“I am thinking of taking on a school leaver as an Apprentice but I’ve been told that their working hours are limited and they can only work 4 days a week, is this true?”
…Er, well, sort of.
The law sets maximum working hours and mandatory rest for all workers, including apprentices. That said, there are no special rules for apprentices in particular but there are for young people (defined below).
Unless the member has entered into a different agreement either with the apprentice or the college or both, the maximum hours any employee (or apprentice) can work will be set by the Working Time Regulations 1998 and depend on their age.
The issue here is not that the worker is an apprentice, but that they are a school leaver.
Young Workers
Normally the maximum working week is 48 hours. However, if the worker is over school leaving age (16 by the end of the summer holidays) but under 18, they are legally classed as a ‘Young Worker’. This will reduce the maximum daily hours and weekly hours they can work, whilst also increasing their mandatory daily and weekly rest breaks.
Furthermore, whilst workers over 18 can opt out of the 48 hours week maximum, Young Workers cannot. This will result in different maximum working time for workers under 18 and workers 18 and over.
Currently, young workers must not work more than:
· 8 hours a day, and
· 40 hours a week
Young workers are also entitled to a minimum:
· 30-minute break if their working day is longer than 4.5 hours;
· 12 hours’ rest in any 24-hour period in which they work (for example, between one working day and the next);
· 48 hours’ (2 days) rest taken together, each week or, if there is a good business reason why this is not possible, at least 36 hours’ rest, with the remaining 12 hours taken as soon as possible afterwards.
Whilst an 8-hour day may be less than daily working hours for a worker over 18, working time does not include any mandatory breaks.
Example Work Week
Where the Young Worker has an hour for lunch, this will mean a working day of 8.30 am to 5.30 pm Monday to Friday is legal. If you want the apprentice to work Saturdays however, they will need to have Monday off in lieu.
Don’t forget, this advice is general in nature and will need to be tailored to any one particular situation. As an RMI member you have access to the RMI Legal advice line, as well as a number of industry experts for your assistance. Should you find yourself in the situation above, contact us at any stage for advice and assistance as appropriate.
Motor Industry Legal Services
Motor Industry Legal Services (MILS Solicitors) provides fully comprehensive legal advice and representation to UK motor retailers for one annual fee. It is the only law firm in the UK which specialises in motor law and motor trade law. MILS currently advises over 1,000 individual businesses within the sector as well as the Retail Motor Industry Federation (RMI) and its members.
