Manager insisting I take lunch

Duty of care so you are being unreasonable.

Maybe she doesn't like the smell of food lingering in the office.

20 minutes is the minimum after six hours.

Key legislation wording is "entitled to a break", note it does not say "you must"

You have the right to a break. There is no law being broken if you do not take it as long as they are ensuring you have the opportunity.

Poss question re H&S if for e.g
you go off with stress but as long as they can evidence they have encouraged you and you have the opportunity to take they have no liability (99% certain unless there's case law I've missed)

Are you allowed to use Internet for personal use? Could say you're catching up on life admin sometimes?

Can't you take a book to the canteen? We have a canteen where most people eat lunch (either their own or bought at the canteen) and we are encouraged not to eat at our desks.

Sometimes people sit in groups and sometime on their own. If you are on your own it is considered polite for a group to ask if you mind them joining you. No one takes offence if you would rather read.

I am currently sitting on my own in our canteen as I want to get a few personal bits of admin done on my phone. It's fine.

Your manager is trying to avoid you making the business break the law.

Don't go and sit and the canteen if you don't want to. But do take the break.

It’s duty of care - you are Legally required to have a break after working x hours, and also setting the tone from the top for the rest of the organisation. If it is perceived that the CEOs PA has to work through lunch (even if it’s your choice) it’s not a good culture for the rest of the organisation putting pressure on others to do similar and you are unconsciously enabling that culture to be created.

Personally I don’t think its a good look if someone walks into the senior’s office and are greeted by the PA with a mouthful of crisps or sandwich.

It’s also unhealthy to work through your lunch every day - it’s much better to get away from your desk and screen , even if it’s a walk around the block.

Aside from the legal/duty of care bit- I've been a PA many times before and frankly part of the job is representing whoever you support, so maybe your boss doesn't think it sets a very good example?

Do you socialise/chat to other teams and colleagues outside of the canteen/not just about work? I would also say that being a PA means building some of those relationships, being eyes and ears for the person you support (esp if they are a leader or CEO), and having lunch with people is a great way to do this.

All that being said- you shouldn't be forced into talking to people if you don't want to. Are you ND or suffer from anxiety? If so then talk to your boss about it, they should make reasonable adjustments.

Your boss sounds great! You should be taking desk breaks regularly and it is unhealthy to work through lunch. Can't you go for a walk or to a cafe? A break in the car is better than nothing, take a book or listen to the radio. Or sit in the canteen alone? I totally understand not wanting to join a group at a big table but your manager is doing their duty insisting you take your breaks.

So you work through lunch, extra at evenings and weekends. That's actually ridiculous. She's trying to make you take a break like you should be doing anyway.

I work in HR.

The solution is that you take your legally mandated break. The fact you regularly work over your hours as well as not taking a break is an HR nightmare in the making as it puts you at increased risk of burnout and stress related absence, as well as breaking DSE legislation. These put the company at risk of a claim, reputational damage, and having to cover your work. If a manager told us his staff member wasn’t taking their breaks we would formally tell you to do so. Legally we have to make sure you take it during the day, rather than use it to start late or finish early.

There is an easy solution. Stop working wile you have a lunch break

It does reflect really badly on your manager if other employees see you working through your (unpaid) lunch break. Given that your manager is the CEO, HR must be putting pressure on her to be demonstrate best practices.

I can understand not liking the office canteen, could you go out on a walk, or have lunch a bit early or late, when the place is quieter and it's less noticeable that you are not joining in?

Have you not had health and safety training? You're supposed to take regular breaks from the screen etc. Well, that was a part of our H&S training.
Sit in your office away from the screen. Sit in your car. Go for a walk/drive. You'll probably be more productive from having a break

Go for a 20 min walk round the block or to nearest park? There must be somewhere?

It’s 20 mins.

Yes OP, it is a legal requirement that you cannot work more than 6 hours without a break so your manager is being very reasonable.
In my experience of work life, colleagues asking to work through their breaks and leave early caused all sorts of problems. That is why it is important to abide by legislation. And the canteen is for all, irrespective of who sits where/with whom. Use the opportunity to stretch your legs and get some fresh air

Just bring a book in, say you enjoy the quiet time to read. Whether you do or not is upto you. Your boss is trying to make sure you have time away from your screen as legally required

It will definitely become the CEOs business if you develop back problems due to being sat at your desk without a break all day, or develop a stress related illness.

I used to be in a similar situation in a previous job. I would spend half my lunch break at my desk eating lunch and either shopping on amazon or browsing mumsnet, and would go for a walk around the block the other half.

I completely understand you OP I’d be exactly the same.

If you feel comfortable enough to sit in the canteen alone with a book or headphones then start doing that or if not then I would just sit in your car/ go for a short walk.

I’d also stop working through lunch, I’d actually stop working outside your hours at all and then maybe your boss might change her mind. 🤷🏻‍♀️

We live in France and currently looking at cars.
All the car showrooms officially close from 12 until 2pm, and I applaud them.
Tbh they will pop out and speak if they see you.

Take lunch and stop working so much. You’re missing the world around you.

Even if you don't work in a scenic place, even if it's some ugly industrial estate or whatever, you'd still really benefit from having a 30 minute walk and getting some fresh air. It's very damaging to sit down for hours on end and to have no breaks from the screen. You're putting your manager in a very awkward position by refusing to go for lunch. It's the law.

When I was working as a PA in a previous life, I enjoying mixing with the various staff groups in the staff canteen, finding out about their jobs, issues they were currently dealing with, etc. My boss was in charge of the whole department of 450 staff and it was a good way to see the mood of the staff and on occasion I would feed back to him "you need to know . . ."