Working hours
Date: December 2015
Internal, Working Time Version 1, December 2015 – page 1
Internal, Working Time Version 1, December 2015 – page 2
At Tesco we want to ensure that the hours you work are
reasonable and that you work safely. We want you to
have the choice of working more and being paid more if
you are hourly paid, but this should be within some
sensible limits. Likewise, if you are not hourly paid, you
may need some guidance on how to manage your
working time so that you have a balance between your
work and home.
The regulations exclude certain categories of workers.
One excluded category is workers who are able to
manage their own working hours. Within Tesco, we
classify the following as excluded from the regulations:
We operate in line with the Working Time Regulations
although we have agreements with USDAW to modify,
and in some cases not apply certain regulations.
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This policy is subject to change from time to time so
please ensure you are reading the most up-to-date
version.
This policy applies to anyone who has a contract of
employment with Tesco in the UK.
If you are self-employed or employed by a contractor of
ours, we are not responsible for making sure you comply
with this policy, however we still encourage you to follow
the principles.
There are industry specific regulations about working
hours which apply to transport workers that we do not
cover in this policy. You will be classified as a transport
worker if you are a light goods vehicle driver, Dotcom
driver or chauffeur/ PA driver. You will not be categorised
as a transport worker if you are a fork lift truck driver. If
you would like more information please contact the policy
team at [email protected]

Store, Distribution and Customer Fulfilment Centre
Managers
Colleagues who are Work Level 3 and above
Children below school leaving age (if you are a child
your exact hours must have been agreed by the local
authority and a work permit must have been issued to
you)
Although we don’t specify an absolute minimum or
maximum number of hours that can be worked within one
shift, we do give a guideline. For productivity, health and
safety reasons and fairness to our colleagues, you
shouldn’t normally be contracted to work longer than 12
hours or less than 2 hours in one shift.
We do not encourage you to work your contracted hours
over 6 days, however in certain circumstances this may
be appropriate if agreed with your manager.
Office
If you’re a full time colleague in the office you will have a
basic working week of 36 hours unless your contract of
employment states otherwise. An example of the office 36
hour working week is as follows:
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
The Working Time Regulations and the Protection of
Young People at Work Regulations came into effect on 1
October 1998 in order to regulate working hours and
protect the health and safety of workers. The regulations
include the following:
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A restriction of working hours to a maximum of 4
8 hours per week on average over a 17 week
reference period
Minimum rest break entitlements
A minimum period of paid annual leave
Special protection to night workers
These regulations apply to all workers over minimum
school leaving age, however there are certain workers
who are ‘excluded’ from the 48 hour working week
restriction.
09:00 – 17:00
09:00 – 17:00
09:00 – 16:45
09:00 – 17:00
09:00 – 17:00
45 mins unpaid break
45 mins unpaid break
45 mins unpaid break
45 mins unpaid break
45 mins unpaid break
We work in a smart way in our Head Offices and this
means that you can informally flex your working day
around your role, the team and the business needs - this
could mean starting and finishing work at different times
on different days, changing from week to week, and
working in the best way to meet your objectives, the
needs of the team and your needs as an individual.
Stores
If you’re full time you’ll have a basic working week of 36.5
hours. You’ll agree your start and finish times at your
interview.
Distribution Centres
If you are full time your basic working week will be 36.5
hours unless your contract states otherwise. If your basic
Internal, Working Time Version 1, December 2015 – page 3
working week is 36.5 hours, it will normally be averaged
over 5 days, however there may be some limited
occasions where the hours you work are spread over 6
days.
You may be on an ‘annual hours’ contract which means
that your annual hours will not be averaged out per week.
This means that on some occasions you may work for 6
days continuously before taking a rest break.
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Normal time spent travelling to work
On call – time spent waiting for calls
Overnight stays in hotels on Tesco business
Take a sensible approach to estimating your hours and
the hours of any colleagues you manage. If you think your
working patterns may be at risk of breaching the 48 hour
weekly average you should contact your manager or
People Function.
If you need to provide an exact working calculation you
should
contact
the
policy
team
at
[email protected].
No you don’t. However, you are expected to take a
sensible approach to both your own hours and the hours
of any colleagues who you manage, by ensuring that
working patterns are not in breach of the regulations
detailed in this policy.
You should, in particular, ensure that you’re not regularly
working over 48 hours per week unless you have ‘opted
out’ of the regulations (for more detail on opting out,
please refer to paragraph 6 below). If your working week
is consistently in breach of the 48 hour maximum limit and
you have not opted out, you must talk to your manager
immediately to find ways of reducing your hours. This will
enable us to monitor your hours more closely to ensure
that you are not in breach of the regulation limits.
