Working Time Regulations 

 

The Working Time Regulations ("WTR") were brought into UK Law in 1998 from European Legislation.   Under the WTR all workers in the UK have the right to a limitation on their working hours, as well as to periods of rest and paid annual leave.

 

Employer's are responsible for implementing the WTR rules to ensure the safety of workers is protected.

 

 

Flexible working

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​The flexible working rules in the UK are primarily governed by the Employment Rights Act 1996 (ERA) and the Flexible Working Regulations 2014. Under these rules, employees have the statutory right to request changes to their terms and conditions of employment, specifically relating to the hours they are required to work, the times they are required to work, and the location of their work, as between their home and their employer’s place of business.

Employees are eligible to make a statutory request for flexible working from the first day of their employment. They can make up to two such requests within any 12-month period. The request must be made in writing, specifying the change applied for and the proposed effective date.

Employers are required to handle these requests in a reasonable manner. This includes consulting the employee about their request before making any decision to refuse it, and notifying the employee of the outcome within a decision period, which is typically two months from the date of the request. Employers must accept the request unless one or more of the specified statutory reasons for refusal applies, such as the burden of additional costs or an inability to reorganise work among existing staff.

If an employer fails to deal with a request in a reasonable manner or unreasonably refuses it, the employee may bring a claim to an employment tribunal. Successful claims can result in compensation of up to eight weeks’ capped pay. Additionally, employees are protected against detriment and dismissal for exercising their statutory rights in relation to flexible working.

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Employers should follow the ACAS Code of Practice found here,  as far as possible when dealing with flexible working requests.  Employment Tribunals must take it into consideration when deciding whether a request was handled reasonably, what steps and procedures were followed.

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