Your Force Isn’t Tracking Your Hours — You Should Be
New data from the Police Federation of England and Wales reveals a staggering legal failure: 60% of forces hold no records on how long their officers are working. The Working Time Regulations still apply — and if your force won’t track your hours, you must.
- 60% of police forces in England and Wales cannot produce any force-wide data on officer working hours — a direct breach of the Working Time Regulations 1998
- Only 3 of 43 forces (Norfolk, Suffolk, Greater Manchester) could supply meaningful data; where data existed, Norfolk recorded 1,070 breaches of the 48-hour limit in a single year
- PFEW is issuing legally enforceable Health and Safety Notices of Improvement to chief constables — the first time this legal mechanism has been used this way
- Officers are routinely working 12–16 hour days with rest days cancelled at industrial scale; trauma, fatigue and burnout are endemic
- PFEW demands a minimum 7% annual pay rise for three years plus a “P Factor” — structural recognition of the unique risks of policing
- If your force has no records, your personal shift log is your only evidence for any future complaint, legal claim, or federation action
The Data Gap: What PFEW Found
The Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW) asked all 43 forces a simple question: can you provide basic, force-wide data on officer working hours, breaches, rest-day disruption, and Working Time exemptions? The responses were damning.
26 forces admitted they could not provide any figures — claiming it would take “more than two days” to compile because no force-wide system exists. Two forces, Surrey and Cleveland, went further: they stated they held no information at all relating to the question. 13 forces did not respond. Only Norfolk, Suffolk, and Greater Manchester Police were able to supply any data whatsoever.
The Working Time Regulations 1998 place a legal duty on employers to keep accurate, force-wide working time records. This is not optional. A force that cannot produce this data is already in breach of its statutory obligations — regardless of whether any individual officer has been harmed.
In response, PFEW has begun issuing Health and Safety Notices of Improvement to chief constables — legally enforceable instruments under health and safety law that require immediate corrective action and cannot be dismissed with promises or good intentions. The Federation says the situation is so serious that legal enforcement is no longer optional. It is essential.
| Force Response | Number of Forces | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Could not produce any data | 26 | Breach |
| Held no information at all | 2 | Breach |
| Did not respond | 13 | No response |
| Supplied meaningful data | 3 | Compliant |
Where Data Exists, It Is Alarming
The three forces that could supply data confirmed what frontline officers already know: excessive hours are not the exception, they are the norm. Norfolk Police recorded 1,070 breaches of the 48-hour weekly limit in a single year. Suffolk logged 1,188 breaches. Greater Manchester Police recorded 67,378 Working Time exemptions — but crucially could not determine how many represented genuine breaches because no system checked individual records.
The Federation’s position is unambiguous: if the three forces that can produce data are showing thousands of legal breaches per year, the 40 forces that produce no data are not operating without breaches — they simply have no idea how many there are. Officers are routinely working 12 to 16-hour days, with rest days cancelled across forces at what PFEW describes as industrial scale. Trauma, fatigue, and burnout are becoming endemic.
PFEW National Secretary John Partington: “In any other safety-critical profession, an employer that cannot evidence how long its workforce is working would be found in breach of its duties. Policing is no different.”
Your Legal Rights Under the Working Time Regulations
The Working Time Regulations 1998 (WTR) apply to police officers. Your force has a legal duty to monitor compliance and maintain records. If it cannot demonstrate it is doing so, it is in breach — and so is any chief constable who has allowed this situation to continue.
| Your Right | What the Law Says |
|---|---|
| Maximum working week | No more than 48 hours average per week over 17 weeks (unless opted out in writing) |
| Daily rest | 11 consecutive hours in every 24-hour period; breaches must be recorded and compensatory rest provided |
| Weekly rest | 24 hours uninterrupted rest each week, or 48 hours in any 14-day period; cancelled rest days must be exceptional and documented |
| Rest break | 20-minute break when shift exceeds 6 hours, taken away from your workstation |
| Night work limit | Average of 8 hours per 24-hour period for night workers, averaged over 17 weeks |
| Record keeping | Your force must keep comprehensive, force-wide working time records — this is a legal requirement, not discretionary |
If your force cannot produce records, it cannot demonstrate it is meeting these obligations. PFEW’s Notices of Improvement are now the legal mechanism to force compliance — and failure to act carries the risk of further enforcement action or legal consequences.
Track Your Shifts Before Your Force Does
With 60% of forces holding no data, your personal shift record is your only protection. Overtime Live lets you log every shift, flag WTR breaches, and build an accurate earnings record in real time — on iOS or Android.
The Pay Crisis Driving Officers Out
The working-hours crisis cannot be separated from policing’s wider pay collapse. PFEW has submitted its strongest position yet to the Police Remuneration Review Body (PRRB): a minimum 7 per cent annual pay rise for each of the next three years, alongside a structural “P Factor” — long-awaited recognition of the unique psychological risks, legal restrictions, and frontline trauma that define the job.
The case is made against a stark backdrop. Police pay has fallen by more than 20% in real terms since 2010. Nearly half of all constables now have five years’ service or less. Officers are being assaulted every ten minutes; around 30 are injured every single day. Mental health-related sickness is at record levels. And the Government has instructed the PRRB to keep rises within “affordability within existing funding settlements” — a phrase PFEW says amounts to an instruction to deliver another real-terms pay cut.
| Indicator | Figure |
|---|---|
| Real-terms pay decline since 2010 | Over 20% |
| Constables with 5 years’ service or less | Nearly 50% |
| Officers assaulted per day | ~144 |
| Officers injured per day | ~30 |
| PFEW minimum pay demand (annual) | 7% for 3 years |
PFEW National Secretary John Partington put the stakes plainly: officers will be putting their lives on the line knowing their chiefs are recommending another reduction in their standard of living. The Federation’s message is that policing has reached a crossroads — and if decision-makers fail to act, the consequences will be felt not only by officers but by every community in England and Wales.
What You Can Do Right Now
If your force cannot — or will not — track your hours, the single most practical thing you can do is build your own record. This is not paranoia; it is a professional necessity when your employer is demonstrably failing its legal obligations.
- Log every shift in real time. Record start time, finish time, shift type, any rest day cancellations, and any hours exceeding your WTR entitlements. Do this the day you work, not weeks later.
- Note every rest-day cancellation. The WTR requires these to be exceptional and properly documented. If your force isn’t documenting them, you should be.
- Know your WTR opt-out status. If you have not signed a written opt-out, the 48-hour weekly average limit applies to you in full. Check your contract.
- Keep your records somewhere your force cannot access or delete. A personal app or a secure personal email are safer than relying on force systems alone.
- Speak to your federation rep. PFEW’s enforcement action is ongoing. Your personal records may become relevant evidence as the legal process develops.
Your personal shift log is your evidence base for any future formal complaint, grievance, legal claim, or federation-supported action. In a service where 60% of forces hold no data, it may be the only record that exists of your working conditions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do the Working Time Regulations apply to police officers in England and Wales?
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