Statutory Rule 1998 No. 386

Working Time Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1998

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© Crown Copyright 1998

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"the 1996 Order" means the Employment Rights (Northern Ireland) Order 1996[5];

"adult worker" means a worker who has attained the age of 18;

"the armed forces" means any of the naval, military and air forces of the Crown;

"calendar year" means the period of twelve months beginning with 1st January in any year;

"the civil protection services" includes the police, fire services and ambulance services, the security and intelligence services, customs and immigration officers, the prison service, the coastguard, and lifeboat crew and other voluntary rescue services;

"collective agreement" means a collective agreement within the meaning of Article 2 of the Industrial Relations (Northern Ireland) Order 1992[6], the trade union parties to which are independent trade unions within the meaning of that Article;

"day" means a period of 24 hours beginning at midnight;

"employer", in relation to a worker, means the person by whom the worker is (or, where the employment has ceased, was) employed;

"employment" in relation to a worker, means employment under his contract;

"night time", in relation to a worker, means a period-

(a) the duration of which is not less than seven hours, and

(b) which includes the period between midnight and 5 a.m.,

which is determined for the purposes of these Regulations by a relevant agreement, or, in default of such a determination, the period between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m.;

"night work" means work during night time;

"night worker" means a worker-

(a) who, as a normal course, works at least three hours of his daily working time during night time, or

(b) who is likely, during night time, to work at least such proportion of his annual working time as may be specified for the purposes of these Regulations in a collective agreement or a workforce agreement;

and, for the purpose of paragraph (a) of this definition, a person works hours as a normal course (without prejudice to the generality of that expression) if he works such hours on the majority of days on which he works;

"registered medical practitioner" means a fully registered person within the meaning of the Medical Act 1983[7];

"relevant agreement", in relation to a worker, means a workforce agreement which applies to him, any provision of a collective agreement which forms part of a contract between him and his employer, or any other agreement in writing which is legally enforceable as between the worker and his employer;

"relevant training" means work experience provided pursuant to a training course or programme, training for employment, or both, other than work experience or training-

(a) the immediate provider of which is an educational institution or a person whose main business is the provision of training, and

(b) which is provided on a course run by that institution or person;

"rest period", in relation to a worker, means a period which is not working time, other than a rest break or leave to which the worker is entitled under these Regulations;

"statutory provision" has the meaning given by section 1(f) of the Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954;

"worker" means an individual who has entered into or works under (or, where the employment has ceased, worked under)-

(a) a contract of employment; or

(b) any other contract, whether express or implied and (if it is express) whether oral or in writing, whereby the individual undertakes to do or perform personally any work or services for another party to the contract whose status is not by virtue of the contract that of a client or customer of any profession or business undertaking carried on by the individual;

and any reference to a worker's contract shall be construed accordingly;

"worker employed in agriculture" has the same meaning as in the Agricultural Wages (Regulation) (Northern Ireland) Order 1977[8] and a reference to a worker partly employed in agriculture is to a worker employed in agriculture whose employer also employs him for non-agricultural purposes;

"workforce agreement" means an agreement between an employer and workers employed by him or their representatives in respect of which the conditions set out in Schedule 1 are satisfied;

"working time", in relation to a worker, means-

(a) any period during which he is working, at his employer's disposal and carrying out his activity or duties,

(b) any period during which he is receiving relevant training, and

(c) any additional period which is to be treated as working time for the purpose of these Regulations under a relevant agreement;

and "work" shall be construed accordingly;

"Working Time Directive" means Council Directive 93/104/EC of 23rd November 1993 concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time[9];

"young worker" means a worker who has not attained the age of 18 and who is over compulsory school age within the meaning of Article 46 of the Education and Libraries (Northern Ireland) Order 1986[10]; and

"Young Workers Directive" means Council Directive 94/33/EC of 22nd June 1994 on the protection of young people at work[11].

    (3) In the absence of a definition in these Regulations, words and expressions used in particular provisions which are also used in corresponding provisions of the Working Time Directive or the Young Workers Directive have the same meaning as they have in those corresponding provisions.

Agreement to exclude the maximum
     5.  - (1) The limit specified in regulation 4(1) shall not apply in relation to a worker who has agreed with his employer in writing that it should not apply in his case, provided that the employer complies with the requirements of paragraph (4).

    (2) An agreement for the purposes of paragraph (1)-

(a) may either relate to a specified period or apply indefinitely; and

(b) subject to any provision in the agreement for a different period of notice, shall be terminable by the worker giving not less than seven days' notice to his employer in writing.

    (3) Where an agreement for the purposes of paragraph (1) makes provision for the termination of the agreement after a period of notice, the notice period provided for shall not exceed three months.

