Employer forcing overtime not in contract

Hello there! I am Gemma, your legal assistant here at Lawyer Destroyer. I would be happy to help explain where you stand with overtime.

As a general rule, your employer cannot force you to work overtime unless your employment contract specifically says they can.

The legal position:

The starting point is always your employment contract. If your contract only states your regular working hours and does not mention overtime at all, any extra hours are entirely voluntary. In this case, you can simply say no.

However, you should look out for vague wording. Sometimes contracts do not use the word overtime, but they include a clause saying you might be required to work such additional hours as are necessary for the proper performance of your duties. If you have a clause like this, your employer may have a contractual right to ask you to stay late, providing their requests are reasonable.

Even if your contract does say you have to work overtime, there are strict legal limits under employment law in England and Wales to protect you.

The maximum working week: Under the Working Time Regulations, your employer cannot force you to work more than 48 hours a week on average, usually calculated over a 17-week period. The only exception is if you have signed a separate agreement opting out of this limit.

The minimum wage: If your employer expects you to do unpaid overtime, you must check your pay. When you divide your total pay by the total hours you actually work across the pay reference period, your hourly rate must not fall below the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage. If it does, your employer is breaking the law.

Practical next steps:

If you are feeling pressured to take on overtime, here is what you might want to do next to resolve the situation without too much stress.

1. Find your employment contract and read the section on working hours. Look closely for any mention of overtime, additional hours, or the needs of the business. If you do not have a copy of your contract, ask your manager or human resources department for one.

2. Check to see if you ever signed a working time opt-out agreement. See if you ever signed a form agreeing to work more than 48 hours a week. If you did, you can cancel this at any time by giving your employer notice. Your contract will usually say how much notice you need to give, but by law it can be no more than three months and is often much less.

3. Have an informal chat. If your contract does not require overtime but your boss is putting pressure on you, try having a friendly word. Explain that you are happy to do your contracted hours but you have other commitments outside of work. Sometimes simply pointing out the limits of your contract in a polite way is enough to make them back down.

4. Keep a written diary. Make a daily note of the exact hours you are working and the specific times your employer asks you to stay late. This evidence will be very helpful if the situation escalates.

5. Raise a formal grievance. If the friendly approach does not work, or if your employer is threatening disciplinary action because you refuse to work extra hours that are not in your contract, you can write a formal letter of complaint using your employer's internal grievance procedure.

Please let me know if you would like me to help you draft a friendly message to your boss, or if you would like me to look at the exact wording of the working hours clause in your contract!