Clocks go back 2019: do workers lose an hour’s pay due to Daylight Saving Time?

This is how to make sure you don’t lose money when the clocks go back.
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Daylight Saving Time comes to an end at 2am on Sunday 27 October, when the clocks go back an hour, and read 1am. The system is designed to give people an extra hour of daylight each morning.

But while most of us will be tucked up in bed when the Greenwich Mean Time kicks in, tens of thousands of people across the UK will be working night shifts.

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Should they be paid for working an extra hour? Or can they go home when they’ve worked their usual number of hours, even when the clock says they have an hour to go?

Should they be paid for working an extra hour?Should they be paid for working an extra hour?
Should they be paid for working an extra hour?

Alan Price, CEO at HR software firm BrightHR, has advice for employees and employers.

What do workers need to know?

The first thing you should be aware of is how the clocks going back affects working hours. You need to check your contract to see how your working hours are detailed.

A contract which states the employee’s shift starts at midnight and finishes at 8am will require the employee to work a shift of nine hours.

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In contrast, a contract which says the shift lasts eight hours starting from midnight will allow the employee to leave at 7am, as they will have technically worked eight hours.

The extra hour has the potential to affect the working time rights of night shift workers too. Night workers must not work, on average, more than eight hours in any 24 hours and are entitled to a 20 minute rest break when working more than six hours a day.

What do employers need to know?

In relation to paying staff, a contract that states an individual is entitled to hourly pay will mean that they should be paid extra if they work the additional hour.

Generally, salaried workers will receive their normal salary regardless if they work extra, although you should consider if your company’s overtime rules would be applied here.

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One option to consider is allowing employees to go home an hour later when the clocks go forward in the spring, cancelling out the extra hour worked now in the autumn.

Finally, you should pre-warn workers who are on the rota to come in on Sunday about the clocks going back to ensure they are attending work on time.