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This fact sheet will give you some basic information about part-time work. You can also listen to it online or download it onto an MP3 player.

Please be aware that this is not legal advice and if you are concerned about any of the issues mentioned you should speak to a lawyer.

You can contact Russell Jones & Walker's solicitors at enquiries@rjw.co.uk or call our freephone number 0800 916 9065.

• Do I have a right to work part time?
• So what do the laws on part-time work actually mean?
• How am I protected from less favourable treatment?
• How can I compare myself with a full-time worker?
• How do I work out if I have been treated less favourably?
• What do I do if I think I have been treated less favourably?
• How do I take a claim to an Employment Tribunal?
• What happens if the Tribunal agrees with me?

Do I have a right to work part time?

There is no automatic right to work part time. Parents of children under 6 - or disabled children under 18 - have the right to ask to work flexibly if they have been in their job for 26 weeks. Flexible working could include reduced hours, changes to times of work or home working.

You can't appeal against a refusal by your employer if they have considered your request properly. However, if your employer can't justify their refusal, they could be guilty of indirect sex discrimination as most part-time and flexible workers are women.

There are separate fact sheets with more information about requesting flexible working and sex discrimination.

So what do the laws on part-time work actually mean?

If you do work part-time, the law protects you from being treated less favourably than full-time workers without good reason. There is a formal procedure you can follow if you think this applies to you.

It is also illegal for your employer to put you at a disadvantage because you have made a complaint, or helped someone else make a complaint, about less favourable treatment for working part time. This is called victimisation.

How am I protected from less favourable treatment?

If you do work part-time, the law protects you from being treated less favourably than full-time workers without good reason.

The law is based on comparing the differences between full-time and part-time workers.

Less favourable treatment means things like differences in terms and conditions, day-to-day work practices or the working environment, or putting you at some kind of disadvantage. For example, part-time workers might have an inferior pension scheme or a lower hourly rate of pay than full time workers doing the same job.

This would be less favourable treatment if your employer can't give a good objective reason for it.

How can I compare myself with a full-time worker?

You have to compare your situation with someone who is employed by your employer on the same type of contract, doing the same sort of work, and with the same sort of skills and experience as you. Normally they should work in the same place as you, unless there aren't any full-time workers where you work. Your terms and conditions are also protected if you change from full-time to part-time working. This also applies if you return to part-time working if you've been absent for less than a year (for example, if you were on maternity leave).

It does not count as less favourable treatment if you get a lower rate of pay for any overtime, providing the hours you worked are within the normal full-time week.

How do I work out if I have been treated less favourably?

In most cases you will do this by using the "pro-rata principle". This means you will work out your benefits, such as pay, in proportion to a full-time worker. This won't always apply - for example, it might not be suitable to assess a car allowance on that basis.

What do I do if I think I have been treated less favourably?

You can ask your employer to give you a written statement setting out why you have been treated less favourably. They must respond within 21 days. This statement is used as evidence if you take your claim to an Employment Tribunal.

How do I take a claim to an Employment Tribunal?

Normally you have to make a claim within three months of the less favourable treatment.

If your complaint is about less favourable terms and conditions, this is counted as taking place on each day the terms are in place.

If your complaint is about returning to work or moving between full- and part-time work, the time is counted from the first day of the new contract or your return to work.

You can sometimes make a claim outside of this deadline.

What happens if the Tribunal agrees with me?

The Tribunal can order your employer to pay compensation or recommend they take action to end or reduce the less favourable treatment.