48-Hour Working Week — Opt-Out Declaration

In short
Voluntary form issued alongside the new contract to every adult member of staff. They can opt out, opt in (stay protected by the 48h limit), or revoke a previous opt-out. Not a condition of employment.

Reference: Working Time Regulations 1998, regulation 5 Issued by: Wild Hearth Bakery Limited Issued to: {{first_name}} {{last_name}}

Background

The Working Time Regulations 1998 limit your average working week to 48 hours, calculated over a 17-week period. This is a default legal protection.

You may voluntarily opt out of this limit if, in any given week, you might wish to work more than 48 hours. The choice is yours alone. This declaration is not a condition of your employment. You may refuse to opt out, or revoke a previous opt-out, at any time on 7 days' written notice, without any consequence for your employment.

The Working Time Regulations protect specific rights regardless of whether you opt out, including:

  • The right to a daily rest period (11 hours)
  • The right to a weekly rest period (24 hours)
  • The right to a 20-minute break in any shift over 6 hours
  • The right to paid annual leave

Your declaration

Please tick one option:

☐ I OPT OUT of the 48-hour weekly limit. I understand I may sometimes work an average of more than 48 hours per week. I confirm this is voluntary, given freely, and not a condition of my employment.

☐ I DO NOT OPT OUT. I wish to remain protected by the 48-hour weekly limit.

☐ I REVOKE a previous opt-out (if applicable) and wish to be protected by the 48-hour limit going forward.

Signed by employee:

Name: {{first_name}} {{last_name}} Signature: ____________________________ Date: ____________________________

Received by:

Name: ____________________________ Role: ____________________________ Date: ____________________________

This declaration is retained on your personnel file. The Company will keep records of your weekly hours so that, if you have not opted out, the 48-hour average is monitored. You may request a copy of these records at any time.

Source: docs/contracts/opt-out-48h.md