"We're pretty much appalled that the British Government is opposed to the ending of the opt-out," said assistant general secretary Tony Burke. He highlighted that the union already has an agreement on hours with the BPIF within the Partnership at Work framework.

"The deal aims to encourage employers to adopt flexible working practices... to allow them to work successfully within a 48-hour week," said BPIF public affairs officer Lizzy Hawkins.

"But we'd rather people were doing this voluntarily than be forced by legislation," she added.

While Burke was quick to recognise that overtime is sometimes a necessity in the print industry, he said that excessive hours raised health and safety issues.