Take a Break

[Plumm]

My friend is working for a central London cafe/restaurant - 10/12 hour days - and has been told she isn't allowed to take a break. If she does take one they dock the time taken from her pay - someone please tell me this isn't legal!

She's only there for a bit of pocket money and will be leaving soon, but I'm interested in the legalities of this.

Lunch breaks are unpaid so that could be what they're asking of your friend.

In that period of time I'd expect her to be taking 2 x half hour breaks as a minimum. And yes, they would be unpaid.

I'll look up the details and be back in a bit

Full details here

Thanks for the info - I'm surprised the breaks are unpaid (you can tell I've never been in a paid by the hour job!)

Her first week there they made her work 12 hour days for 7 consecutive days - I'm pretty sure that isn't allowed.

Well I'm salaried as are all of my colleagues and we don't get paid lunch breaks. It's not that unusual.

They can ask her to work 12 hour days for 7 consecutive days as long as she gets "an uninterrupted 48 hours clear each fortnight" and 2 x 20 minute breaks as a minimum per shift.

If she has no contracted working hours presumably she can choose when she works?

It's not legal not to allow her to take a break, no. Are they really expecting her to be on her feet working continuously for 12 hours straight? She must get breaks as per JAMM's link.

It would be very unusual for those breaks to be paid. Salaried or hourly paid, I've never come across anyone who was paid for their lunch break, the whole point being they are not working and can leave the premises if they want to.

Salaried office hours are commonly 9 - 5.30 or similar, and a full time week is often defined as 37.5 hours. 37.5 hours a week is 6.5 hours a working day - in other words 9-5.30 minus an hour in the middle for lunch.

But that's all a minor point, if your friend isn't being allowed to take a break that's illegal and quite concerning for shifts that long.