Business leaders have hit out at European Union proposals that would require small firms to check on the number of hours worked by staff who opt out from the Working Time Directive.
The EU wants UK employers to monitor the hours worked by employees not bound by the directive, which limits staff to a 48-hour week.
At present, UK employees are allowed to opt out from the 48-hour week. The government has come under pressure from the EU and trade unions to end the opt out and fall into line with other European states.
The issue has proved contentious for unions and business groups. While unions claim that excessive hours harm employee health, business leaders insist that UK competitiveness would be badly harmed if the opt out was removed.
The EU has now unveiled plans to force employers to police the hours worked by staff, to ensure they are not working excessively long weeks.
But the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has accused the EU of creating a “bureaucratic nightmare” with the proposals.
John Walker, policy chairman of the FSB, said that the plans will force employers to play a nanny role by monitoring the hours worked by their staff.
“Most small employers do not have a personnel manager or HR department and will struggle with the extensive record keeping requirements. Surely there should be an element of individual responsibility here,” he said.
