Chapter 18. Work breaks. Weekends and non-working holidays

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Published: June 25, 2016

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Labor legislation guarantees working citizens the mandatory availability of days off. Depending on the regime, these may be generally accepted days of rest - Saturday and Sunday, or provided for by the work schedule.

Involving employees in the performance of official duties is prohibited by Art. 113 Labor Code of the Russian Federation.

However, unplanned circumstances may arise at the enterprise that require one or more employees to be called on a non-working day. In such a situation, it is permissible to involve the organization’s personnel to work on days off, subject to the necessary conditions:

  • the presence of the employee’s consent expressed in writing (signature on the notice of call to work or under the order);
  • mandatory provision of compensation for work outside normal hours in the form of an additional day off or increased pay.

If work on an odd day is due to emergency circumstances, then the consent of the employees is not required. In addition, certain categories of workers can work in their free time (weekends) on the basis of a collective agreement (this mainly applies to the creative intelligentsia) or an approved work schedule.

No circumstances can be the basis for involving minor employees and pregnant women to work on established days off.

  • Procedure for calling to work on weekends
  • How are you compensated for working on a day off? Payment order
  • Transferring a day off to another time
  • Which is more profitable: double pay or time off?
      For employee
  • For the employer
  • Forced to work on weekends - is this possible?
  • Working on a day off according to the Labor Code of the Russian Federation

    Every employee has the right to rest, which is reflected in the provisions of the Constitution of the Russian Federation.
    In Art. 113 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation confirms the right of employees to rest on holidays and their days off. Involving them in additional work activities is possible if written consent to leave is obtained in advance. However, employees may refuse additional processing during non-working hours. Work during additional hours must be documented accordingly. Necessary:

    • obtain the employee’s written consent to go to work during holidays or weekends;
    • familiarize the employee with the conditions of severance, including the right to refuse work in free personal time;
    • notify the trade union body (if there is one);
    • issue an order to perform overtime work, indicating the reasons, duration and persons involved.

    Sometimes obtaining the employee's consent to perform work duties on weekends is not required. These are possible subject to the following conditions in accordance with Art. 113 Labor Code of the Russian Federation:

    • if it is necessary to prevent the occurrence of unforeseen circumstances that could lead to catastrophic consequences, including accidents or damage to the property of the enterprise;
    • the need to perform the work arose due to an emergency situation, including caused by a natural disaster or martial law.

    An exception is made for pregnant women. They cannot be involved in such work (Article 259 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation). Other categories of employees (disabled people, women with young children under 3 years old) are involved in overtime work only with their consent. It is prohibited to use it on weekends and by minors.

    Possible options for attracting people to work in their free time must be specified in the collective agreement and other internal local acts.

    ConsultantPlus experts explained in detail whether it is possible to hire an employee to work on a weekend or a holiday. Get trial access to the system for free and go to the Ready Solution to find out the answer.

    Article 109. Special breaks for heating and rest

    For certain types of work, it is envisaged that employees will be provided with special breaks during working hours, determined by the technology and organization of production and labor. The types of these works, the duration and procedure for providing such breaks are established by the internal labor regulations.

    (as amended by Federal Law No. 90-FZ of June 30, 2006)

    Employees working in the cold season in the open air or in closed, unheated rooms, as well as loaders engaged in loading and unloading operations, and other workers, if necessary, are provided with special breaks for heating and rest, which are included in working hours. The employer is obliged to provide premises for heating and rest of employees.

    Working conditions on weekends and holidays

    If there is a need for overtime work, management issues an order to involve employees who have agreed to perform the work. It records the start date for overtime work on weekends. In the event of emergency situations, going to work on weekends and holidays can also occur by verbal order of management (before the order is issued).

    Work on weekends by disabled people or women who have children under 3 years of age is possible not only with their written consent, but also provided there are no medical contraindications to working overtime.

