Paid breaks at the end of shift what is the ......

[Stammerking]

company line on this?
For a while now posties in our office have been taking half of their break at the end so leaving 20 mins before the shift ends!! Its now been stopped as we are failing walks on a regularly basis and its been highlighted that people are leaving early. The COMs have know stated that everyone must take their breaks in works time and not to scan out before the finish time. The Rep says we should be taking our breaks as its a H+S requirement but we know plenty of local offices that have their breaks at the end of the shift including the full 40 mins. Is it happening elsewhere?

[Shirtbuttons]

I can’t believe how different we all have to work. You wouldn’t think we worked for the same company. We have to sign in no sooner than 5 minutes before our start time. Take full meal break before going out on delivery. Return no sooner than 10 minutes before end of shift and clock out bang on time to the minute. Not 1 minute before time or it’s a conversation in the morning. We have been like this for a while now whilst others on other shifts still don’t clock in or out. Start on time, finish on time . Do the job exactly how they want us to.

[tramssirhc]

Arrangements for breaks are a negotiable item and your rep should be sorting this. It's common practice for breaks to be split across the duty time. If the agreement is that there is a 20 minute break at the end of the shift then siso should be configured to take this into account.

[chickenwittle]

Arrangements for breaks are a negotiable item and your rep should be sorting this. It's common practice for breaks to be split across the duty time. If the agreement is that there is a 20 minute break at the end of the shift then siso should be configured to take this into account.

Yes we split the break , 20 mins before we go out and 20 mins off end of duty. I can see this changing soon as Royal Mail seem intent on constantly antagonising their workforce.

[eggraidonmojo]

It's a legal requirement to have at least 20 minutes break in your actual duty time (i.e. before you go out on delivery) on attendances over six hours, but splitting the break and taking 20 or more at the end is allowed and is common practice in DOs.

From Way Forward Agreement: Breaks at the beginning or end of attendance
Where an attendance is provided with more than one break, the second break may
be scheduled at the beginning or end, in which case attendance is not required
solely for booking on or off. A single break should not be scheduled at the beginning
or end of the attendance.

From Way Forward Agreement: Meal Breaks for non-standard, as part-time and extended attendances
Part-time jobs, and full-time jobs with non-standard attendance patterns, will attract
meal breaks for each daily attendance as followed, reflecting a generally pro-rata
entitlement to the national weekly standard:

Your Meal Breaks
All duties will have a set paid meal break time, with the length of these meal breaks being in
line with the following:
Attendance Length & Length of Break:
2.5 hours to 3 hours – 10 minutes
3 hours 1 minute to 3 hours 30 minutes – 15 minutes
3 hours 31 minutes to 4 hours 59 minutes – 20 minutes
5 hours to 7 hours – 30 minutes
7 hours 1 minute to 8 hours 59 minutes – 40 minutes (or 20 + 20 minutes)
9 hours to 10 hours 59 minutes – 50 minutes (or 30 + 20 minutes)
11 hours to 12 hours 59 minutes – 60 minutes (or 30 + 30minutes)
13 hours or longer – 70 minutes
Employees aged under 18 are entitled to a 30-minute meal break on any attendance of four-
and-a-half hours or more in length.

[djhl]

Our office has just stopped the practise of taking half the break at the end of shift. Now I take half before I head out and half when I am out.

Don't know where the change of policy came from

[pieoftheday]

company line on this?
For a while now posties in our office have been taking half of their break at the end so leaving 20 mins before the shift ends!! Its now been stopped as we are failing walks on a regularly basis and its been highlighted that people are leaving early. The COMs have know stated that everyone must take their breaks in works time and not to scan out before the finish time. The Rep says we should be taking our breaks as its a H+S requirement but we know plenty of local offices that have their breaks at the end of the shift including the full 40 mins. Is it happening elsewhere?

So are your managers expecting that the walks will no longer fail by moving where people have their breaks? Its 40 mins no matter where in your shift you take it

[theargyspy]

I can’t believe how different we all have to work. You wouldn’t think we worked for the same company. We have to sign in no sooner than 5 minutes before our start time. Take full meal break before going out on delivery. Return no sooner than 10 minutes before end of shift and clock out bang on time to the minute. Not 1 minute before time or it’s a conversation in the morning. We have been like this for a while now whilst others on other shifts still don’t clock in or out. Start on time, finish on time . Do the job exactly how they want us to.

How can they make you sign in no sooner than 5 minutes before your start time? I get the other stuff, making you take your full break, the ten minutes pouching off time before you clock off, but I think I would be signing on at my actual time not a second before. I presume if you sign in no sooner than 5 mins before your start time, once signed in you sit on your bench and wait until your actual start time!!

[TopperGas]

I assume the OP meant they couldn't sign 10 or 15m mins before their start time not they had to sign in 5 mins before? Although I don't no what difference it really makes when you sign in as long as you don't sign out early?

If walks are failing at the other postie's DO then I'm not surprised senior management are questioning why staff are signing out early.

[world class male]

one simple way to throw a spanner in the works,
p/t staff shouldn't be taking any indoor breaks, if their f/t partner is forced to take the full 40mins indoor, then the p/t can insist on being driven back to the d/o to take their break, by law they must be able to wash up before eating,
h&s would have a field day if someone caught a delhi belly from eating in the van

[olilew]

My mucker and I (Both full time) have our full 40 minutes in the pub, halfway through our shift.

[world class male]

My mucker and I (Both full time) have our full 40 minutes in the pub, halfway through our shift.

don't think the landlord would be so kind to let you wash up, then take a flask and a cheese sandwich inside

[Ozzvaldo]

In my office, we've never been allowed to take any of our break at the end of our shift since P&L came in 13 years ago.

[postslippete]

I often take a break while I'm actually out on delivery. Only because my part-time van share colleague doesn't want to come in and start work by being sat in the canteen doing nothing. It makes sense for us to both go straight out on delivery especially if I have Specials that need doing before 1pm. The later we get out of the office works to our disadvantage because delivering the Specials later often means deviating from the usual loops, so it is less likely that the other work is being done.

I'm sure that starting later will mean that this is the case especially as we will now be against rush hour traffic if we are finishing later.