Hours of Work Policy | Department of Human Resources 1
Hours of Work
Policy
The normal work week is 35 hours consisting of seven (7) hours per day, Monday to Friday. However, some
employees work and are paid on the basis of a different work week.
The normal core hours of operation for most departments are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. year-round. Departments
which have more than three support staff are normally expected to remain open throughout the lunch hour.
Procedures
1. Employees may make a request to their supervisor to alter their individual start and finish times. Such
requests will be considered subject to the operational requirements of the department. A primary
requirement is that each department must be staffed adequately during the department's regular
operating hours.
2. The lunch period will normally be one hour, although a staff member may, with the approval of their
supervisor, choose a 30-minute lunch break and leave 30 minutes earlier, or choose a 1 1/2 hour lunch
period, and stay 30 minutes later. The choice of a shorter or longer lunch period is subject to the
operational requirements of the department.
3. Coffee/Rest Breaks: Each staff member is entitled to have a break of 15 minutes in both the morning
and the afternoon. The purpose of such breaks is to provide a few minutes of rest and relaxation near
the middle of each half of the workday. Breaks should be taken at a convenient point in the flow of
duties and care should be taken to ensure that breaks do not exceed the proper time period. Break
time cannot be accumulated and taken as time off.
4. Research, Grant and Contract Positions: The nature of the activities for which a principal investigator is
responsible may require some flexibility in the work hours of the contract employee. However, any
work requirement outside standard work hours (eg. evening, night or weekend hours) must be
identified in the Offer of Employment as a special condition of employment. Any such conditions are
accepted by the employee by their signature on the Offer of Employment.
