Shorter lunch break, how long can you take time off in lieu.

[justasking111]

Please settle an argument with me OH is shouting that you can have a short lunch break and take time in lieu when you want to. So you can save up all those half hours or finish half an hour early. I do not agree. I said it depended on your contract of employment.

In my last job it was pretty flexible. I took a shorter lunch and arrived earlier than most people so I could leave earlier. All agreed with my manager so happy days

My current (new) job I'm pretty sure would be horrified if I suggested this on anything more than a one off occasion. However old job was 90mins commute, this one's 25mins

When I used to work in an office, if you didn't take all your lunch break then tough titties, you didn't get to finish earlier

There are some places however, that if you have a shorter break, you finish earlier that day.

I haven't heard of "building up" time to take off half a day randomly in the future though

It really depends on the workplace

Teacher here and we only get 30mins I don’t see why anyone would need more than 40mins fora 9-5 type job to be honest.

OH is convinced everyone can work flexitime.

Yeah, right your OH is deluded. Does he ALWAYS insist he is right about everything?

Yeah, imagine going somewhere for an appointment but they weren’t there because they worked through their lunch and left early.

I think it depends on your contract. I have no set hours to work per day, in theory, so if I work straight through most of the day, I would leave a bit early. But I have a professional job with a high degree of independence and flexibility. They often don’t know if I’m in or not and no one really cares where I am.

I would imagine, technically, no you can’t do that. But if you do work without set hours anyway, no one cares too much if you do. Not everyone has that kind of job though.

Your OH is an idiot.

Assuming you are in UK, if you work more than 6 hours, you should take a break of at least 20 minutes each day, that is the legal minimum.

Most employers will not allow total flexibility on workers coming and going as they please. Many will agree to an occasional "Can I have just half an hour for lunch and leave half an hour earlier tomorrow please?" request.

Is he always such a pratt?

Where I worked before you could do this the very odd time, organised well in advance.

Where I work now it is not possible.

@Justasking111

Of course you can't just have half hour lunch instead of an hour, from Monday to Thursday, and then finish 2 hours early Friday, or have half hour lunches for 2 weeks and then finish at lunchtime on the Friday (at the end of the second week) just because you want to.

You could only do this - or similar - if the company permits it! (And most don't!)

Your husband is a pillock who is making up shit as he goes along, and insisting he is absolutely right, to make out he is cleverer than he is. like lots of men do!

My OH picked me up from work 10 minutes before finishing time, he said come on you're a manager, you can leave when you want. I am a manager and manage my own time but I have start and finish time, I do a lot if extra hours unpaid but if I want to pop out to docs etc, I work my lunches to make the time up. I don't store all the extra hours as it's expected at my level to go the extra mile, your oh is wrong, don't back down

I've never had a job where you could do this; lunchtimes were either an hour or 30 minutes, unpaid. If you chose/had not choice to work your lunchtime that was tough, you weren't paid for it neither could you claim TOIL.

I have a job now where I can do this - working for public sector, but in all of my previous jobs (old bugger) I couldn’t.
My DH can pontificate on stuff like this at times, convinced he is right, he just looks like a tit when he realises he is wrong.

OH is convinced everyone can work flexitime

Would love to hear his explanation of how this would work for, oh, surgeons, police, ambulance drivers, nurses, teachers, prison officers, health care workers, teachers,

Need I go on?