Hi, my shift pattern requires me start work/driving at 0430 from my allotted depot. I usually finish last tipping at between 1830 and 1930. I commute 30 minutes to start work.
Due to contractual availability cover I now find that I’m having to commute to other depots and it takes approx 60 mins to reach these. This means I’m setting off usually at 0330 to cover other areas to start at 0430. I usually drive max hours each day and rest of shift is full on manual stuff.
As these other depots are not my usual starting point/work place, can I include driving in my own time as work time and is my employer infringing any night shift/day shift regulations ie. 0400 hrs as demarcation point? I commute in my own private vehicle. I now find that I’m regularly getting home between 2000 and 2030 then getting up again at 0300. I work around 10 shifts a fortnight.
Cheers
Boxstar
Commuting has nothing to do with WTD mate.
Thanks, just thought I would get another opinion. The consensus at work was as we are being sent to start work other than our normal areas some how the extra early travelling came into the equation and we had become, in effect, become night shift workers. 
Cheers
Boxstar
boxstar:
Hi, my shift pattern requires me start work/driving at 0430 from my allotted depot. I usually finish last tipping at between 1830 and 1930. I commute 30 minutes to start work.
Due to contractual availability cover I now find that I’m having to commute to other depots and it takes approx 60 mins to reach these. This means I’m setting off usually at 0330 to cover other areas to start at 0430. I usually drive max hours each day and rest of shift is full on manual stuff.
As these other depots are not my usual starting point/work place, can I include driving in my own time as work time and is my employer infringing any night shift/day shift regulations ie. 0400 hrs as demarcation point? I commute in my own private vehicle. I now find that I’m regularly getting home between 2000 and 2030 then getting up again at 0300. I work around 10 shifts a fortnight.
Unless you’re having split daily rest periods on some occasions I’m a bit puzzled how you can be starting at 04:30 and finishing the last delivery between 18:30 and 19:30 every day 
Or am I misunderstanding what you’ve written ? 
Anyway apart from that, I think it probably depends on your contract of employment, the regulations do state that any travelling time to take charge of a vehicle or returning from that place “when the vehicle is neither at the driver’s home nor at the employer’s operational centre where the driver is normally based” cannot be counted as rest, therefore the travelling time would have to be included within the time from the start to the end of the shift.
This has been tested in court in the Skill Coaches case, where coach drivers were having to travel to different locations to drive their vehicles, the EU court decided that the drivers could not be travelling in their own time as the coaches were not based at their usual place of work, the company were fined for the offences.
This is however slightly different to your situation in that you are being asked to start work at one of your companies operating centre’s.
Here’s a link to the Skill Coaches case
If you need to start before 04:00 to get to the place of work that is not your usual work place the travelling time would put you in the class of night worker, so unless there’s an opt out agreement you’re restricted to 10 hours working time for the shift.
Having said that, I’m not sure what you mean by “Due to contractual availability cover”, if there’s something in your contract that states that you will start from other depots sometimes, you could be screwed.
dukeofdirt:
Commuting has nothing to do with WTD mate.
The OP isn’t asking about the WTD he’s asking about the drivers hours regulations, if the drivers hours regulations mean that the travelling time is classed as other work then the WTD night time working limit will come into force
Thanks for the link Tachograph, that’s exactly what I was originally posting for 
(I’m working: driving+other work+breaks= 15 hours average shift)
Cheers
Boxstar
boxstar:
Thanks for the link Tachograph, that’s exactly what I was originally posting for (I’m working: driving+other work+breaks= 15 hours average shift)
Cheers
Boxstar
You’re welcome for the link and I hope it helps
I’m still confused about how you can legally be doing 15 hour shifts more than 3 times between weekly rest periods though
Assuming that you’re working to EU regulations the spread-over from start to end of shift can only go over 13 hours three times between weekly rest periods, so unless you’re doing split daily rest periods there’s no way you can legally be averaging 15 hours over 10 shifts in two weeks.
I know this isn’t what you originally posted about, but on the face of things it looks like your employer may already have you working more hours than is legal without you having to travel any further than your usual place of work.