HOURS OF WORK

Working hours shall be as stated in your offer letter and your contract of employment. You are expected to arrive in plenty of time to start your day. We do not expect you to work excessive hours unnecessarily and we do encourage you take your full break entitlement. However, you may from time to time be required to work additional/flexible hours to meet the needs of the business or for example to cover sickness, absence or holidays. We will give you, where reasonably practicable, as much advance notice as we can in the circumstances that are within our control.

The Company has a legal obligation under the Working Time Regulations 1998 to limit the working hours of employees, (See Section on Working Time Directive). It is important therefore that employees should not accept any other paid employment without obtaining prior approval from a Company Director or the Human Resources Manager, (see also Conflicts of Interest).

If you are paid on an hourly rate you must record daily all the hours that you work using the method which is in operation at your location.

If you are paid an annual salary you must sign in daily on your department‘Signing In’ sheet provided at your location, and/or use the digital hand scanner system.

Manager’s hours are as stated in the offer letter and contract of employment over a 5 day period. However, Managers are required to work the hours necessary for the satisfactory completion of their job responsibilities without overtime payment. Managers must ensure the core hours of their departments have cover at all times. Managers of employees who work at weekends are expected to participate in the Weekend Rota. Certain Managers may be required to have key holding and duty Manager responsibilities as part of their normal working arrangements.

We reserve the right to make reasonable changes to your contracted hours and we will notify you of any changes immediately giving one months notice in writing.

WORKING TIME DIRECTIVE

The working time regulations state the following:
• Employees cannot be required to work for more than 48 hours per week on average (calculated over a 17 week period)
• An employee can agree to work more than 48 hours per week: the agreement must be in writing
• Employees must have a break of at least 20 minutes if they work for more than six hours
• More stringent regulations apply to night workers and young persons (under 18).

Please contact the Human Resources Department for further information.