I WAS pleased to read that menswear designer, Melanie Holton broadly welcomes the introduction of the new European Working Time Directive (Hours Ruling Will Protect Workers - BEN, October 22). But she is wrong to say it is impractical.

The new laws have been specially designed to be flexible. For people like Melanie with fluctuating workloads, the 40 hour limit is calculated over a four month period -- or even longer in some cases, not on a week by week basis.

Over and above that, Melanie can always volunteer to work more than the 48 hour maximum, if she wishes. But what the law says her bosses can no longer do is force her to work excessive hours against her will.

It's a pity your article failed to mention another key clause in the Working Time Directive -- the right to three weeks paid holiday, rising to four weeks from November 1999.

This is the first time ever in Britain that employees have the legal right to take time off work with pay. And more than 2.5 million people will immediately benefit.

Common sense tells you that tired workers are not productive workers. And excessively long hours with few, if any, holidays can also play havoc with family life.

Britain's workforce deserves a break.

Gary Titley MEP

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.