New regulations on hours of work and hours of rest from 1st February 2022

On 15th December 2021, the Ministry of Labor, war invalids, and social affairs issued Circular No.18/2021/TT-BLDTBXH, which has affected on 1st February 2022. This Circular regulation on hours of work and hours of rest applies to employees doing seasonal production work and processing of goods under orders. This article focuses on some highlights of Circular 18/2021 specifically as follows:

1. The Circular provided the maximum daily standard hours of work and extra hours of work

Accordingly, Article 6 of Circular No. 18/2021/TT-BLDTBXH stipulates:

  • The total maximum number of standard hours of work and extra hours of work in a day is 12
  • The total maximum number of standard hours of work and extra hours of work in a week is 72; 
  • The total maximum number of extra hours of work in a month is 40; and
  • The total of extra hours of work in a year of each worker shall not exceed 300 hours.

2. Specific regulations on hours of rest for employees

According to the provisions of Article 7, Circular No. 18/2021/TT-BLDTBXH, the employees are entitled to at least one day off (24 consecutive hours) per week. In seasonal-work months or when export goods must be urgently processed under orders, the employer shall arrange at least 4 days off every month for the workers if weekly days cannot be arranged. During-shift and between-shift breaks for workers shall comply with the Labor Code and Decree No. 145/2020/ND-CP provisions. The employer has responsibility for arranging employees to take all official holidays, annual leave days and other paid days off; shorten hours of work and ensure hours of rest for female workers, minor workers, and elderly workers; decide on unpaid leave in accordance with the provisions of the Labor Code.

3. Regulations on the responsibilities of the employer when applying the hours of work and hours of rest regime for employees

The employer is responsible, based on their actual annual production and business plans, for taking the initiative in applying their plans on normal hours of work and hours of rest according to the Labor Code, or on hours of work prescribed in Circular No. 18/2021/TT-BLDTBXH. In case the employer decides to implement hours of work and hours of rest according to this Circular, they shall have to make and adjust the plan of hours of work and hours of rest during the year, and it is necessary to consult the representative organization of workers at the workplace.

The employer shall notify workers within their enterprises, agencies, organizations, cooperatives, households, and individuals of plans on hours of work and hours of rest at least 30 days before implementation, and reach an agreement with workers on overtime work under regulations of the Labor Code and shall pay a wage to their workers according to the labor contract and other regulations of the law;

In addition, Circular 18/2021/TT-BLDTBXH also provides the Formulating plan for the determination of standard daily hours of work and regulations on the principles of using the standard hours of work. From there, the employer has a basis for calculating and making appropriate regulations on hours of work and hours of rest for employees that doing seasonal production work and processing of goods under orders.

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