Standby time
This article is on the BBC. news this morning. Does it have any bearing on the hours all you 'jet jockies' work.
Women win 'on call' battle
Jersey Senior Citizens Association has more than 700 members
Nine women have won a legal battle which could have major implications for people who are forced to remain on standby after completing their hours of work.
The women lived in sheltered homes for the elderly in the London borough of Harrow and worked a basic 37 hour week.
But they were kept on call for another 76 hours.
An employment tribunal said the council had breached working time regulations and awarded the women £1,500 compensation each.
During their standby time they could not leave the sheltered housing, and the women said this led to social isolation.
The tribunal said the council had not given the women proper daily rest or given them the national minimum wage for their time on standby.
It decided the 76 hours the workers were on call counted as work.
The women are also likely to get back pay worth thousands in addition to the £1,500 compensation.
Tony Warr, the GMB union official who backed the women's case, said: "This is a major breakthrough for low paid and over-worked employees.
"The conditions imposed on these dedicated workers made a nonsense of the requirement that they should enjoy a minimum of 11 hours of uninterrupted rest from work every day."
Solicitors Thompsons, engaged by the union to fight the case, said it was a "landmark" decision.