What Does Trust-Based Working Hours Mean?
Under a trust-based working hours model, the employer refrains from prescribing or actively monitoring the exact start and finish times of the working day. Employees are granted autonomy to decide when and how they complete their contractually agreed hours and duties; the primary criterion is the fulfilment of assigned tasks and agreed outcomes rather than rigid attendance.
Legal Framework & Statutory Compliance in the UK
Operating a trust-based working time model does not exempt employers from UK statutory employment law obligations. In particular:
- Maximum Weekly Working Hours: Under Regulation 4 of the Working Time Regulations 1998 (WTR 1998), workers cannot work more than an average of 48 hours per week (calculated over a standard 17-week reference period) unless they have signed a voluntary, written individual opt-out agreement under Regulation 5.
- Mandatory Rest Breaks & Daily Rest: Workers remain legally entitled to an uninterrupted rest break of at least 20 minutes if the working day exceeds 6 hours (Regulation 12), a daily rest period of 11 consecutive hours in each 24-hour period (Regulation 10), and weekly rest of at least 24 uninterrupted hours per 7-day period or 48 uninterrupted hours per 14-day period (Regulation 11).
- Record-Keeping Duties: Under Regulation 9 of the WTR 1998, employers must keep records adequate to demonstrate compliance with the maximum weekly working limit and the night work limits. The wider duty to operate an objective, reliable and accessible system measuring daily working time, established in Case C-55/18 CCOO, was addressed to Member States and has not been enacted in the UK, but it remains the standard employers are strongly advised to meet.
- Delegation of Recording: While an employer may delegate the day-to-day recording of hours worked to employees within a trust-based framework, the ultimate legal responsibility for establishing the recording system, monitoring for excessive working hours, and safeguarding employee health and safety remains strictly with the employer.
- National Minimum Wage Compliance: Employers must also ensure that actual hours worked under trust-based arrangements do not result in pay falling below the statutory National Living Wage or National Minimum Wage thresholds under the National Minimum Wage Act 1998.
Distinction from Flextime
Flextime (or flexible working hours) typically operates within predefined core hours, bandwidth limits, and formal working time accounts with structured rules for carrying over surplus or deficit hours. Trust-based working hours eliminates fixed core attendance constraints—while time tracking remains essential for statutory compliance and health and safety monitoring, the model focuses primarily on performance and deliverables rather than tracking time against a rigid rota.
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