Ahh :thumb:
I've always been out and about on the tools....mcdees for breckie , cafes , petrol stations etc etc....all programmed into the sat nav :lol1:
I was starting to think you need permission off someone to go for a leak

wow - found this thread to be a bit of an eye opener if i am honest. I had some guys that would take the piss starting work at 0800 and going to the canteen for breakfast taking about 30 minutes, an hour for lunch and a 20 minute tea break in the afternoon, I had to reign them in a bit, but was still generous when compared with some of the regimented details above.

I could have brew after brew after brew at my desk, if my personal mobile rings no-one will object if i take the call, informal meetings are had over a coffee in the canteen, depending on how much tea or coffee has gone in will determine the frequency of visits to the gents - where hand washing is mandatory.

Never thought of these things as perks or privileges before, I could not work in the environments described above. How are smoking breaks dealt with out of curiosity?

Smoking breaks? In the factory there are none. If they want to smoke they can go outside on tea break or lunch. On my time they dont get the chance to smoke.

It might sound harsh but we, like a lot of small businesses are struggling to survive. I cannot afford to lose time in a day letting people pop out for a 5 minute fag break every 40 minutes.

Even at our place smoking breaks are either taken out of their lunch time allowance of they have none.

You did in my old warehouse job due to high value security!

That is only right. I smoke and where I am, you are allowed to go out on your allocated breaks, that is it. No extra quick breaks and tbh, it wouldn't be fair on other workers who don't smoke. The one thing our place will do is, say someone isn't working 8hrs, so doesn't get as many breaks, they have allowed them to split their break if they want to, so instead of taking half an hour they can take 2x15 minutes or 1x20 and 1x10.

For what it is worth, we're not even a small business.

You would get used to it if you had to do it. I've worked at my place for several years now and it's just how it is and you get on with it, although, I have it good compared to some.

Like I said earlier, we're free to use the loo when we need to (within reason) although that almost became a problem as basically somebody was believed to be taking the piss (pardon the pun) with toilet breaks and their shift manager tried to get it so that toilet breaks couldn't be taken in their shift (most of them work 3/4 hours so don't get a break). I'm not sure that would be legal.

As for drinks, no drinks for us other than before a shift or on breaks, but I assume most places are like that other than office based work?? They have been flexible when we've had hot weather (our air-con always fails:mad:) and allowed us to pop downstairs for a drink, but it has to just be a quick drink and back to work, not 5/10 minutes plus.

Kin hell, i can make a mug of coffee, and by the time ive got to the living room door from the kitchen (8 steps) its finished :)

When i first started work at 16 , we got a 10 minute teabreak in the morning, which my manager used to push out to 15 mins... unless the big boss cam in, then it would be a sharp move to pack away ;)

In those 15 minutes, i could drink a cup of coffee, eat two crusty cheese rolls, 2 cream donuts, and a good stab at a lardy cake, and read the paper too...

(lots of hearvy manual work....lots of calories to keep the fires burning :D:D)

Mart

you must have an asbetos lined mouth :lol1:

Just be thankful you have a job, and get on with it!

Yes Sir! ;)

i nip to the loo 5 mins before the break and stick the kettle on an wash my hands, simples. i am the supervisor mind you but im pretty easy on my guys as we lug heavy bits of glass all night and as long as the work gets done im happy. but as said you have to keep an eye on it as they take the piss if you let them.

Thats my management coming out in me, and chasing people back from tea breaks for the last 15 years :)

Drink a cup of tea before you start work and just get on with it. You only work until 2pm ffs and you are moaning that you need 15 mins for your tea to cool down and then additional time to rinse a mug??!

This is why people employ eastern europeans

With all due respect to the OP and he is a top bloke I have to agree with Ding above. I've had to work twelve hours straight with just a ten minute break a few times. I wasn't forced to do it but it meant I could meet the deadline and get the job done. When I'm at work I'm there to work period, not sit for ages waiting for my tea to cool. As Ding says those coming from outside the UK are used to working long and hard for little recompense. Believe you me work in the UK by and large is a cushy number.:)

As the law says, if you work over 6 hours you are entitled to a 20 minute break. That is a break away from work. That 20 minutes includes any hand washing time.
An employer would be pushing things if they prevented you using the toilet a reasonable amount of times or for a reasonable time each visit. But nothing is specified.

You are also expected to start work at the specified time and finish work at the specified time.

For info i stated that i couldn't drink a cuppa in 15 mins-for that reason i dont have cups of tea during tea breaks and haven't done for ages-it didn't mean that i wanted a longer tea break so i could allow it to cool down! and i have not rinsed a cup out at work for over 20 years-even if i was given an hour for a tea break i'd still not bother doing that-god no-all that old tea in bottom of cup adds to flavour :D

My original post was more to the point of asking whether washing up time could be included in the time of you official tea break or not.

I am ok with keeping to official tea breaks etc but just wish managers could show common sense sometimes when enforcing rules as a happy workforce is a productive workforce.

Happy smilies all round :D:D:D

We must have been missing out quite badly then.

We had to arrive at work 1.5 hours before take off, do all the navigation, fuel and take off planning, do the pre flight checks, wind the aircraft up and take off on route for what could have been a 9 hour trip to Calgary perhap's with a stop for fuel.We would get inflight meals but at the same time would have to monitor the aircraft or operate all the radio calls to air traffic.

Having landed it would take anything up to an hour before clearing the aircraft!

No one seemed to complain though!

Les

A clockwork plane????

Yes, however not many of us get to do loop da loop at work Les :)

Keeps the mind alive anyway!

Les :D