NHS: Working Hours
(asked on 24th April 2020) - View Source
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the effect of the suspension of the European Working Time Directive on the physical and mental wellbeing of the NHS workforce; and what the timeframe is for the reinstatement of that Directive.
The Working Time Regulations 1998 remain in force during the COVID-19 pandemic and include flexibilities in the regulations to vary or exclude some of the restrictions in special circumstances and done so by collective or workforce agreement. Guidance is available at the following link:
The Working Time (Coronavirus) (Amendment) Regulations 2020 allows carryover of leave and payment in lieu on termination if leave cannot be taken during the pandemic. This enables staff to carry over up to 20 days (pro-rated for part-time staff) of annual leave in the following two leave years.
Staff rest and recuperation is vital and employers must monitor staff annual leave and ensure that their staff have enough rest to maintain their physical and mental wellbeing.