Is it Reasonable during 8 hr Work day for a Salaried worker , to take (1), Ten minute break every 3 hrs
Note this is not a Smoke break …case study is non smoker
This is a case study only Any resemblance to persons living or dead is purely coincidental
Answers (16)
I think a lot depends on the business culture and the position description, as well as what is meant by "break".
* Is the person working to the clock (at exactly 8 hours they get up and leave) or is this a position where they are actually working early/late and taking work home with them?
* Is lunch included?
* Is "break" similar to a smoker's break where the person gets up and is unavailable for ten minutes or are they getting a cup of coffee and having a discussion with co-workers while being available for others?
* Is the position one in which they are surrounded by others who are taking breaks (smokers, hourly, ....)?
* Is the work such that when they are not on break they are working 100%?
So much depends on definitions. I work in a professional enviroment and would not expect a fellow engineer to stop working and put his feet up for 10-minutes at the same time everyday. However, if he stopped once in a while for a quick call to check on the kids or was getting a coffee refill and talking about the big game, there wouldn't be an issue. However, the inverse is also true. These same people might very well be getting a phone call at home on the weekend to solve some work emergency and are certainly not working exactly 8 hours.
Gary C
Innovation | Leadership | Emerging Markets
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If the person we are speaking of is engaged as a knowledge worker, then 30 minutes of total break time to effect some mental clarity is not only reasonable, it is required. And I would venture to say that depending on the demands of intellect or creativity, 10 minutes every three hours is not enough to overcome the inertia of the minutia to allow for a breakthrough insight
J O
Security/Network/Systems Engineer at VoIP Provider
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Does it make a difference in all honesty. What are you going to do sanction someone, what if they have bladder problem. Should they NOT go to the bathroom for the amount of time they need to use the bathroom. Salaried employees often work more hours then the 8 hour mandatory, should they tell their employers: "Sorry I have to drop everything, times up... Going home" It all boils down to policy really. What is the person's position, tasks. Its good to take a break, refreshes the mind, gives good exercise and one doesn't feel like a drone.
I could not work in a place EVER, where I would be mandated to not take a breather from looking at a monitor (in fact 4 in my case) whenever I needed to. Whether I'm going to smoke, going to run out and get coffee, etc., especially with the hours I put on.
Subhas C B
Management Consultant
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Break, its duration or purpose does not matter.
It is the performance between the breaks that matters.
If the break is for feeding self or a baby, most civilized societies has developed this rule centuries ago.
A break of ten minutes after every three hours keeps many occupational health risks away.
Simon T
Systems Engineer at Donovan Data Systems, Owner at Humanfly Industries
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I understand that if you consult an ergonomic specialist, you would be advised to get up from your computer and take a 5 minute break to stretch or go for a short walk every 30 minutes or 10 minutes every hour to avoid health issues, for example, back, neck and shoulder, repetitive motion injury and eyestrain problems associated with the unnatural and static posture required to work at a computer. The human body is made to move, it breaks down if we don't use it properly. If an employer told me that 10 minute breaks every three hours was unreasonable, I would find another employer in order to protect my health. There simply isn't enough money in the world to compensate for a bad back and poor health.
Tom C
CEO and Chief Technologist at Idalis Software
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Depends on the labor laws of where you work. Some states have mandatory two 15 minute breaks per day. Some employees choose to take them and some don't.
Ajay M
Senior Manager - Branch Head
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One is eligible for a morning tea / break fast break, lunch break, evening tea break, not to forget the miscellaneous break like when one needs to relieve themselves.
What more can you expect ?
If you're one of those guys whose close to their boss, then you can count on his regular cigarette breaks and break out with out having to feel guilty or the need for any explanations...
Cheers.
And by the way, how on earth can your question "have any resemblance to persons living or dead and is purely coincidental ??" Please explain...
It is quite often about getting the job done rather than doing the job.
If the worker is performing well then taking these breaks are probably enabling them to do so. Instead of focusing on the breaks, focus on productivity and the possibility that taking regular breaks might reduce stress, increase output and reduce absences.