Young Workers
If you are a colleague above school leaving age but under
18, you may not work more than 40 hours in any week.
There is no provision for you to opt-out of the regulations
or average out your hours over 52 weeks. In addition, as
a young worker you can’t work more than eight paid
hours on any day.
Colleagues
employer
who
work
for
Tesco
and
another
You must make sure that your combined hours are on
average no more than 48 hours per week. If you think
they are more than this, you should sign an opt-out form.
Unless we think that, or you tell us that you may be in
breach of the regulations, we will not actively record your
working hours. However, we will keep any records we
hold for at least 2 years.
The regulations state that working time must not exceed
an average of 48 hours per week. We measure this
average over 52 weeks which run from 1 April to 31
March. If you’re a new starter in your first year of
employment, we measure your average over the number
of weeks remaining until 31 March.
Working time includes the following:
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Working time spent at your normal place of work
Any travel time over and above travelling to your
normal place of work
On call – time spent responding to calls
Any work carried out at home provided your manager
is aware and has agreed to this
If you don’t have a fixed place of work (e.g. most
Store Directors), travel from your home to your first
appointment and travel from your last appointment
back home
Yes you can, unless you are a young worker. Many of our
colleagues regularly work overtime, which takes them
over and above the 48 hour average working week. While
we discourage excessive working hours we accept that
you have the right to waive your rights to the 48 hour limit,
provided you sign the attached opt-out agreement which
confirms you understand the regulation and agree that it
does not apply to you. If you sign an opt-out, you are only
opting out of the 48 hour working week. You are not
opting out of any other parts of the regulations (for
example, minimum breaks).
If you’re a manager, be sensitive about how you
approach colleagues about signing opt-out agreements.
Colleagues must not feel pressurised to sign an opt-out.
If you decide to opt-out it is important that you do not risk
your own or your colleagues’ health or safety by working
excessively long hours. If you elect to opt-out of the 48
hour limit, we will still impose on you a maximum working
week of 60 hours. Under no circumstances are you
allowed to work in excess of 60 hours per week.
Can I opt back in?
Working time does not include:

Breaks of any kind
Yes, if you’ve opted out of the 48 hour working week you
can ‘opt back in’ by giving your manager notice in writing,
Internal, Working Time Version 1, December 2015 – page 4
using the attached opt-in form. We will make every effort
to make this change to your rota within 4 weeks, although
can take up to 13 weeks if there is a business need for us
to do this.
is unable to continue working nights, you must ensure
that you consider the Equality Act. This may involve
making some reasonable adjustments. Speak to your
People Manager for more guidance as necessary.
If you’re a manager, the maximum working week of 60
hours applies to you too. We care about your health and
safety and working in excess of 60 hours a week puts you
and other people at risk. If you regularly work more than
60 hours per week you must talk to your manager and
discuss how your working hours can be managed better.
Ongoing health assessments are voluntary. If you
manage colleagues who work nights, ensure that they’re
aware of their entitlement to health assessments and how
to find the form.
Night is the period between 11pm and 6am and there are
several additional protections for night workers. You’ll fall
within these protections if you normally work for 3 hours
or more between 11pm and 6am. While the odd night
shift will not make you a night worker, if you have a
regular pattern of working nights (one week on days
followed by one week on nights, for example) then you
will be classed as a night worker.
There are four regulations covering night workers in
addition to the standard regulations:
1.
2.
3.
4.
You’ll work an eight hour nightly shift average (over a
52 week reference period)
We will keep records of your actual hours worked
Any jobs which are especially hazardous, or involve
heavy physical work or particular mental strain will be
restricted to fixed eight hour shifts, and cannot be
averaged out over the 52 week reference period
You’re entitled to a free yearly health assessment
Young workers (under the age of 18) must not work after
11pm, or before 6am. If you’re a young worker and work
between 10pm and 11pm your contract must specifically
state this and you will not be able to start work before
7am on any day in that week.
You’re entitled to breaks while you’re at work, time off
between shifts and days off. We can’t make you work
during any of the statutory rest periods. Although you can
choose not to take your rest periods, we will make sure
that you have at least two days off over a two week
period.
Please remember that although you can choose to work
through a rest period or break, you have a responsibility
to take a sensible approach to your working hours and
not to risk your own or others’ health or safety. If you’re a
manager you must ensure that colleagues are not under
pressure to work through their breaks.
