Flexible working nightmare

[hourbyhour101]

For some reason my poor sleep deprived brain can't work out how people condense their hours ?

I'm looking what others do that aren't considered cheeky ext. I work for a family friendly large company and they desperately are trying to retain staff in my team.

So the problem I work 37hrs per week over 5 days and get a hour break (which I never get to take but that's a different post)

I ideally want to condense 37 into 4 days. Im pretty sure my work won't approve me getting rid of lunch break completely but allow me to reduce it to 30mins.

How does this actually work ? Im happy to start at crack of dawn 7am and as long as I do core hours 10-3pm they don't care how I do it.

Help a sleep deprived mum out

If you have a 30min lunch, you would need to work 9 and three quarter hours for 4 days to maintain your 36 hours.

Is that what you are asking?

So if you divide 37 hours by 4, you’d need to do 9 and a quarter hours each day for 4 days. You’d need to factor in an hour’s lunch so you’d do 7am- 5:15pm

@NiceTwin yes that's right I just wasn't sure that's a reasonable ask ?

So you’d have to work 9h 15mins a day. Say start at 7am until 12pm (5h) half an hour for lunch (do you get paid for this?) then 12:30 until 4:45 if you don’t get paid for lunch or 12pm until 4:15 if you do? I think that’s right

@ElizabethBest thank you 😭😭 have had v little sleep and brain has just gone

You need to work your 37 hours over 4 days.
So 9 and a quarter hours a day. Plus your 30 min (hopefully) lunch. So 9h 45min.
Start at 8, finish at 5.45.
Can you find nursery hours to cover that /can your partner do some of the drop offs/collections.

A sightly easier version is basically an hour extra a day, for every other Friday off.

OP, that’s four pretty long days if you’re sleep deprived?

I put 36, I meant 37 🤦🏻

I would say it depends how long your commute is as to whether it is doable.

I would certainly ask your company, it isn't that outrageous a request.

I have recently condensed my hours to 4 days and do 37.5 a week so 8-6 with half an hour lunch. In reality I don’t take lunch and finish at 5.30. But it’s definitely one of those things that sounds much more doable than it really is, I didn’t think i would actually miss my lunch break but I really do.

We only have one day in office a week rest is wfh commute is about a hour.

V lucky I have a nursery and helpful partner on hand.

I wanted to drop a day but financially that just won't work for us given the price of everything

Thank you ladies so much. My brain just kept making me muddled xx

Teething babies are never fun (it's candles btw under yet another name change) 😭

@Liss243 my boss calls lunch a flexible benefit (one that we never take tbh) I get calls on my phone when I go for a wee so it's not something I usually get and frankly I miss terribly.

I work 35 hours per week. Monday to Thursday from 8.30 to 6. I have 1/2 hr lunch on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday but 1 hr 30 on Monday because I go to an exercise class. I also work occasionally on Friday for meetings or training that cannot be scheduled lany other time but only do the time it takes. I like this because it gives me a couple of hours TOIL in hand if I need or have had enough by 5pm sometimes.

I think some people who condense hours have a shorter working week. It is easier to condense on a 35 hour working week.

This is exactly what I do.

No it’s no, I work 7.30am to 5.15pm with half an hours lunch.

I can only do this as I wfh as my office would be good 40 min commute and I am a single parent so like to be around for the teens getting off to school, etc.

Check how much annual leave you've accumulated. I did a 4 day week (normal hrs) when I first went back and used 1 days holiday per week. This lasted a few months and now I've gone part time (4 days) as didn't think I could commit to the long days with condensed hours.

If you're sleep deprived, are you sure you feel up to doing really long days? It's hard when you first go back so try and ease yourself in gently if you can.

I work a 35 hour week condensed hours 5 days over 4. I work 8am-5.15pm with a half hour lunch which is fine.

My colleague does similar with a 37.5 hour contract so works till 5.45 also fine.

Realistically we were working similar hours anyway but now we get a day off.

Does that 37 hours include the lunch break? In which case it would actually be 32 hours. So 32/9 = 8hr/day to work, plus any additional lunchbreaks you need to take.

Just to throw some other options into the mix.

local hospital most of the full time staff do 3 x13.5 hour shifts per ‘week’

Loads of places now do flexi work. As long as the hours are done they don’t care about when (or where). If they’re struggling with retention you might suggest it for everyone.

Well interesting you mention that as it's the bit I'm getting stuck on.

My contract is 37 hrs, however I always did either 9-5 or 8-4 with a hours lunch break but when I worked that out the numbers don't add up. I checked and we definitely get a hour for lunch.

Also this maybe very outting here but for the sake of clarity and my brain.

When we book holiday for a day the system calculates each day to be worth 7.24hrs a day.. which over 5 days doesn't equal 37hrs a week.

It's doing my brain in all this

How ridged are your work on the hours you put in on the flexible working request? I do 10 days in 9 and whilst on the form the time each day is split equally, in real life I do longer days when WFH and shorter days when in the office. I work hard and have a trusting boss so manage my own time really.

A couple of other options for you to think about if the days feel too long - does your DH have any flexibility? DH and I both do 10 days in 9 so days aren't too long but DC only in nursery 4 days a week. I also know some people who do 4.5 in 4 for a smaller financial hit that just going 4 days a week.

@Lockdownmummy in fairness to my work they are pretty flexible. That maybe a option.

My partner is self employed so doesn't like to turn down work if it's there if that makes sense. He will help in a pinch but at moment he's working 7 days a week to fit the work in and booked up to next feb !

7 hrs and 24 min x 5 = 37 hours of that helps?

@hourbyhour101 you need to clarify how many hours you are expected to work a week, not including lunch breaks. The law requires your employer to give you a 30 min lunch every day, but you don't have to be paid for it.

Either way, 5 days in 4 is quite tough, it'll be around 1.5-2 hours extra a day. A 9 day fortnight might be easier.