Breaks & Walking Time to Rest Area

[nataddick]

There is a strong rumour (validated by a couple of CWU Reps) that the management at our unit intend to limit the breaks for most staff working a 39 hour week to 40 minutes to include walking time to the canteen from January 2016 !

I know the 40 minutes is nationally agreed as a break period. However, we have historically been given an extra 5 mins walking time each way on top on the break, as the canteen is a variable distance from our normal place of work dependent on where we are located within the building. It seems the CWU has agreed to this and the members have not yet been told.

Many questions need to be answered of the CWU locally before they are held accountable to members amongst which are :-

What is policy on break times and walking to canteen ?
What authority/rules/regulations/constitution are the CWU Reps required to follow ?
Why have members not been a) consulted and b) notified of a change
How can members respond to a decision that appears to have already been agreed by management and CWU locally ?

I would be particularly interested to know how other units treat smoke breaks,ad-hoc breaks and how non-smokers counter the breaks taken by their smoking colleagues.

[wannabeek]

Probably irrelevant info because the rules of 'normal' jobs don't usually apply to RM but in every job I've had previous to this one your break started from the second you walked away from your workstation and ended when you got back to it.

It's not relevant where I am now as there is no canteen, just a sandwich in your backpack.

[halfull]

delivery really is a million miles away from mail centres. Kind of like 2 totally different companies.
Wish all i had to worry about at work was losing 5 mins of walking to my break

[Rumple]

It sounds like the Mail Centre is the place to be.

[CAMPINGBLUNDERER]

I'm still amazed that we get paid breaks within our hours , it's the only company that I have worked in that does.

I wouldn't be surprised if RM try's to use this time in the future and our breaks will be unpaid ones. It will go down well with the shareholders and the regulator as " efficiency savings " , Joe Public won't care as it will just make us the same as them.

[GT750rider]

It sounds like the Mail Centre is the place to be.

It most certainly is. I worked on delivery for 30 years, then moved to the local Mail Centre, got a job 600 driving, and never looked back. Next to no pressure, and with 600 driving ( using a tachograph of course ), management's arms are somewhat tied, as they can't go against the tacho rules.
When your shift time ends, you go home, - simple as that. No nonsense such as oh, it's heavy today, I expect you to go over your time ( and have to go through hoops to get paid for it ). Just ask your mail centre driver if he / she likes their job.

[meercat]

delivery really is a million miles away from mail centres. Kind of like 2 totally different companies.
Wish all i had to worry about at work was losing 5 mins of walking to my break

Did he say that's all he was worried about?

Do you actually think because he is questioning the process behind this decision (which could see him having less than his full break in the canteen) that his job is easy?

You have a very poor attitude towards you fellow worker comrade.

[bogstandard]

There is a strong rumour (validated by a couple of CWU Reps) that the management at our unit intend to limit the breaks for most staff working a 39 hour week to 40 minutes to include walking time to the canteen from January 2016 !

I know the 40 minutes is nationally agreed as a break period. However, we have historically been given an extra 5 mins walking time each way on top on the break, as the canteen is a variable distance from our normal place of work dependent on where we are located within the building. It seems the CWU has agreed to this and the members have not yet been told.

Many questions need to be answered of the CWU locally before they are held accountable to members amongst which are :-

What is policy on break times and walking to canteen ?
What authority/rules/regulations/constitution are the CWU Reps required to follow ?
Why have members not been a) consulted and b) notified of a change
How can members respond to a decision that appears to have already been agreed by management and CWU locally ?

I would be particularly interested to know how other units treat smoke breaks,ad-hoc breaks and how non-smokers counter the breaks taken by their smoking colleagues.

your 40 mins break is 40 mins for you to dispose of as you see fit.
it sounds as though your reps are abiding by the national agreement, there are in The Way Forward "grace breaks" but these are workload permitting, sound as though workload no longer permits. With regards to notifying you of change none has taken place because you said it yourself "rumours".

[halfull]

delivery really is a million miles away from mail centres. Kind of like 2 totally different companies.
Wish all i had to worry about at work was losing 5 mins of walking to my break

Did he say that's all he was worried about?

Do you actually think because he is questioning the process behind this decision (which could see him having less than his full break in the canteen) that his job is easy?

You have a very poor attitude towards you fellow worker comrade.

i did not say thats all he has to worry about, i said i wish that was all I had to worry about. Also where do i say he has an easy job? read before you type. I pointed out that delivery is a million miles away from mail centre work which anyone who has done both will tell you.

[maximus12]

I'm still amazed that we get paid breaks within our hours , it's the only company that I have worked in that does.

I've always had paid breaks where i have worked, usually 15 minutes in the morning and 15 in the afternoon, so 30 minutes a day total and an unpaid lunch break so not too different to our 40 minute break per day. As someone else said the break has always started the second you stop working.

[meercat]

delivery really is a million miles away from mail centres. Kind of like 2 totally different companies.
Wish all i had to worry about at work was losing 5 mins of walking to my break

Did he say that's all he was worried about?

Do you actually think because he is questioning the process behind this decision (which could see him having less than his full break in the canteen) that his job is easy?

You have a very poor attitude towards you fellow worker comrade.

i did not say thats all he has to worry about, i said i wish that was all I had to worry about. Also where do i say he has an easy job? read before you type. I pointed out that delivery is a million miles away from mail centre work which anyone who has done both will tell you.

That's literally BS. You know what you meant. Why did you roll the eyes then?

Think before YOU type.