Understanding Labor Laws: Working Hours, Breaks, and Salary

Posted on Feb 4, 2025 in Business Administration and Innovation Management

Working Hours

• Worker’s Obligation: Governed by Article 34 ET and will be agreed upon in the collective agreement or employment contract.
• Daily Working Hours: No more than 9 hours. This limit may be exceeded if a daily rest of 12 hours is respected.
• Workweek: May not exceed 40 hours in annual calculation (irregularly throughout the year, up to 40 hours multiplied by the total working weeks per year). Respecting this, it may exceed the weekly rest period. Workers over 18 years old have a minimum of 36 hours of weekly rest, while those under 18 have a minimum of 48 hours. This rest can accumulate up to 14 days, resulting in 11 days off and 3 days worked.
• Types of Working Time:
  • Full-time: 40 hours.
  • Part-time: Up to 77% of the 40 hours.
  • Continuous: When work is performed all day uninterrupted, with a 15-minute rest every 6 hours. Workers under 18 years old must have a half-hour break after 4 hours of work.
  • Split Shift: The workday is divided by a rest period of one hour.
• Extensions or Reductions of Working Time: In certain activities, by their very nature, working time may be extended or reduced.
  • Extended: Urban farm employees, guards and watchmen, field labor, trade, hospitality, and transportation.
  • Reduced: Workers at risk or in the field.
• Night Work: From 10 PM to 6 AM or within this period.
• Shift Work: Several people take turns with a rhythm in a continuous or batch job for certain days or weeks.
• Overtime: After normal working hours, overtime is paid in cash or with equivalent time off within 4 months. The maximum is 80 hours of overtime per year.
  • Force Majeure: To prevent or repair urgent damages, and these hours are not included within the 40-hour limit.
  • Common Overtime: For production reasons. Minors cannot work overtime unless it is due to force majeure.

Employment Breaks

• Companies must produce a work calendar that contains the schedule, annual distribution of workdays, weekly rest, etc., and place it in a conspicuous place.
• Annual Leave: At least 30 paid days per year. Annual leave can only be removed with the termination of the worker, and they must be paid for it. The worker shall be informed at least 2 months in advance.
• Holidays: Paid and non-recoverable. They may not exceed 14 days per year (2 local holidays, holidays set by the government or the autonomous communities, Christmas, New Year, May 1st, October 12th).
• Paid Leave: With prior permission and subsequent justification, an employee may be absent with pay on the following grounds: marriage, birth or death, accident, illness or hospitalization of relatives up to the 2nd degree of consanguinity or affinity, transfer of residence, pursuant to an inescapable duty, or prenatal testing and studies.

Salary

• Employer’s Obligation: Article 26 Joint ET payments in cash or in-kind (no more than 30% of salary).
• Types of Pay: Cash, in-kind, per unit of time, per unit of work.
• Composition of Wages:
  • Base Salary (SB): Agreement group or Minimum Interprofessional Wage (SMI): Government-set at 600€.
  • Supplements:
    • Personal: Seniority, languages, special knowledge, responsibility, and residence.
    • Job-related: Shift work, night work, danger, toxicity, arduousness.
    • Quality or quantity of work: Overtime, punctuality, attendance, incentives.
    • Monthly newspaper due: Including extra payments and benefits.
  • Non-wage Perceptions: These are not part of the employee’s salary and are benefits or compensation from Social Security or the company, gifts, or private benefits. They have a compensatory nature, minimizing as much as possible the costs to the worker for the development of their work.
• Extra Payments: Minimum of 2 per year (when stated in the agreement or prorated for months).
• Additional Benefits: Transportation (home-work), travel expenses (work-related company), or subsistence (meals or overnight stays).