What are cumulative work days and cumulative work periods?

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A cumulative work day:

• starts when a driver commences duty for the day but only after a driver completes a continuous period of rest that is 10 or more hours, and
• can be no more than 24 hours in duration, but can be less.

Example 1

Driver starts work at 0500 (day 1). The cumulative work day finishes at 0500 the next day (day 2). Because the cumulative work day must include a continuous period of rest of at least 10 hours the driver must commence rest no later than 1900 on the same day (day 1).

Example 2

Driver starts work at 0500 (day 1) and finishes at 1200 the same day. They then take a rest of 10 hours after which they commence work again at 2200 and work a full day.

Recording rest periods

The start and finish times of each 10-hour (minimum) rest period must be recorded as well as the location at which it was taken. Independent verification of where the rest was taken may be sought by enforcement officers if they suspect a driver may have breached work time provisions.

Cumulative work period

This is the period of work between rest breaks of at least 24 hours. The maximum number of hours that can be worked in a cumulative work period is 70.

Page created: 2 May 2008