Hi ho, hi ho… it’s off to work we go!
The NHS and Royal College of Nursing (RCN) have recently decided to extend the period of protection for NHS workers who are on-call to help minimise the stresses and strains of working long hours of overtime. Amongst other things, the scheme aims to introduce a standard working week of 37 ½ hours, as well as recognising the need for equality in pay for employees in similar roles.
This follows a plethora of media attention in the spring of last year when the extremely high number of cases where errors and oversights had been made by doctors, nurses and staff working for the NHS were made public. An article by the Press Association and featured in The Guardian reported that more than half of the 4,000 mistakes made (some 2,221 incidents) were of a serious nature, including surgeons operating on the wrong patient and over-prescription of medication to dangerous levels (Guardian, 2009). Much of this has been put down to the excessive number of hours doctors and nurses have had to work in order to provide sufficient cover in the country’s hospitals and GP surgeries.
As an employer, you expect your employee’s productivity in terms of output of work – whether it be within a hospital, an office, on agricultural land etc. – to be high. In order to ensure that your company is profitable and dynamic, you need employees who are willing to work to the best of their abilities and go the extra mile; but be careful that you don’t overwork your team.
Workers working for longer than six hours a day are entitled to a daily rest break, which may be paid or unpaid. This break period must be a minimum of 20 minutes. There are some exemptions, for example if “…the worker’s activities involve the need for continuity of service or production”, but these cases are few-and-far-between. What is important is that an employer must make sure that his staff can take their rest, though he is not required to make sure they do take their rest, (although you are advised to encourage this as good practice).
A worker may opt to work more than 48 hours a week on average, but cannot be compelled to do so.
Whatever industry you are in, it is important to make sure that you are taking reasonable steps to protect the health of your staff. If you would like more information about taking care of your employees, Russell HR Consulting provides expert knowledge in the practical application of employment law. For more information, contact us on 0845 644 8955 or e-mail pm@russellhrconsulting.co.uk.
By Darry Khajehpour