To think it's pretty normal not to have a lunch break?

[IdaClair]

I work for myself at the moment, and most days the first chance I have to eat is dinner time. Sometimes I have breakfast, sometimes I don't. Friends and family have said to me that I should have a 'lunch break ' and seem appalled by the idea that I don't have one, saying I should 'make sure' I do.

I have what is essentially a shop and there is maybe 5 minutes a day where I am not serving customers directly, and there is often a queue. Breaking for lunch is not an option! To me it seems perfectly normal not to have a lunch break, I have only ever had one in an office job. Every other job I have had in customer facing stuff like event management, catering, customer service, caring roles, even waitstaff and barwork -there wasn't a lunch break. There were a few that did a strict 15 mins every 4 hours type of system, but nothing longer than that and most things were on a 'grab two minutes if you can where there is time ' basis - and there was never normally any time! I would often do a 12 hour shift doing something like a wedding and no-one would stop the proceedings so the staff could have a break, and in some remote country hotel you've never been to before with a kitchen busy with 200 guests, unless you brought a pack up there isn't exactly any food available even if you wanted it.

I am sure there are many professions which are so busy and unpredictable you don't get a 'lunch hour'.

AIBU to think that there is no such thing as a lunch break in many roles and it's not exactly a shocking thing or some kind of deprivation?

I do not employ anyone or expect anyone to work without a break. I just did not think it was a big deal until coming home and saying things like I'm hungry, no chance to eat today and being 'told off' by family and friends.

Surely you could find time to eat if you wanted to, but you don't want to so you don't make the time. If it isn't important to you though, I don't understand why you are having enough conversations about it to feel as though there is widespread consternation about it - I rarely eat before dinner time because I'm just not hungry, but I don't think my husband even knows this, let alone hears about it enough to tell me off about it.

Depending on the job and the supervisor we might get a 5 minute break, no break or 20 minutes to grab some food if the job is dragging on well past the time we should have finished. None ever takes longer than about 20 minutes, even on 10 hour jobs... We're in the type of job where we're done once the work is complete, so it's in everyone's best interests to push through and not take breaks.

Coffee and a fag is my lunchbreak most days.

I don't get a lunch break. I take food to work and eat on the go.
Work in the public sector and I'm a lone worker. In practice I have to be available to answer pager/mobile/office phone over my entire shift and cannot take a formal break.
It's a huge bone of contention

I'm an employee so yes I get a lunch break. I don't work through it.

If I worked for myself or in a job I truly loved I might not take it.

I have always taken a lunch break and don't know anyone in my immediate circle of family and friends who are expected to work all day without a break. DP is self-employed and sometimes doesn't stop for lunch, but that's his choice not necessity.

I literally have people waiting to be served the whole time I am open. I go straight from one customer to the next and there is often a queue so I am trying to offer good service quickly and efficiently. I do a lot of product demonstration, consultation on my products and the average time people spend with me is 30 minutes.

The only way to get a break in the middle of the day would be to close for a half hour, I'm not sure how I could do that when I always have people in the waiting area, so cannot close the doors to others.

I often want to eat but literally no chance unless I start eating whilst speaking to customers.

On my ward several of the nurses don't always take their lunch breaks (we have unpaid 30mins). That's fine for them if they can cope on no food, but then they seem to expect others to miss their lunch break or to take it very late so you are starving and faint feeling by the time you get chance to eat.

Our Clinical Leader dislikes that 'martyr - like' behaviour and encourages us to take our lunch breaks - if the nurses are hungry it means we can't always function as well and it's dangerous for the patients to be honest.

I personally follow the Clinical Leader's example and take my lunch break - I learned the hard way that knocking yourself out for a job doesn't win you promotion or benefit you and at worst it can make you ill.

Im also self-employed and there are very often times Ive worked right through until afternoon, not eating until say 3/4pm. I see no virtue in that, however - when I realise Ive done it I resolve to take a break next time, and that includes snack breaks or just 5 minutes 'out' time. Im not a martyr to work and it doesnt make sense to me to want to be on the perpetual treadmill without even taking a break during the day. Life's too short. & driving yourself ever onwards in this way will hasten the day when you really won't be able to sustain working relentlessly without a break. Its not just physical strain, its mind strain. If I were an employee Id be really despondent at the sight of employees munching away at their desks and not taking a break even to stretch their legs.. It would put me right off working for said company. & by the way...the attachment to the chair is our biggest killer in the west..

