A NEW directive from the Government to reduce people's working hours and cut overtime blues is to be introduced this month. The Working Time directive, enforced across the country for the first time, has been created in a bid to stop the growing trend of long working hours. Aimed at protecting employees who are forced to work longer hours without adequate breaks and reasonable holidays, the directive will introduce a 48 hour maximum working week. But some Bolton workers haven't greeted the news of the directive warmly, because they say a 48 hour working week would be impractical and hinder their work.

Melanie Holton, 33, from Bromley Cross, is a menswear designer for a Manchester-based clothing company. When she took the job, she was contracted to work 8.30am to 5.30pm, five days a week, but she admits that neither she nor her workmates ever work those hours.

Melanie leaves home at 7.30am and never returns earlier than 7pm. Currently she works around 44 hours per week and tries not to work overtime. However, she says this is sometimes unavoidable, particularly in the run up to a fashion show and preparing for a big meeting when work takes over weekends as well.

She told the BEN: "The preparation for a big buyer meeting can take months of planning, but in the fashion industry, such a meeting can also be arranged at very short notice.

"If a big account is being offered we will put as much as we can into planning project boards and this can mean very long hours." She added: "In the run up to a big show, working long days is essential to the success of a collection as everything must be ready on time. The reputation of the designer, not just the label, is at stake."

"The Working Time directive is a positive change for some workers with children, but for people like me, who enjoy their work and get a buzz from seeing the finished product after hours spent at the drawing board, it will simply be impractical."

Parts of the directive are still unclear, but when it comes into force, many workers will have a range of new legal rights.

There will be a minimum daily rest period of 11 consecutive hours and a rest break where the working day is longer than six hours.

There will also be a minimum uninterrupted rest period of 24 hours, in addition to the 11 hours daily rest every week.

Employees will also have the right not to work more than 48 hours a week on average including overtime and take at least four weeks paid annual leave.

But the new directive won't apply to everyone. Workers including doctors in training, police and journalists are excluded from the law, but the vast majority of employees in the UK will be affected.

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