Over the years I have witnessed too many times the type of worker that 'appears' to be working long and hard, doing regular overtime, but when you take a closer look at their working day they are perhaps only working effectively 4 or 5 out of every 9
Jo
Pocket PA
Wiping the slate clean, let's not consider the length of the work period or the duration or frequency of the breaks. Research shows that a worker can get more done in 45 minutes than he or she can in 60 minutes when the 15 minutes is used to create what is known as a "pattern interrupt". Getting more done does not always equate to quantity but is a mix of quantity and quality. The break doesn't have to be laying on a bed, but just a different activity with a shift in physical and mental patterns. Sometimes, this does mean a total break. The ramifications of not taking a break are distinct to both worker and employer. Hence, the benefits of not taking a break are detrimental to both as well. So what is the employer REALLY paying for...time worked or what is accomplished (quantity and quality). This is no longer a debate as more and more research as well as corporate/industrial outcomes support this notion.
So, is a 10 minute break every three hours reasonable during an 8 hour work day? I would say no, it is not reasonable. Let's shoot for 10 minutes every hour as a minimum and focus on creating an environment that supports that process so that the best results are achieved all around.
It can be done...
Links:
Meal and Rest Breaks:
Domestic workers have the same rights as other workers regarding meal and rest breaks. Workers are entitled to a 10 minute paid break after 4 hours of work and to a 30 minute meal break after 5 hours of work if working more than a 6 hour shift (California Wage Order 15-2001 §§ 11 and 12). However, the CDWR Survey found that 78% of domestic workers in the San Francisco Bay Area did not always receive the meal breaks they were entitled to and that 83% did not always receive their 10-
minute paid break. For each break missed the employer owes the equivalent of one hour’s salary. Currently in California the statute of limitations on meal and rest penaltiesis one year.
Links:
Kenneth S
IT Project Manager at TELUS
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Since you ask if it is "reasonable" and do not define what "reasonable" means, on you can really answer the question.
I'm not deliberately trying to obfuscate the question, merely indicate that it is - as evidenced by the many great answers here - very much a matter of interpretation and the premises.
If you're an air traffic controller in an emergency, it's not at all reasonable. If you're the only person left alive to fly the Boeing 767 and you are about to land, no it's not reasonable to take a break.
However, in pretty much any and all other situations it's absolutely reasonable by any definition of the word to take a break. If people are not given reasonable breaks, they will simply hot the bathroom an extra time anyway or stay longer.
Most people, when they are treated fair and are engaged in the company and work they do, they will regulate their breaks themselves according their needs.
The old Ford-style of Management where breaks are pre-defined and at given times should be avoided as much as possible. Any individual's needs differ from day to day and from hour to hour.
An employer's best way to get their money's worth out of their employees is not to regulate breaks, but to increase engagement and people will manage themselves and be more valuable to the company.
Cheers :-)
Should not be about length or number of breaks...the only metrics that should matter are productivity and collaboration.
A salaried worker exempt from the FLSA in the US = no concept of "breaks" or overtime. In other words, it means doing whatever it takes to get the job done. I've seen CEO's take 5-10 "breaks" a day....but what most don't see is that their day includes 9 hours at the office, with a 3 hour dinner and presentation to investors that evening.
A
I will answer this is reasonable and even advised if we take into consideration the fact that each salaried is a specific type of personality as his co-workers. The psychological and motivational needs of some persons are based on ludic interactions, creativity and outer stimulations. They can't spend too long consecutive time toward a specific topic with great motivation. Letting these kind of persons having 10 minutes break each 3 hours help them have their emotions balanced... and increase their professional potential. Preventing them from it will lead them to stress...
Steve N
President at PPR Management Services, LLC
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What's more important, the time they spend working or the results they achieve? And what's the relationship between the two?
Pierre D
Founder, Zimana / Marketing ● Finance ● Website Analytics ● Entrepreneurship
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There's no issue with taking a 10 min break every 3 hours, particularly if you are in front of a monitor much of the time. The only issue may be scheduling break at a post where someone has to be available (receptionist, customer service, etc.)
Thanks for reading my comments.
Pierre
