The concept of overtime is widely known, yet settling it correctly still poses a challenge for many employers. The Polish Labour Code clearly distinguishes between two types of overtime work, each of which is subject to separate rules. Therefore, before an employer begins to settle overtime, they must know which type they are dealing with.
What exactly is overtime?
Under the law, overtime work occurs where the employee exceeds the working time standard (Article 151 of the Labour Code). The working time standards are exceeded when an employee works longer than results from the working time system and schedule applicable to them (that is, most often, exceeding 8 hours of work in a single day or an average of 40 hours of work per week). It follows that the employee may exceed the prescribed working time both on a daily and on a weekly basis.
Working time standards vary depending on the working time system applicable at a given employer. In the basic working time system, the daily standard is 8 hours, whereas, for example, in the equivalent working time system this standard is as much as 12 hours. And it is precisely exceeding the daily working time that gives rise to daily overtime.
Overtime also arises where the averaged weekly working time standard is exceeded. Again – in the basic working time system it amounts to an average of 40 hours per week, so overtime arises with the 41st and each subsequent hour of work in a week. By contrast, for example, in the continuous operation working time system, weekly overtime will arise only after an average of 43 hours per week has been exceeded.
When does daily overtime arise and how should it be settled?
Daily overtime arises where the employee’s daily working time is exceeded. If the employee is covered by the basic working time system (i.e. 8 hours) and worked 10 hours on a given day, the number of overtime hours will be 2. An important caveat here is that the employee day (doba pracownicza) should be understood as 24 consecutive hours counted from the hour at which the employee starts work in accordance with the schedule applicable to them. For example, if the employee started work at 9:00 on Tuesday, the employee day ends at 9:00 on Wednesday. The number of hours worked on a given day (including overtime) should therefore be calculated in accordance with the definition of the employee day (and not the “calendar” day).
Daily overtime should be settled on an ongoing basis. This means that the overtime allowance for this type of overtime is paid together with the monthly salary.
When does weekly overtime arise and how should it be settled?
Weekly overtime consists of working hours exceeding the average weekly working time applicable to a given employee. This type of overtime should be calculated as follows:
The basic rule for settling weekly overtime is that, unlike daily overtime, it is settled not on an ongoing basis, but within a given settlement period. Thus, depending on the settlement period applicable at a given employer, this overtime may be settled every month, every 4 months, or even every 12 months.
The principle of counting overtime hours only once
The Labour Code adopts the principle that overtime is counted only once. This means that hours already counted as daily overtime and settled in the current month are deducted from the pool of overtime hours for the purpose of calculating the amount of weekly overtime. This is a very logical solution and means that the same overtime hour cannot give rise to two claims at the same time (as both daily and weekly overtime). In practice, therefore, weekly overtime is solely the number of hours that exceeds the weekly standard and has not previously been settled as daily overtime.
Knowledge of the above rules gives the employer a solid basis for settling overtime correctly. Of course, in practice, the employer bears a number of other obligations and must observe other rules in connection with overtime worked by employees. In particular, it is necessary to bear in mind the annual overtime limit, the obligation to provide employees with daily and weekly rest, and the prohibition of overtime work for certain categories of employees. Correct application of the overtime settlement rules makes it possible to avoid not only legal errors but, above all, employment disputes.
the author of the article is lawyer – Patrycja Kiszka
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