Daily rest between shifts

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