The legal minimum rest periods you are entitled to are:

A minimum break of 20 minutes for every 6 hours
worked
A minimum of 1 day off per week or 2 days off over a
two week period
A minimum of 11 hours uninterrupted rest per day –
we have agreed with USDAW to reduce this to a
minimum of 8 hours per day, where the business
requires, however compensatory rest for the
additional 3 hours must be given within 4 weeks.
We’ve agreed with USDAW that the first three regulations
above will not apply to you because the nature of our
business doesn’t require these levels of protection. We do
still have an obligation to keep records of who our night
workers are so it is essential that colleagues be placed on
the right job code and correct payroll department, to
ensure they are easily identifiable.

The fourth regulation still applies, as follows:
Rest breaks (unpaid) for store colleagues will be within
the following ranges, as agreed between you and your
line manager:
Free Health Assessment
If you are a new starter working nights or a colleague
transferring to working nights you’ll have an initial health
assessment. You’re also then entitled to a free health
assessment on an ongoing basis every year.
Please refer to the attached Night Worker Health
Assessment Process for more detailed information on
how to get a health assessment.
If you are no longer able to work nights, for example due
to a medical condition, we will try to transfer you to a
position on days. Your pay will then change to that of
colleagues on day shifts. If you manage a colleague who
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Young workers:
4 – 4 ¼ hour shift
4.5 – 5 ¾ hour shift
6 – 7 ¾ hours shift
8 – 9 hour shift
15 min break
30 min continuous break
30 – 60 min break (either
continuous or split)
45 min break (continuous or split
1 x 30 and 1 x 15)
Adult colleagues:
Less than 4 hour shift
4 – 5 ¾ hour shift
6 – 7 ¾ hour shift
Internal, Working Time Version 1, December 2015 – page 5
No break entitlement
15 min break
30 – 60 min break (either
8 – 8 ¾ hour shift
9 – 11 ¾ hour shift
continuous or split)
45 – 90 min break (either
continuous or split)
90 min break (either continuous
or split 1 x 30 or 2 x 15 min and
1 hour
Remember, transport workers are covered by industry
specific
guidelines
(http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2005/639/pdfs/uksi_20
050639_en.pdf) – please contact the policy team at
[email protected] if you need any more
information.
Young Workers
Young workers have different rules and there is a
checklist for managers to use attached. If you’re a
manager, remind a young worker of their entitlements and
ask them to sign the document.
If you are a young worker you are entitled to the following:
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A 30 minute break for every 4.5 hours worked
A weekly rest period of 48 hours in each 7 day period
– this should be continuous if possible (days off for
young workers can’t be averaged over 14 days as
they can with adults)
Daily rest of 12 consecutive hours
The working week begins at the start of the first shift
worked on or after a Sunday.
Your statutory paid minimum holiday entitlement is 5.6
weeks per year (pro-rata) or 28 days including bank
holidays.
maternity, adoption or shared parental leave or long term
sick leave and therefore are not able to take all of your
holiday entitlement, we will also pay you in-lieu at the end
of the holiday year. However, if you want to carry it over
to the new holiday year, please let your manager know.
Notice to take up leave
You need to give a minimum of four weeks’ notice in
writing to take holiday, although if your manager agrees
to your leave you don’t need to. We may refuse this
request if your leave cannot be accommodated. If we
decide to refuse your request we will do so within 7 days
of your notice. This is to allow for situations where other
colleagues have already given notice to take leave at the
same time.
We may also give you notice of when you must take
leave, provided we give you a minimum of 4 weeks’
advance notice. We may for example want to use this
approach to allocate leave which has not been booked,
where there is a limited period for you to take leave.
Please ensure that you talk to your manager well before
the end of the holiday year to make sure all of your
holiday entitlement can be planned in.
Gross Misconduct
Paid annual leave is a statutory right under the
regulations, and it is unlawful for us to withhold holiday
pay for statutory annual leave, even in the case of gross
misconduct.
Holiday Policy
Disability Discrimination – 1.3
Children and Young Workers – 1.10
Statutory leave must be taken and cannot be paid in-lieu
or carried over into the next holiday year.
The Tesco holiday year runs from 1 April to 31 March.
Payment in lieu
If you leave during the holiday year you can be paid inlieu for any holiday which has not been taken (pro-rata
what you have earned to date). If you have been on
Working Time Calculation
Voluntary Opt-out form
Voluntary Opt Back In form
Young worker checklist
Night worker health assessment documentation
Internal, Working Time Version 1, December 2015 – page 6
1
14th December
New policy
This document shouldn’t be shared with anyone externally without permission from your
Director. This policy and any associated documentation remains the property of Tesco and
should be returned if requested.
Internal, Working Time Version 1, December 2015 – page 7