The definition of working hours ?

Working hours is the period of time that an individual spends at paid work.
Time spent doing unpaid work such as housework or caring for children is
not considered part of working hours. The maximum numbers of working
hours a week is regulated by law in many countries, and this sometimes
stipulates daily rest periods, and the rest period between each day of work.

History of the struggle to limit working hours

With the industrial revolution, work ceased to be seasonal and limited by
daylight hours, as it had in the past. Factory owners were reluctant to leave
their machinery idle, and in the 19th century, it was common for working
hours to be between 14-16 hours a day, 6 days a week. These long hours
were enforced by factory owners keen to maximize their profits. Even
children worked long hours in the textile factories, mines and as domestic
helps in houses of the wealthy.

Reformers took up the issue of the working hours from the end of the 18th
century onwards. Their campaigns resulted in the passage of legislation in
1802 and 1819 regulating the working hours of children in workhouses and
textile factories to 12 hours a day. However, this legislation was largely
ineffective, as there were no mechanisms in place for inspecting factories
and punishing factory owners who flouted the law. Over the next decades,
there were further pieces of legislation restricting the working hours of
children. The limits set by the regulations were not necessarily followed in
the short term, however, legal reforms did have an impact on workers’
conditions over a period of time.

In 1833, the Factory Act banned children under 9 from working in the textile
industry, and the working hours of 10-13 year olds was limited to 48 hours
a week, while 14-18 year olds were limited to 69 hours a week, and 12
hours a day. Government factory inspectors were appointed to enforce the
law.

Extract from the Report of the Chief Inspector of Factories, 1851:

“Information was last winter given to Mr. Jones, on which he could perfectly
rely, that it was the regular practice in Mr. Bracewell's mill to begin work,
with young persons and women, at half-past five in the morning; but he was
told at the same time that his coming by the usual road to Colne would be
of no use, because arrangements had been made by which information was
given as soon as an Inspector appeared within some miles of the factory. Mr.
Jones, determined that so gross a violation of the law should, if possible, be
checked, took very effective steps to ascertain the correctness of the
charges, by going in the night by a circuitous route, accompanied by police
officers, and arriving in the neighbourhood of the mill at five in the morning.
Soon afterwards the lights appeared in the windows, and on entering the
mill, a little after half-past five, he found the machinery in full operation,
with young persons and women at work. Some made their escape, fearing
no doubt, by past experience, the consequences of being produced as
evidence, but he got the names and addresses of several.”

However, only four inspectors were expected to cover all of England, and
this law only applied to the textile industry. The industries not covered
included iron and coal mines, gas works, shipyards, construction, match
factories, nail factories, and the business of chimney sweeping. Over the
next few years, there were further pieces of legislation, which by 1847
limited working hours for all children under 18 and for women working in
the textile industry to 10 hours a day. The 1864 Factory Act extended the
regulations to factories other than textiles and coal mines.

During the early years of the 20th century, trade unions and reformers
continued to draw attention to the social and health costs of long hours and
the economic value of leisure. In the first quarter of the twentieth century,
the eight-hour day and the 48-hour week became an important issue for
 workers and trade unions. This issue came to prominence in other
industrialised countries during this period. In 1919, the International Labour
Organisation in its first convention, the Hours of Work (Industry) Convention
(No. 1), recommended maximum working hours of ‘eight hours a day and
48 hours a week’.

As a result of the campaigning around this issue, The Factories Act 1937
limited the working hours of women and young people (under 18) to no
more than 9 on any day and 48 in any week. The hours of adult men still
remained unregulated.

It is interesting that more than 90 years after the first ILO convention on
working hours, the ideal of a maximum of 48 working hours a week has not
been completely realised even in some industrialised countries of the world
today. The European Union has agreed directives to limit working hours, but
these have long been opposed by the UK government.

The law on working hours in the UK (2013)

The European Union Working Time Directive was introduced in 1993 to work
alongside member states’ employment laws. It puts a limit on the number of
hours that should be worked each week and specifies how long breaks
should be, as well as regulates night-time working.

Under this directive, employees have the right to:

 A maximum working week of 48 hours;

 A rest period of 11 consecutive hours a day;
 A rest break when the working day is longer than six hours;
 A minimum of one rest day per week;
 The statutory right to four weeks' holiday.
 This directive allows EU member states to opt out of the directive, and
the UK is the only country to make widespread use of the opt-out
provisions. Employees can formally agree to waive their right to work a
 maximum of 48 hours a week, and a refusal to do so cannot entail
negative consequences. Since 2006, the opt-out is capped at 60 hours
but the hours worked is calculated over a 3 month period - hence a
worker can work over 60 hours for short periods of time.

The limit to working hours does not apply to some categories of

workers including managing executives with control over their
decisions, workers in the armed forces, emergency services, domestic
workers in a private household and police (in some circumstances).
Workers who can’t opt out include workers in the road transport
industry, eg delivery drivers, workers on ships or boats and airline
staff.

 Limitations and directions for the future

 Given Britain’s opt out from the EU directive, British workers have
limited legal mechanisms to enforce the 48 hour limit to the working
week. Workers can face explicit pressure to work longer, and often the
culture of the workplace can implicitly contribute to long working
hours so that employers may only reward those who put in long hours
at work through promotions and bonuses. This often makes it difficult
for workers to limit their working hours.
 There is also a link between wages and hours of work, which affects
the working hours of those who are low paid. Workers who are paid at
the minimum wage or sometimes below the minimum wage are often
forced to work long hours, and sometimes in two or three jobs
simultaneously, to earn enough to meet their essential needs.