NEWS


The action is designed to force chief constables to: Gather proper force-wide data


• Identify breaches • Prevent fatigue-related risk • Comply with the Working Time Regulations • And, crucially, protect the officers who protect the public


PFEW says the situation is so serious that legal enforcement is no longer optional, it is essential.


BLINDNESS TO FATIGUE IS A THREAT TO PUBLIC SAFETY The Federation has issued a stark warning: failure to address excessive working hours is no longer just a welfare issue, it is a policing capability issue and a public safety issue. Continued blindness to officer fatigue puts officers, the public and policing itself at risk. Officers making critical split second decisions cannot be exhausted, sleep deprived and carrying workloads that no employer even monitors.


PFEW’s position is clear – the service cannot


survive without proper welfare safeguards and chief constables have run out of excuses.


WHAT THE WORKING TIME REGULATIONS REQUIRE


The Working Time Regulations 1998 (WTR) exist to protect workers from fatigue, excessive hours and unsafe working conditions. They apply to police forces unless a specific exemption is justified and properly recorded. In policing, these safeguards are not optional – they are a legal duty.


THE CORE REQUIREMENTS 1. Maximum Average Weekly Working Time: 48 Hours


• Officers must not exceed an average of 48 hours per week over a 17-week reference period.


• This limit applies unless an individual has formally opted out in writing. • Forces must keep accurate, force-wide records to demonstrate compliance.


2. Minimum Daily Rest: 11 Hours


• Every officer must receive 11 consecutive hours of rest in each 24-hour period.


3. Minimum Weekly Rest


• If operational needs prevent this, the force must record the breach and ensure compensatory rest is provided as soon as practicable.


• Cancelled rest days must be exceptional and properly documented. 4. Rest Breaks During Shifts


• Officers working more than six hours are entitled to a 20-minute uninterrupted rest break.


• This must be taken away from the workstation and cannot simply be absorbed into the shift.


5. Night Work Limits


• Night workers should not exceed an average of eight hours work in any 24-hour period, averaged over 17 weeks.


• Forces must conduct regular health assessments for night workers.


6. Accurate Record Keeping Is a Legal Requirement Forces must:


• Keep comprehensive, force-wide working time records • Track breaches, exemptions and rest day cancellations • Produce this data on demand for regulatory or legal scrutiny • Demonstrate how risks from excessive hours are assessed and mitigated


WHY IT MATTERS IN POLICING Policing is a safety-critical profession. The Regulations exist to prevent:


• Fatigue-related decision-making errors • Reduced situational awareness • Increased likelihood of injury or assault • Long-term physical and psychological harm • Unsafe levels of demand being normalised


When forces fail to monitor these rules, they fail in their legal duty to protect the health, safety and welfare of officers.


And when 60 per cent of forces cannot even say how long their people are working, the risks are clear – exhausted officers, unsafe policing and leaders blind to their own legal obligations.


10 | POLICE | APRIL | 2026


• Officers are entitled to 24 hours’ uninterrupted rest each week, or 48 hours in a 14-day period.


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