In the British Armed Services, "Jankers" or "Restrictions of Privileges" refers to an official disciplinary measure employed for minor breaches of military discipline.
The term jankers is today very occasionally used jokingly in civilian life, such as in journalism to mean the punishment of minor infringements by the imposition of tedious duties.
The kinds of offences which, most typically, resulted in being put on Jankers, have always been fairly minor breaches of discipline, most commonly being AWOL, e.g. returning to base slightly late after leave on a weekend pass.
After lunch, the man has to report again to the guardroom for inspection, and is then assigned unpleasant work, known as "fatigues", until shortly before he must attend the afternoon's muster parade.
The final parade of the day was at 22.00 hours, and in best Battle Dress, best boots, sharply and cleanly turned out, and with every piece of equipment provided by the Army.
[citation needed] The theory was that the whole punishment made the offender's daily life unpleasant, having to get up extremely early, then rushing about miserable, often having the mickey taken out of him by his mates and perhaps feeling humiliated.
[citation needed] British cinema films of that epoch like Private's Progress (1956) and Carry on Sergeant (1958) habitually made fun of Jankers, as have memoirs of life in the armed services.