Why are so many jobs advertised for 16 hours?

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I'm trying to find a new job, I want around 30 hrs a week but most part time jobs I see are 16 hours, is this to do with benefits or something similar?

Probably because those hours can fit around childcare and it’s often women with children who work part time.

Is it to do with tax credits - you are more eligible if working 16h per week perhaps ?

And if you work 16hrs or less, it doesn't impact on ur benefits. Tho I don't think that applies if you claim UC

Years ago I managed a retail store and it was also because you didn't have to pay national insurance for employees who worked 16 hours or fewer. That might have changed now though.

Does anyone know for sure?

I know. It’s because a typical work day is 8 hours and when recruiting you think about how many days you need to fill.

16 hours is the ‘prime’ hours for working parents where you are able to claim the maximum amount of working tax credits and other benefits but are over the bracket to have to claim job seekers allowance or income support.

Of course this is changing with the new universal credit system but I imagine the calculations are still similar.

If you want 30 hours you should apply for full time positions. They would be most happy with someone they don’t have to worry about sick leave/holiday pay on less than 40 hour weeks

You need 16 hours to claim working tax credits as a single parent.
24 hours for a couple to claim.

Does anyone know for sure?

How would anyone know for sure?

aPengTing, because they work in this area or it affects their life?

Thanks everyone else. I've been looking for retail jobs and so many of them are 16 hours or less. I haven't seen any full time.
It's so different from 20 years ago, the job market has entirely changed.

Probably a stupid suggestion but could you get two 16 hour jobs?

If you want 30 hours you should apply for full time positions. They would be most happy with someone they don’t have to worry about sick leave/holiday pay on less than 40 hour weeks

Have you worded this really badly or are you suggesting part time people done get sick or holiday pay?

I had thought of getting 2 16 hr jobs but I don't know how feasible it is to do. The part time jobs I've went for have wanted flexibility and for you to cover holidays or sickness as required, also one job had a 3 week shift pattern that would make getting another job to fit in with it really difficult.
Also I think you get taxed more on a second job, maybe someone here could correct me on that or confirm it?
It's a bloody minefield.

You dont get taxed more on a second job unless that job takes your income into the next tax threshold.

Thanks, I was wrong then, I thought second jobs automatically got taxed at 25% but as I only earn min wage I'd never hit the higher tax bracket.

When I was a retail manager, lots of 16 hour contracts made it easier to manage the rotas and have cover at peak times. You need more staff for short bursts. So, 3 people doing 10-2, 11-3, 12-4 for example could cover the floor and breaks for full-time staff without over-staffing the quiet times.

If it's retail It's so they can get you to work in 4 hour blocks. Which means they don't have to pay for breaks or cover lunches. You just get 3 people to work 3 shifts to cover 11 hours opening plus 2 overlapping while the manager has their lunch.

But you only by law get a break after 6 hours.

Yes but if you hire a person for 8 hours (normal day) you need to cover their lunch break. You don’t if you have 2 people doing back to back 4 hours shifts.

Are they? I need a ptj so this thread gives me hope.

Hi. I'm in exactly the same boat. I'd like 3 to 4 full days work (around 22.5 to 30 hours) & it seems like there is this mystical figure of 16 hours with so many employers.
I don't truly know the answer but I suspect it is to do with the fact they don't have to pay Nat Ins for you, which I think someone else mentioned & also when it comes to holidays, they only have to pay what you're entitled to for working 16 hours. So, if you agree to a 16 hour contract but then when you get into the job you find out that you generally work far in excess of that (ie. you end up working 30 hours a week mostly) you're still only entitled to annual leave applicable to 16 hours work.
The other thing that is extremely annoying, is that you can't take on another job to make up to a definite number of hours each week because they all now expect 'full' flexibility. What this boils down to is that you are expected to commit to being available 7 days a week, but the reality is that you still probably only get 16 hours work. It is extremely sneaky practice & really unfair. In summary, you're giving them a full time commitment, for the pay & benefits of only a few hours per week.
What ends up happening is that many of the jobs are going to people who just want a bit of 'pocket money' for spending & their holidays, while the people who need the work to actually live on can't get the hours they need.
20 or 30 years ago, it was nearly all full time jobs in the workplace with a few part-time jobs to fill around the edges & the part-time workers were expected to basically fit in with the full timers. Now, it has turned around the other way.
All this supposed 'flexibility' is all very well, but it means people are expected to turn up to work at all manner of ridiculous hours & stay until late in the evening. And it's all because people & companies want this round the clock 24 hour society.
The other thing I have noticed is the ridiculously intense & probing interviewing process for jobs that are just a handful of hours per week. It's utter madness, and it's not even successful in retaining staff in a job as people are not staying in the jobs any longer than they ever did. You can go for an interview for 8 or 16 hours work in a store & they put you through an interview process as if you were going to join the police force.
So, I completely understand where you're coming from.

Employer only has to pay NI on earnings over £166 pw, so lots of retail/hospitality employers would prefer to employ 2 or 3 people under that limit as their NI is over 13%

You are entitled to annual leave for extra hours!