No break during work hours

[amele]

I just wanted to know if this is normal practice.

Before I had my child I was full time so I got the 1 hour unpaid lunch, i went part time after I returned from maternity. so I work 9-3pm. Initially I thought I would get half an hour lunch, but unfortunately I get no lunch break at all, I can take breaks here and there when I need to (anyone can do that regardless of how many hours you work) but sometimes when I'm drowned in work, it isn't something I'm able to do. Having a fixed break would be better.
People thT are FT are working til 5.30, so only 2.5 hours more than me

Is this normal? Or have I been a fool to not mention anything

Over 6 hours you have to have a 20 minute break legally. Looks like you're bang on 6 hours so aren't legally entitled to a break. If you reduce your hours or increase your working day you could get a break in.

Legally, you are entitled to 20 minutes every 7h. Anything more is employer's discretion. Your shifts are too short to fall under legal entitlement.

The only way round this is to start earlier or finish later and take 30 minutes unpaid

your not entitled to to any breaks on that shift

It's normal. Employers don't have to give you a break working 6 hours.

You'd likely be asked to finish at 3:30 if you want a break

Unfortunately you need to work over 6 hrs to be entitled to a break. It’s a bit shit because your hours are right over lunchtime which means you are missing a meal.

i work 6 hours but our company does give a 20minutes paid break but I can get called back on the floor at any time.

What Draconian measures we have in 2025 that the law states no break needed for fewer than 6 hours and employers will exploit it to the letter.

sometimes people want to work through lunch and legally they have to have a break after 6 hours, so it works both ways.

@HelenWheels but at least they have a rest. It's not the same.

What hours are you getting paid for?

If you want a half hour break then you're going to get paid for half an hour less. You're not unreasonable to want it, but your pay will account for this.

I noticed this the other day in Costa. The rotas were up and the poor girls were getting shit breaks

One has been there since 5.30am. It was 11.30 and she looked exhausted. No break for her tho.

Working life has definitely not improved!

When I was in retail we had 15Min tea break both am and pm and an hour lunch This was in the late 80's.

We are going backwards.

Your colleagues that finish at 5.30pm are doing 1.5 hours more work than you (a 7.5 hour day) and taking 1 hour lunch break.

Can you choose your own hours or is it set by someone else? If you worked 8.30am - 3pm, or 9am - 3.30pm you would have time to take a half hour lunch. I would make the time to take a break personally but I guess it depends on childcare?

https://www.acas.org.uk/working-time-rules#:~:text=rest%20breaks%20during%20the%20working,in%20a%2014%2Dday%20period

Are the full time employees paid for their lunch break? If they are, it would be unfair. If you're paid for 6 hours and they are paid for the hours they are actually working, its legal

Are you paid for the 6 hours a day? If so, then if you had a 1/2 hour unpaid then you'd need to start or finish 30 mins later/earlier every day if you were to have a break. Legally, you aren't entitled to one as that's only if you work over 6 hours.

OP clearly said that she can take rest breaks as and when needed, and I'm sure that if she expressed she wanted a half an hour or an hour break the employer would absolutely let her take that but she would have to work that time past her agreed hours. It sounds like she has an agreement in place where she has set hours to accommodate her childcare. Majority of businesses don't pay for your break time so she would have to add that time onto her shift past her 3 pm finish

I used to start 7.30 (finance) and finish at 2.30 a couple of days a week (to collect my son from school). No - I didn't take a lunch break and generally ate a sandwich on the train home. I obviously had toilet/tea breaks.

First poster nails it. You are not entitled to any break working those hours.

Yes so bc of childcare reasons, I decided on the hours 9-3pm, my employer approved it. At the time I didn't realise I wouldn't get atleast 20-30mins break.

I could request to start work earlier or finish work at 3.30pm, I collect my child from nursery for 4pm, so couldn't work til 4pm.

But I wonder if it won't be approved if they know I'm only doing it to get my break in?

My colleagues lunch breaks are unpaid.

So is it legally work more than 6 hours or 7 hours to get a break?

I doubt your employer would care given they'd be paying you the same?

So you’re getting paid more than you expected to as you don’t get an unpaid break in the 6 hours? You could ask to drop 30 mins and get the break in that way.

Up to & including 6 hour shifts have no break entitlement. Over 6 hours is 20 minutes unpaid break.

So you could do a 6.25 h shift & get a 20 min unpaid break but would be paid less then overall as the hours worked are less.

You could work an extra half hour & take a break in the middle (but would be 'at work' for longer) or see if you could reduce your paid hours eg get paid for 5.5 hours & take a break but still be 'at work' 9-3.

Most people on short shifts like to work straight through & leave earlier especially school run parents so your employer might have just assumed that's what you wanted. It's worth speaking to them if you want to negotiate something different. I think people work better when they take breaks but have a longer working day.

As long as everyone is working the hours they are paid for it doesn't matter if colleagues have slightly different break arrangements.

You could ask for a 30 minute unpaid break to be factored into your current working day.
Or you could work an extra half an hour each day to account for a 30 minute break.

The law is that you don't have to be given a break unless you do over 6 hours. My company you get 15 mins but that is discretionary.

Can't you offer to work 8.30-3 so you can take half an hour unpaid or is the cover an issue?