Leaving Your Desk At Work

[Mike25]

Is there a law in the UK about how many times you can leave your desk at work? I mean for health and safety reason like staring at a screen for 60minutes can't be good for you or sitting down for 8hrs a day.

[factor-fiction]

Have a look at this.
http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg36.pdf
Your employer should issue guidance notes-ask to see them

[mccfluff]

you have to have a break of 20 minutes if you work 6 hours and that has to be during the day.

other than that, its h&S advice and best practice to take a break from the screen every so often and to move about, but a walk to the loo would be classed as a break

[factor-fiction]

It says:
Timing and length of changes in activity or breaks for DSE use is not set down in law and arrangements will vary depending on a particular situation.
The normal laws also apply about a minimum break of 20 minutes a day on longer shifts

[Mike25]

20minutes every 6 hrs isn't much. I thought it was more like 5 minutes every hour.

[heathfield]

It's EU law that you take a break every so often. Employers are legally required to meet with staff to discuss and agree on breaks, (which include changes of activity). With my former company, this meant a break of 10 minutes in every hour. Here's the EU Directive...

http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:31990L0270:EN:HTML

[woofgang]

There's a difference between how long you should focus on the computer screen at any one time and taking breaks. Stopping focussing on the screen can mean simply doing a different job at your desk for short periods.

[factor-fiction]

20 mins a day is the minimum. Most employers give longer and most allow toilet breaks or design the job to allow breaks froma pC screen every so often-even if it's just walking to the copier/printer

[Buenchico]

>>>20minutes every 6 hrs isn't much

To be pedantic, it's not actually 20 minutes every 6 hours. If your working day is up to 6 hours long you're not entitled to any statutory breaks (although, as been suggested above, health & safety consideration will apply to certain tasks). If your working day exceeds 6 hours you're entitled to a SINGLE 20 minute (unpaid break). If your shift is 12 hours, 18 hours, or even longer you're still only entitled to ONE 20 minute break, not two or three.

[heathfield]

Time to define 'Break'. If working with graphic display equipment, e.g. a computer monitor, a 'break' doesn't just mean going away for a cup of tea and a ciggy, but includes a 'change of activity' whereby you're no longer looking at the screen.

[EDDIE51]

My Mrs sits in front of the laptop and looks at Facebook for 8 or 9 hours at a stretch is there a law against that? She moans if she has to leave it to go to the Loo.