Refusing overtime over 48-hour limit

Hello! I am Gemma, a legal assistant at Lawyer Destroyer, and I would be happy to help you with this.

The short answer is yes, you generally have the right to refuse overtime if it pushes you over the 48-hour limit, as long as you have not signed an agreement to opt out of this rule.

The legal position:

In England and Wales, the law sets a limit on the amount of time you can be required to work. This is set at an average of 48 hours per week.

It is important to know that this 48-hour limit is not usually counted on a strict week-by-week basis. Instead, it is normally worked out as an average over a 17-week period. This means you could legally work 60 hours one week and 40 hours the next, as long as your overall average across 17 weeks stays at 48 hours or less.

Employers cannot force you to work more than this average limit, even if your employment contract says that overtime is compulsory. If you refuse to work beyond the legal limit, you are protected by law from being dismissed or treated unfairly at work for doing so.

The opt-out agreement:

The main exception to this rule is if you have signed a working time opt-out agreement. Employers often include these in a new starter pack or within the employment contract itself. By signing it, you legally agree to work more than the 48-hour average limit.

If you did sign one, the good news is that you can cancel it at any time. You just need to give your employer notice in writing. By law, you must give at least 7 days notice, but your specific agreement might require you to give up to 3 months notice.

Important things to check:

To understand exactly where you stand, it would be helpful to look at a few documents. First, check your employment contract to see if your overtime is described as voluntary or compulsory. Second, see if you can find out whether you ever signed a 48-hour opt-out agreement when you started the job.

Practical next steps:

1. Check your documents. Read through your employment contract and ask your HR department for a copy of your file if you are unsure whether you signed an opt-out agreement.

2. Cancel the opt-out if necessary. If you did sign one and no longer want to work those hours, write a simple email to your manager or HR department stating that you are cancelling your working time opt-out agreement. Make sure to check how much notice you need to give.

3. Have an informal chat. Very often, a quick, polite conversation with your manager is the best and least stressful way to resolve this. You can gently remind them of the 48-hour legal limit and explain that you are unable to take on the extra shifts.

4. Raise a formal grievance. If your employer continues to pressure you to work over the legal limit, or is threatening disciplinary action for refusing, you can raise a formal written grievance using your company grievance procedure.

I hope this helps make your rights around working hours much clearer. Please just let me know if you need any help looking at your contract or wording an email to your employer.