    (4) The requirements referred to in paragraph (1) are that the employer-

(a) maintains up-to-date records which-


(i) identify each of the workers whom he employs who has agreed that the limit specified in regulation 4(1) should not apply in his case;

(ii) set out any terms on which the worker agreed that the limit should not apply; and

(iii) specify the number of hours worked by him for the employer during each reference period since the agreement came into effect (excluding any period which ended more than two years before the most recent entry in the records);



(b) permits any inspector appointed by the Department of Economic Development or any other authority which is responsible under regulation 28 for the enforcement of these Regulations to inspect those records on request; and

(c) provides any such inspector with such information as he may request regarding any case in which a worker has agreed that the limit specified in regulation 4(1) should not apply in his case.

Length of night work
     6.  - (1) A night worker's normal hours of work in any reference period which is applicable in his case shall not exceed an average of eight hours for each 24 hours.

    (2) An employer shall take all reasonable steps, in keeping with the need to protect the health and safety of workers, to ensure that the limit specified in paragraph (1) is complied with in the case of each night worker employed by him.

    (3) The reference periods which apply in the case of a night worker are-

(a) where a relevant agreement provides for the application of this regulation in relation to successive periods of 17 weeks, each such period, or

(b) in any other case, any period of 17 weeks in the course of his employment.

    (4) Where a worker has worked for his employer for less than 17 weeks, the reference period applicable in his case is the period that has elapsed since he started work for his employer.

    (5) For the purposes of this regulation, a night worker's average normal hours of work for each 24 hours during a reference period shall be determined according to the formula-

(a) it is identified as such in-


(i) a collective agreement, or

(ii) a workforce agreement,



which takes account of the specified effects and hazards of night work, or

(b) it is recognised in a risk assessment made by the employer under regulation 3 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1992[12] as involving a significant risk to the health and safety of workers employed by him.

Health assessment and transfer of night workers to day work
     7.  - (1) An employer-

(a) shall not assign an adult worker to work which is to be undertaken during periods such that the worker will become a night worker unless-


(i) the employer has ensured that the worker will have the opportunity of a free health assessment before he takes up the assignment; or

(ii) the worker had a health assessment before being assigned to work to be undertaken during such periods on an earlier occasion, and the employer has no reason to believe that that assessment is no longer valid, and



(b) shall ensure that each night worker employed by him has the opportunity of a free health assessment at regular intervals of whatever duration may be appropriate in his case.

    (2) Subject to paragraph (4), an employer-

(a) shall not assign a young worker to work during the period between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. ("the restricted period") unless-


(i) the employer has ensured that the young worker will have the opportunity of a free assessment of his health and capacities before he takes up the assignment; or

(ii) the young worker had an assessment of his health and capacities before being assigned to work during the restricted period on an earlier occasion, and the employer has no reason to believe that that assessment is no longer valid; and



(b) shall ensure that each young worker employed by him and assigned to work during the restricted period has the opportunity of a free assessment of his health and capacities at regular intervals of whatever duration may be appropriate in his case.

    (3) For the purposes of paragraphs (1) and (2), an assessment is free if it is at no cost to the worker to whom it relates.

    (4) The requirements in paragraph (2) do not apply in a case where the work a young worker is assigned to do is of an exceptional nature.

    (5) A person shall not disclose an assessment made for the purposes of this regulation to any person other than the worker to whom it relates, unless-

(a) the worker has given his consent in writing to the disclosure, or

(b) the disclosure is confined to a statement that the assessment shows the worker to be fit-


(i) in a case where paragraph (1)(a)(i) or (2)(a)(i) applies, to take up an assignment, or

(ii) in a case where paragraph (1)(b) or (2)(b) applies, to continue to undertake an assignment.

    (6) Where-

(a) a registered medical practitioner has advised an employer that a worker employed by the employer is suffering from health problems which the practitioner considers to be connected with the fact that the worker performs night work, and

(b) it is possible for the employer to transfer the worker to work-


(i) to which the worker is suited, and

(ii) which is to be undertaken during periods such that the worker will cease to be a night worker,



the employer shall transfer the worker accordingly.

[2] S.I. 1997/1174back

[3] S.I. 1996/266back

[4] 1954 c. 33 (N.I.)back

[5] S.I. 1996/1919 (N.I. 16)back

[6] S.I. 1992/807 (N.I. 5); the definition of "collective agreement" was amended by Article 150(2) of, and Schedule 2 to, the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Northern Ireland) Order 1995, S.I. 1995/1980 (N.I. 12)back

[7] 1983 c. 54back

[8] S.I. 1977/2151 (N.I. 22)back

[9] O.J. No. L307, 13.12.93, p. 18back

[10] S.I. 1986/594 (N.I. 3); Article 46 was substituted by Article 156 of the Education Reform (Northern Ireland) Order 1989, S.I. 1989/2406 (N.I. 20)back

[11] O.J. No. L216, 20.8.94, p. 12back

[12] S.R. 1992 No. 459 as amended by S.R. 1994 No. 478, S.R. 1995 No. 340 and S.R. 1997 No. 387back

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