No Tea Breaks?

[dunketh]

Disgusting.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2009 ... tea-breaks

Worth a national strike on its own.

[grumpygrandad]

surley our laws state you must have a break at certain intertervals, is that still the case,,grandad

[croft]

Yup thats the problem grandad, "our" laws state that an employee must be able to take a break after working for so many hrs. However if that company is from a different country they may have a different set of rules. Hence the problem! E.U membership may be well and good but until there is a level playing field these sort of problems will keep on arising. Employing someone these days is an absolute nightmare!

[grumpygrandad]

hello well they could start by bricking channel tunnel up,,grandad

[dp]

I don't fully understand this. Is there a UK law that states there must be paid tea breaks or is there a union agreement that states this? If it's the law it would apply to all people working on UK soil - or?

Or is it a union agreement and by using non UK union workers the companies have legally sidestepped the union obligation?

[croft]

If your firm is based in the uk then you have to follow the uk guidelines (i.e the law!) regarding employees. As the guidelines stand, anyone employed by a uk employer even part-time is entitled to a break after working a certain period of time. (i dont have the exact figures to hand)
However the problem arises when a company who is based say in Italy, wins a contract to work in the uk, they will be following the laws layed down by the Italian government and not the uk. Hence the problem. Its like foriegn lorry drivers coming over to the uk and driving without breaks. they are not resident in the uk so dont have to abide by uk employment rules. Crazy I know and certainly unfair to to all uk firms.

[toginthemog]

AsI am involved with driving I am sure that as regards drivers hours they have to stick to the rule book same as our drivers that is why they have huge purges on the forien drivers and sometimes they go straight to court on the day as they know they will never catch them again in the country

[mike.perry]

All European drivers have to abide by driving and tacho regs which are getting a nightmare to understand with the different rest and off duty periods, max working hours and making up for extra time worked within a set period. With digital tachographs there is even less chance of manipulating the rules and exceeding 40 and 50 mph speed limits are recorded with GPS systems in the trucks.
I'm glad that I have retired and I hope that the pleasure of Morris Minor driving is never ruined by electronic tags or other gadgets.

[dp]

However the problem arises when a company who is based say in Italy, wins a contract to work in the uk, they will be following the laws layed down by the Italian government and not the uk. Hence the problem. Its like foriegn lorry drivers coming over to the uk and driving without breaks. they are not resident in the uk so dont have to abide by uk employment rules. Crazy I know and certainly unfair to to all uk firms.

This doesn't sound right. So if there was a country where for example lorry drivers were allowed to have no brakes and breaks, and to barge cars off the road then they would be allowed to do the same here?

[croft]

One of my friends runs a transport recrutment agency and operates 10 lorrys himself. He is always going on about the unfair regulations that foreign transport companies can use. Its a lawyers dream, so many loopholes that can be exploited! At the end of the day if we are a part of some "union" all rules should apply throught the union but I cant see that ever happening. Britain seems to play strictly by the rules but almost every other country seems to be able to bend them to suit itself!

[PSL184]

When we managed a pub a few years back now the legal obligation was to allow 20 min break in 10 hours. If employees worked less than 10 hour shifts they couldn't legally demand a break. We, of course let them take breaks as we felt the law was ridiculous !!!

[mike.perry]

All EU countries have to operate to the same driving and vehicle regs.
Whether foreign drivers think that they can get away with ignoring the law is another matter.
The advantage foreign haulage companies have is that they can fill up with cheap diesel on the other side of the channel and do all their driving over here without paying any road tax (apart from the odd bridge toll) and then fill up again on the continent.
British firms of course get hammered for expensive fuel over here, have to pay an exorbitant amont of road tax and then get clobbered for autoroute tolls in France and other countries.
Incidentaly most trucks are not allowed on the road at the weekends in Germany.

[ferret76]

I work for the Commonwealth of Australia (Federal Govt.) and am entitled to a 40min break every 5 hrs. Doesn't stop us having morno's and arvo's though. We don't get many foreign lorry drivers here either

[dp]

I work for the Commonwealth of Australia (Federal Govt.) and am entitled to a 40min break every 5 hrs. Doesn't stop us having morno's and arvo's though. We don't get many foreign lorry drivers here either

Are there many Minors in Darwin, what's the climate - is it hot and dry or hot and wet? I've been to Queensland a few times and only ever seen one.

Did you do a big write up on your ferret on the web somewhere? I'm sure I read about a restoration in Oz a few years' ago.

[ferret76]

[quote="dp
Are there many Minors in Darwin, what's the climate - is it hot and dry or hot and wet? I've been to Queensland a few times and only ever seen one.

Did you do a big write up on your ferret on the web somewhere? I'm sure I read about a restoration in Oz a few years' ago.[/quote]

I always keep an eye out for Minors, including mine I think there is about 7 or 8 on the road. Not bad considering how big the Northern Territory is and how few people live here.

We only have 2 seasons here, Wet and Dry. May to October is the dry, 31 degrees every day and 30% humidity. November to April is the wet, 33 degrees every day and 98% humidity. Hence the regular smoko breaks. That's also when the Monsoon rolls in so it absolutely buckets down for days on end plus we get the occasional tropical cyclone, Cyclone Tracy is probably the most famous as it destroyed the whole town. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyclone_Tracy

That wasn't my Ferret on the web, mine is more of a long term, on-going affair. It runs well but isn't 'concourse'. No point with an AFV!

[beechford]

hey ferret be careful what you say re foriegn drivers only today on the ABC.they discussed Tongan friut pickers on mainland oz and dont kiwis count?