NEWS & EVENTS

If any of the regions businesses thought that European legislation was far removed from their day to day work, they are very much mistaken.   This has been highlighted by the break up of talks in Brussels which could have limited the flexibility of businesses to compete.

The talks were aimed at bringing more EU states in to line with the 48 hour maximum working week as specified in the Working Time Directive. When the regulations were introduced, the UK Government negotiated an opt-out allowing UK workers to work longer than the maximum. The Government has since resisted all attempts by European legislators to get the opt-out removed, and many UK employers now include an opt-out clause as standard in their contracts of employment.

Phil Cookson of Roythorne Christmas said "This is good news for UK businesses, particularly in the current economic climate.  Whilst we would not advocate working excessive hou