Legal requirements
Workers over 18
Your employees have the right to 1 uninterrupted 20-minute rest break during their working day if they work more than 6 hours a day. This can be a tea or lunch break.
Unless their employment contract says so, they do not have the right to:
- Get paid for rest breaks
- Take smoking breaks
You can say when employees must take their break, as long as:
- The break is taken in one go, somewhere in the middle of the day (i.e. not at the beginning or the end)
- You allow employees to spend it away from where they actually work (e.g. their desk)
Make sure that in unforeseen circumstances (e.g. because a pupil needs first aid after an accident) the member of staff is allowed to take their break later if