Personal and Work-Life Balance 2021 - Main Results

All workers are entitled to have breaks while they are at work, and rest periods between working days or nights. Minimum break and rest period entitlements are set out in the Organisation of Working Time Act 1997. The Act stipulates that workers have a right to a 15-minute break when they have worked more than 4 hours and 30 minutes and a 30-minute break when they have worked more than 6 hours (which can include the first 15-minute break), and the breaks are not to be at the end of the working day/shift.

Information on the Organisation of Working time Act (1997) is provided in the Background Notes.

In the Personal and Work-Life Balance Survey, respondents, who were employees, were asked their awareness of their entitlements to breaks and rest periods at work. There was high awareness amongst employees of break entitlements during the working day/shift. Over nine in ten employees were aware of what break periods they were entitled to during the working day – 92.0% were aware of their entitlement to a 15-minute break after 4 hours and 30 minutes work, while 90.3% knew that they could take a 30-minute break after 6 hours of work. See Table 5.1 and Figure 5.1.

There was high awareness of break entitlements for part-time workers. The majority of part-time workers in small and medium-sized organisations were aware of their entitlements to breaks at work – 98% of employees working part-time in organisations of between 10 and 99 people, were aware of their entitlement to a 15-minute break after 4 hours and 30 minutes work, while a similarly high number (96.1%) of their equivalents working in small organisations (less than 10 people) knew of their entitlements in this regard. The exception is persons working part-time in large organisations of 100 personnel or more, where eight in ten (80.5%) part-time workers were aware of this entitlement. There was also the same level of awareness (80.5%) in this cohort of workers, of the entitlement to a 30-minute break after six hours work. At an overall level, although awareness was still high, there was a lesser awareness of their entitlement to a 30-minute break after 6 hours of work amongst both part-time and full-time employees. Analysis of data for part-time workers by length of service (with their current employer), shows that for those with longest service, awareness of entitlement to a half hour break after six hours work, is highest at 94.3% for those with the longest service (19 years or more) and 94.7% for part-time workers with length of service of between 11 and 18 years. See Table 5.1.

With regard to entitlement to daily rest periods, the Organisation of Working Time Act stipulates that an employee must receive at least 11 consecutive hours of rest in each period of 24 hours, so if an employee finished work at 8pm, they should not start work again until 7am the next day.

The survey results show that awareness of this entitlement amongst workers, was not as evident as awareness of entitlement to breaks during the working day. Over three quarters (76.2%) of employees were aware of this entitlement. Analysis of workers’ awareness of this entitlement by their hours of work, shows that part-time employees, working in medium-sized organisations, had the least awareness of their statutory rights to this rest period – less than two-thirds (64.2%) of these employees working in organisations employing between 10 and 19 people, were aware of this entitlement while over six in ten (61.7%) whose workplace employed between 20 and 99 people were aware of it. See Table 5.1.

With regard to lactation breaks, the Maternity Protection (Amendment) Act 2004 stipulates that women in employment who are breastfeeding are entitled to take time off work each day in order to breastfeed and/or express milk. The provision applies to all women in employment who have given birth within the previous 6 months (26 weeks). Employers are not obliged to provide facilities in the workplace to facilitate breastfeeding if the provision of such facilities would give rise to considerable costs. Workers can breastfeed in the workplace or express breast milk, where facilities are provided in the workplace by the employer, or have your working hours reduced (without loss of pay) to facilitate breastfeeding where facilities are not available.

Workers are entitled to take 1 hour (with pay) off work each day as a breastfeeding break for up to 26 weeks after birth. This time may be taken as one 60-minute break, two 30-minute breaks or three 20-minute breaks. Part-time workers are also entitled to breastfeeding breaks, calculated on a pro-rata basis.

More information on the Maternity Protection (Amendment) Act 2004 is provided in the Background Notes.

At an overall level, just over two-thirds (67.6%) of employees were aware of the entitlement to breastfeeding breaks. More females than males were aware of this entitlement at work – 71.3% of females compared with almost two-thirds (63.9%) of males. However, analysis of sex by age group shows that awareness of this entitlement is greatest amongst those age groups to which this provision might apply most. Awareness of entitlements regarding lactation breaks was greatest for females aged 35 to 44 years (81.1%), while over two thirds of women (66.3%) aged between 25 and 34 years were aware of entitlements in this regard. See Table 5.2 and Figure 5.2.

Analysis by NACE economic sector shows that workers in the ‘Professional, scientific and technical activities’ sector had the greatest awareness of this entitlement to a daily rest period (88.2%), followed by workers in the ‘Wholesale and retail trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles’ sector at 86.6%. Looking at the data through the lens of workers’ main occupation, those whose job was 'Process, plant/machine operatives' had the greatest awareness of this entitlement (90.6%). See Table 5.3.

Analysis by NACE economic sector shows that workers in the ‘Construction’ sector had least awareness of this entitlement to lactation breaks (44.5%), while over three quarters (75.1%) of workers in the 'Professional, scientific and technical activities' sector were aware of this entitlement. See Table 5.3.

Further analysis by the broad occupational group of employees shows those working in ‘Caring, leisure and other services’ had the highest awareness (76.3%) of women’s entitlement to breastfeeding breaks, while those working in ‘Skilled trades’ had the lowest awareness of this entitlement (52.3%). See Table 5.3.