What are the restrictions on Sunday working?

The Sunday Trading Act 1994 became effective on 26 August 1994. It permitted small shops and betting shops to trade on Sundays and larger shops to trade for 6 consecutive hours on Sundays.

The Act gave shop workers the right to choose whether or not they work on Sundays. It applies to all workers employed in shops and betting shops, including work at racetracks. However it does not apply to workers who work on Sundays only.

These are statutory rights that override any contractual terms.

The rules are slightly different depending on whether the current employment started before 26 August 1994. There are 3 categories of shop worker affected:

• those who were employed with their current employer on or before 26 August 1994
• those who were recruited after 26 Aug 1994, but whose contract of employment did not require them to work on Sundays
• those who were recruited after 26 August 1994, whose contract does require them to work on Sundays.

Those in employment on 26 August 1994 may refuse to work on Sundays whether or not their contracts, at the time, required them to do so. They can opt-in and work on Sundays if they wish, but the employer has to obtain written agreement from the worker and agree an express term specifying what Sunday working they agree to do. They retain a continuing, unconditional, right to opt out again, and in again, and so forth.

Those recruited after 26 August 1994, whose contract did not require them to work on Sundays, may refuse any request from the employer to work on Sundays. In other words the employer cannot change this contractual term unilaterally.

Those recruited after 26 August 1994 must be given a written statement, within two months of starting work, setting out their rights under the Sunday Trading Act 1994.

These are that, although they have agreed to work on Sundays, they can opt out of that agreement by giving 3 months' written notice to the employer. On expiry of that notice they can lawfully refuse to work on Sundays.

These workers can opt in (and out again) in the same way as those who started work before the Act's effective date.

Workers are protected against any action by the employer causing a detriment. Dismissal for lawfully refusing to work on Sundays is automatically unfair.

These rights are now contained in The Employment Rights Act 1996. The Government reviewed the law on Sunday trading in Spring 2006 and decided that no changes were needed.