As an employer, there is always the urge to get the most from every employee for the duration of their working day. Sometimes, breaks can be seen as a necessary evil, something that you have to give but that doesn’t benefit the business. But is this the wrong mindset and can breaks be an important and useful part of the working day?
What you must give
The current employment rules state that workers aged 18 and over are entitled to three types of breaks – rest breaks at work, daily and weekly rest.
If the employee works more than six hours a day, they have the right to one uninterrupted 20-minute rest break during the day. It doesn’t have to be paid. There is also the right to have 11 hours rest between working days so if they finish at 8 pm on an evening, they shouldn’t start the next shift until 7 am. Finally, they are also entitled to an uninterrupted 24 hours without any work every week or 48 hours without work every fortnight. These are all stipulated in their exact forms in their contracts.
Why breaks are important
Both employers and employees can sometimes see breaks as a pain, stopping the flow of work and making it take longer to do things than without them. But there are reasons that breaks are important and should be taken.
For starters, there’s a recognised productivity zone for everyone and once you pass out of that zone, you are less productive than before. However, by taking a break and changing your location for a bit, recharging the batteries with a snack or meal, then you can renew that productivity and get back your extra zeal.
Studies have also shown that our brains have two modes – focused and diffuse. In focus, we are learning something, doing something or using our mind’s full potential while in the diffuse mode we are a bit dreamy, unfocused. We need to use both of these modes to unlock our full potential and breaks are when we can have a period of diffuse mode – and also when we are most likely to come up with a new idea, suggestion or system.
Why extra breaks can be beneficial
By following these ideas, it can actually be better for employees to have more breaks than just the stated minimum. In many workplaces, there can be a sense of guilt about taking breaks and one study in the US said that one in five employees felt guilty for taking their allowed breaks.
Yet the same study showed that 90% of bosses encourage staff to take breaks because they realise it is beneficial as well as being a requirement. Further to this, 86% of employees admitted they were more productive after a break than if they hadn’t taken one.
Downtime to refresh and recharge is a crucial part of having a productive work day and therefore employers are often encouraging more, short breaks in the day to help boost those productivity zones and allow the right balance of brain modes within their staff for the best results.
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