Common use of Adequate Rest Clause in Contracts

Adequate Rest. Paragraph d. preceding, and Article VII, Work Schedules, both provide that the employee shall be entitled to work provided that the physical con- dition and conduct of the employee permit such em- ployee to satisfactorily perform the work, and a suffi- cient period of time for adequate rest has elapsed since the employee last worked. It is not possible to specifically evaluate “a sufficient pe- riod of time for adequate rest,” as this is dependent upon the nature of the work being performed, the conditions under which the work is performed, and the employee’s physical condition. In general, under ordinary circum- stances, sixteen (16) hours of work may be performed without an intervening period of rest. Normally eight (8) hours should be allowed for adequate rest between such a work period and the next work period. The following examples illustrate how this clause might reasonably be applied for a normal person under ordi- nary circumstances: Example 1 An employee works his or her regular tour from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. He or she is needed to carry out emergency work and continues to work, with only meal time inter- vening, until 12 midnight, at which time the employee is released. A sufficient time for adequate rest would be from 12 midnight until 8 a.m. the next morning. In the same instance, if the employee had continued to work beyond midnight until 3 a.m., then that employee would not be expected to work his or her normal tour from 8 a. m. to 5 p.m., but would be permitted to come on duty at 11 a.m. and work the remainder of the tour (with ad- equate time out for meal) until 5 p.m.

Adequate Rest. Paragraph d. preceding, and Article VII, Work Schedules, both provide that the employee shall be entitled to work provided that the physical con- dition and conduct of the employee permit such em- ployee to satisfactorily perform the work, and a suffi- cient period of time for adequate rest has elapsed since the employee last worked. It is not possible to specifically evaluate specificallyevaluate “a sufficient pe- riod of time for adequate rest,” as this is dependent upon the nature of the work being performed, the conditions under which the work is performed, and the employee’s physical condition. In general, under ordinary circum- stances, sixteen (16) hours of work may be performed without an intervening period of rest. Normally eight (8) hours should be allowed for adequate rest between such a work period and the next work period. The following examples illustrate how this clause might reasonably be applied for a normal person under ordi- nary circumstances: Example 1 An employee works his or her regular tour from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. He or she is needed to carry out emergency work and continues to work, with only meal time inter- vening, until 12 midnight, at which time the employee is released. A sufficient time for adequate rest would be from 12 midnight until 8 a.m. the next morning. In the same instance, if the employee had continued to work beyond midnight until 3 a.m., then that employee would not be expected to work his or her normal tour from 8 a. m. to 5 p.m., but would be permitted to come on duty at 11 a.m. and work the remainder of the tour (with ad- equate time out for meal) until 5 p.m.