Working Time Regulations -

• 48 Hour Limit on Working Week

On average, adult workers should not work for more than 48 hours in a week. However, they may agree in writing to work for longer.

Temporary workers will need to agree to work longer than the 48-hour working week in writing with the employment business. The 48-hour limit is averaged out over 17 weeks (26 weeks in the case of some specified situations or types of activity - generally where continuity of production is necessary or where the work is unpredictable; and 52 weeks by collective or workforce agreement), so there is some flexibility in the legislation.

You should nevertheless make sure your employment business knows in advance if temporary staff are likely to work for more than 48 hours particularly if those staff are new. In the first 17 weeks of a worker's employment or assignment, the average working hours are calculated over the actual period that the worker has worked.

For example, if a worker works 46 hours in week one and 50 hours in week two (making an average of 48 hours in the two weeks) and the assignment with the client terminates, this will be within the law. But, if a new worker works three 50-hour weeks in his/her first assignment, and that assignment then terminates, the law will have been broken unless he/she has agreed to work more than 48 hours.

Young workers (those aged between 15 and 17 inclusive) may not work for more than 8 hours a day or 40 hours a week. These hours cannot be averaged out and there is no opt-out available.

However, they may work longer hours where it is necessary to either:

Maintain continuity of service or production
OR
Respond to a surge in demand for a service or product

Provided that:

There is no adult available to perform that task
The employer ensures that the training needs of the young worker are not adversely affected

• Rest Breaks

All adult workers whose working day is 6 hours or more are entitled to a rest break of 20 minutes. For young workers the rest break should be 30 minutes in a day lasting 41/2 hours or more. Ideally all workers should be able to take this break away from their workstation.

Recruitment agencies will need to discuss the provision of rest breaks with their clients - especially where there is an agreement with trade unions or the workforce that governs this. The regulations do not require that the rest breaks be paid and generally an employment business will not charge for these unless it is agreed with you.

• Night work

On average, adult workers who work at least three hours of their normal working day between 11pm and 6am should not work for more than 8 hours in any period of 24 during a rolling 17 week reference period. So you would need to let the recruitment agency know if night workers are likely to exceed these limits. If night work involves heavy mental or physical strain, there is an absolute limit of 8 hours' night work in every 24.

Young workers may not work between midnight and 4am with very limited exceptions where there is a need to provide continuity of service or respond to a surge in demand for a service or product and no adult worker is available:

Hospitals or similar establishments
Cultural
Artistic
Sporting
Advertising
Young workers may work between 10 or 11pm to midnight and between 4am to 6 or 7am if they are in the following sectors:

Agriculture
Retail trading
Postal or newspaper deliveries
Catering
Bakery
Employment businesses require the cooperation of their clients in assessing whether work involves working at night and whether it entails heavy mental or physical strain. If the client's own risk assessment indicates this, they should then make their recruitment consultancy aware.

• Daily Rest

All adult workers are entitled to 11 hours daily rest in 24 (12 hours for young workers)

• Weekly Rest

All adult workers are entitled to a minimum of 1 complete day of rest per week or 2 days every 2 weeks (2 days a week for young workers).