while I can see as a lone trader it is hard for you to take a break and as self employed you can make the rules what do you do when you need the bathroom?

you could easily say to the next customer I will be with you in 2 minutes while you popped to bathroom switched kettle on etc, it is what I say to a patient if I need to go and do something

you could eat a ready made sandwich or a cereal bar or drink a smooothie if you wanted to

not eating breakfast or lunch longterm is bad for your general health though a one off would not do any harm for most people

if an employee over 18 you must be given 20 minutes after 6 hours this does not need to be paid ( if under 18 it is after 4.5hours) this is an absolute minimum

I am a dentist we shut from 1-2pm nobody actually gets a full hour because stuff from morning needs to be sterilised etc, you might not finish exactly at 1 sometimes we run late and we start just before 2 as first patient will be at 2, the lunch hour is not paid but if staff work into lunch they either get paid or allowed to finish a bit early if possible, coffee /tea mid morning afternoon is only if time or someone cancels but I would not expect staff to work their lunch or answer phone; we would expect them to sign for a parcel /delivery from courier but they would not be expected to open and check in lunch

it is illegal to make an employee work their break

I worked in a very anti-lunch culture and I always took the full hour. I liked it - little walk, large and delicious baked potato, 10 min with a mag.

I loathe presenteeism and I've never met anyone who liked it and who was very good at their job.

When I worked in an office, I found that the people who regularly to worked through lunch, stayed late etc, were the least efficient. Just sayin.

Teacher here-about 15 mins to grab a sandwich and drink then clubs/marking/setting up for afternoon. I think that is fairly standard now though-I don't know any friends who get a lunch 'hour' though most take a short break to eat.

Out library closes for an hour for lunch on a Saturday, this gives me the rage on an possibly very unreasonable level - there are 3 members of staff on! Wandering about! I work in the NHS and feel lucky to get a lunch break of any sort on an 8hr shift and don't get it until well into the afternoon on a 14hr shift. Always worked in retail or waitressing before with very adhoc breaks.

I'm allowed an hours lunch break. I don't always take it and when I do, it's normally a quick 15 minute pop to the local shop. Most days I just eat at my desk and carry on working. I'll often pause to eat some fruit and cake

Then again I always leave at 5.30pm on the dot as I have an hour and 20 minute commute home.

Always had a lunch break, usually half an hour. Work for emergency services now and we have to take our breaks

I always felt an hour was far too long unless you were doing loads of shopping or meeting up with a friend. When I worked in Fund Management before my present career I took around 20 minutes a day, usually at my desk, wandering around town for no particular reason never appealed to me.

Always take my break, may not alway eat but I have a drink and get off the ward for my 30 minutes.

I don't get paid for my breaks but don't often get to take them. It does annoy me when I work an 8 hour shift and only get paid for 6 and a half!

We have to plan in a half hour lunch break during a full day at the college where I work (half days are different obviously and you eat after or before work). It is not counted towards your hours so whether you take it or not you are not paid or credited for the time. If you choose to work on thats up tomyou but you cannot say you arent allowed a break. There is no advantage in skipping it since you can't claim time later, though people may have a sandwich at their desk during busy times. It is done to meet the legal and ethical obligation to allow breaks.

You wouldn't need to close for half an hour, you could just take five minutes to stuff a sandwich down.

My DH used to leave home at 5:30am to commute to work. The company often banned breaks when they were busy and virtually timed people in the toilet. DH would arrive home about 7pm having maybe grabbed some junk food at the station because he was so hungry. Disgusting and unhealthy, and the pay wasn't even good enough to justify going the extra mile. He's left there now thank goodness.

when I ran my own business I didn't have a single break in a 8 till 6 day.

the little customers keep following me around demanding my attention and sometimes pooing themselves just as I sat down with a cuppa.

they never fell asleep at the same time either!

Why don't you close for your lunch? That's what businesses used to do!

This an incredibly depressing thread.

Everybody needs breaks, and time to eat - it's incredibly bad for you not to do that. It doesn't matter if you're employed or self-employed. You are entitled to time off, and you need time off. People who say they haven't got the time are just poor time managers. And often they love to play the martyr. (I know because I'm married to one of those)

If you have some kind of a shop, why are you working all those hours on your own? Why don't you have some part time help?

So yes, YABVU to think it's normal not to have a lunch break.

I've not worked anywhere where people have a lunch break - well, except 5 mins to nip down and make a coffee, and go to the toilet, for the last 20 years. Pretty normal where I've been working.