Advice from an HR consultant in Nottingham on what counts as a breach of the Working Time Regulations and where small businesses are most exposed.
If you run a small business, your rotas rarely stay the same. Shifts change for sickness, people cover busy periods, and extra hours get added to keep things moving. It feels normal day to day, until a claim, accident, or dispute exposes gaps you did not realise were there.
Most working time breaches are not deliberate. They build up quietly. Hours creep up, breaks get shortened, and records become patchy. The risk sits with the employer. When a breach comes to light, it can mean claims, fines, backdated payments, and disruption to your rotas. If records are weak, your ability to defend the business is reduced.
Below is a clear overview of what counts as a breach, where small businesses usually go wrong, and what you can do now.
Why Working Time Regulations matter
These rules protect employees and employers. When they are breached, the legal and financial exposure sits with your business. That can include:
tribunal claims or other disputes
fines and backdated payments
higher costs and operational disruption
a weaker defence if there is an incident or claim
Treating working time as a paperwork task leaves you exposed. A small amount of attention now can prevent much bigger problems later.
Working hours: what to know
Most workers must not work more than an average of 48 hours per week over a 17-week period. This only changes if there is a valid opt-out or a lawful exception applies.
Common breaches include:
someone regularly working above the 48-hour average with no opt-out
overtime pushing averages too high because hours are not monitored
failing to keep adequate records to show compliance
Poor or missing timesheets weaken your position. If you cannot show how hours were tracked, it becomes much harder to defend a claim.
Practical examples include warehouse workers doing regular 52-hour weeks during peak periods with no opt-out, or managers assuming salaried staff are exempt and stopping time tracking.
Rest breaks: rules and risks
There are three types of rest to manage.
Rest during the working day
A 20-minute uninterrupted break is required if someone works more than six hours. Skipping breaks, expecting staff to stay available, or regularly shortening breaks are breaches.
Daily rest
Workers should have 11 consecutive hours between shifts. Short turnarounds or interrupted rest are common problem areas.
Weekly rest
Workers are entitled to 24 hours’ rest per week or 48 hours per fortnight. Small teams with tight cover often struggle with this.
Ignoring rest rules increases risk and weakens your defence if fatigue is linked to an incident.
Holiday entitlement and pay
All workers are entitled to 5.6 weeks’ paid holiday.
Common breaches include:
giving less than the minimum entitlement
calculating holiday pay incorrectly for people with irregular hours, overtime, or commission
making it difficult for staff to take their leave
Examples include sales staff being paid basic pay only during holiday, or mistakes calculating holiday for part-year workers. These errors frequently lead to claims and backdated payments.
Night work rules
Night workers are subject to stricter limits:
no more than eight hours in any 24-hour period on average
no more than 48 hours per week on average
no opt-out from these limits
a health assessment must be offered
Breaches usually arise from poor monitoring, missing records, or failing to offer health checks. Record keeping is especially important where night work is used.
Why small businesses get caught out
Most breaches are unintentional and driven by everyday pressure, such as:
last-minute rota changes
seasonal peaks and staff shortages
long hours that are not recorded
on-call time treated as rest
incomplete handwritten timesheets
assuming salaried staff are exempt
Good intentions do not remove responsibility. The business remains accountable.
Practical steps to reduce risk
You do not need to overhaul everything at once. Start with the basics that make the biggest difference:
keep accurate records of hours, breaks, and night work
check who is working long hours and whether valid opt-outs are in place
review holiday pay calculations for irregular hours, overtime, or commission
scan rotas for short turnarounds and missed daily rest
review night work arrangements and offer health assessments
If your sector has specific arrangements, sense-check any changes against those rules.
How an HR consultant can help
An HR consultant can support you by:
reviewing working time practices and rotas
identifying gaps in compliance and record keeping
updating simple processes and templates managers will use
putting safeguards in place so hours and breaks are logged properly
This reduces the risk of claims, protects cashflow, and keeps operations running smoothly.
We cover the whole of England.
Areas we cover near Nottingham include:
Retford
Worksop
Beeston
Arnold
Derby
Mansfield
Carlton
Long Eaton
Newark-on-Trent