How often do you have time for a proper lunch at work?

[HelenaHurricane]

For me it's once in a blue moon! I assume this is quite common but interested to hear what others get.

Also any suggestions for quick meals at work. Considering Huel at this point!

My previous job was one of those part-time ones that happen in the middle of the day. This meant that I had no more than 15 minutes to wolf down a sandwich. Now I do various daytime shifts and get an hour on a full day’s shift.

I always have my lunch hour , i don't get paid for it and I'm no better off for not taking it . My boss and his assistant never have a lunch break and they're always moaning about not taking it .
I once had a boss that said I wasn't dedicated enough if I took a lunch but when he left after 25 years of never having a lunch break his bosses never even sent him a card to thank him for all the free hours of unpaid labour he'd given them over the years .
If you don't get paid for it you must take it or it will become the norm and you'll lose out .

I'm a nurse, I have huel whilst writing my notes.

Not often but I prefer to eat at my desk so I can try and get an earlier train home

Is it nice? Does it actually fill you up?

An unpaid hour lunch break almost every day I am in. Its very rare that I don’t take a full hour. We can’t work flexibly and have been advised to take our full hours lunch whether working from home or in the office. So why wouldn’t I ?

Always get lunch, occasionally get tea. That's on a 12.5 hour shift.

I WFH and book an hour out for lunch. It's pretty much standard in our department that everyone blocks out a slot for lunch. It's really important to our organisation that everyone takes a break, and our CEO very much encourages it.

So yes, I take between 45 minutes - 1 hour every day, our dog loves his lunchtime walk and so do I.

Hardly ever. I’ll walk to the on site restaurant for a coffee and a panini/jacket potato most days then eat at my desk and crack on. We are frontline safeguarding and there’s always a duty disaster somewhere that means it’s hard to take a break.

Every day, sometimes a 2 hour one. WFH but I’ve honestly never had a job that’s so busy I can’t take lunch. I mean, even if I was really busy I’d take it anyway, work doesn’t and never will own my soul. And yes I have a decent paying professional career

45 mins every single day. Work in the NHS. We aren't allowed to NOT have our break in my dept (totally aware this isn't the norm for all NHS)

Pretty much never, I always eat my lunch standing up. It’s just the type of industry I am in and I’m lucky if I have chance to have a hot cup of tea within an 11 hour day.

I take a lunch break every day. Usually only 30 minutes, apart from the day I do a lunchtime pilates class where I take up to 2hrs to allow for travel and getting changed.

I mostly work from the office and either eat in the staff cafe or take a sandwich.

I need a break from the screen by lunchtime.

Every day. Take at least 45 mins. I wouldn't last til 5.30 without it.

Not once in the last five years!

48 minutes on paper. Doesn't work like that in practice, so I break it up into chunks, ensuring one is the legal minimum period (albeit after the 6th hour) and the rest is as and when I determine it will be taken. Food is generally eaten one handed or chugged down as a protein shake in about 3 minutes flat whilst typing with my other hand during the first brief lull in the day (sometimes 9am, sometime 11am, sometimes 1.45pm).

It's not brilliant, but if it were set in stone at, say, 12-12.48pm, something genuinely urgent would happen that would mean I lose it and I'm not prepared to do that, especially when I can often be there for 15 hours. My position is I'll adapt to the situation around me, but I will be taking breaks and you will accept this or we'll go back to another pointed conversation about Contractual and Legal obligations.

Every single day I take my lunch. Occasionally when I'm in the office I'll just take 40 mins but normally I take the full hour. I put headphones on for white noise and read for an hour. When at home I watch an episode of whatever TV show I'm watching while I eat.

However I have a medical condition that means I need the time away from my computer.

Never. I eat, but whilst working through the half hour I could have. Usually prepared cereal or crackers.

I meant pre prepared cereal or crackers.

I put lunch in my calendar as a recurring appointment. I did that after finding that I increasingly missed it and it's really helped.

I always take my allocated 1 hour - gives me time to eat and relax I wfh the majority of the time with a v busy daily schedule

Every day. We have a really good canteen and most of the team eats together each day. My boss is very keen to ensure we take proper breaks and eat well! The company also provides a full cooked breakfast once a week for all of us.

Always. I have a 30 minute lunch break and I treat it with the respect it deserves.

Most days unless I'm on a night shift. I get half an hour and find somewhere quiet to sit or go a sit in my car!

I have one hour every day. We have a rotating lunch schedule that is ironclad. I also have two paid 15 minute breaks every shift. I work in healthcare in the US.