Pub managers health suffering over long hours
The health of pub managers is suffering because of the long hours they are being asked to work due to cost cutting, trade union Unite has warned.
Unite, who last week launched a Manifesto for the Pub Industry for managers and tenants, has called for minimum standards of employment for all managers including:
• Maximum 48-hour working week
• Minimum 25 days holiday a year
• Sharper focus on protection from violence at work.
'Working excessive hours is the norm in the industry, and pub managers now have the dubious honour of working longer hours than every other group of employees in the UK," said Jennie Formby, Unite National Officer for the Hospitality sector.
"Working 60-70 hours a week is just not acceptable and the health of our members is suffering. Our officials have reported a significant increase in cases of ill health retirement over recent years as pub chains cut costs forcing managers to operate with fewer staff, and we see a direct link with the long hours they work."
Dave Daly, Licensees Unite National Committee member, added: "I recently supported a Lancashire couple in taking a case to tribunal over the long hours they were expected to work, using the Working Time Directive regulations (that state you cannot be forced to work longer than 48 hours per week). We won a substantial award for our members, and this is just one case out of many that we have settled out of court."
Formby said that despite the focus on tied tenants of recent months, managers must not be forgotten.
"There has quite rightly been a strong focus in recent months on the massive problems facing tenants but we must not forget the many thousands of workers in the 9,000 plus managed pubs in the UK who need us today more then ever before."