    NOTE! If an employee works under a fixed-term employment contract lasting up to 2 months, it will not be possible to involve him in work on weekends without obtaining written consent, even in the event of an emergency (Article 290 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

    Article 108. Breaks for rest and food

    During the working day (shift), the employee must be given a break for rest and food lasting no more than two hours and no less than 30 minutes, which is not included in working hours.
    The time for granting a break and its specific duration are established by internal labor regulations or by agreement between the employee and the employer.

    (as amended by Federal Law No. 90-FZ of June 30, 2006)

    At jobs where, due to production (work) conditions, it is impossible to provide a break for rest and food, the employer is obliged to provide the employee with the opportunity to rest and eat food during working hours. The list of such work, as well as places for rest and eating, are established by the internal labor regulations.

    (as amended by Federal Law No. 90-FZ of June 30, 2006)

    Pay for work on days off

    Employees are entitled to compensation for the use of personal time spent working overtime. They have the right to choose:

    • or take an additional day off and receive payment for work on a day off in a single amount;

    If you have access to K+, check whether you have correctly registered work on a day off if the employee took a day off. If you don’t have access, get free trial access to the system and go to the Ready Solution.

    • or agree to double monetary compensation based on the current tariff rate or for piecework payment (Article 153 of the Labor Code of the Russian Federation).

    For those employees who are entitled to a fixed monthly salary, payment for work on weekends and holidays is made based on the daily or hourly rate, if the monthly working time standard (according to the Labor Code of the Russian Federation) is not exceeded. If the monthly working time limits are exceeded, payment for additional work on holidays and weekends is calculated at double the rate.

    If an employee has requested time off, he must write a corresponding application.

    The rules for calculating additional compensation for weekends and holidays do not apply to those whose regular schedule includes the possibility of working on holidays and weekends: employees with irregular working hours or shift work.

    All additional conditions can be specified in the internal regulations on remuneration, the procedure for filling which you will learn from the article “Regulations on remuneration of employees - sample 2021 - 2020” .

    Working overtime reduces productivity

    Working seven days a week became a reality in our society at the end of the 20th century. More and more companies are focused on making instant profits. The practice of extending the work week is winning thanks to modern entrepreneurs who are inspired to search for ideas and then implement them. This trend is being picked up by freelancers who have piecework wages, doctors and social workers who agree to part-time work because of the low salary.

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    The problem is that longer workweeks force workaholics to pay with their health. There is much evidence that overtime is ineffective. They reduce productivity and lead to a phenomenon called professional burnout. Due to constant stress, people feel tired and have problems sleeping, which does not allow the body to recover. This ultimately leads to a range of mental and physical illnesses.

    Results

    In some situations, work during periods intended for rest (holidays, weekends) is necessary to maintain the normal operation of the enterprise. However, in most cases, employees must voluntarily agree to perform work duties outside of normal working hours. Additional work on weekends is prohibited for certain categories of employees (pregnant women, minors).

    Sources: Labor Code of the Russian Federation

    You can find more complete information on the topic in ConsultantPlus. Free trial access to the system for 2 days.

    People are trapped

    Many people are forced to work overtime to make ends meet. They are stuck in a system that encourages them to take on more responsibilities in order to pay off their mortgage faster or pay their bills on time. Globalization further complicates the situation as business partners may reside in different time zones.

    This is most common among those employed in the gig economy, where workers (often from Africa or Southeast Asia) are not formally employed but work for a company or in freelance work that involves blogging, creating websites or social media management.

    About problems

    But this professional breakthrough turned into problems in life. I constantly felt overwhelmed, I hardly went anywhere, and in general I rarely left the house. I missed my daughter’s first school year, which caused her to have a problem with her studies, which I then solved for several more years.

    I almost forgot what my friends looked like, and my relationship with my parents had seriously deteriorated. I felt guilty any time I wasn't working.

    The thought that instead of standing in line at the supermarket or drinking coffee with a friend, I could write another text was constantly in my head, and it was really depressing.

    The turning point was a common cold, which unsettled me, a person in excellent health, for two weeks. Moreover, I learned from the therapist that all the ailments that I attributed to fatigue were symptoms of advanced anemia. Everything was so bad that if I had come to the clinic a month or two later, I would have been hospitalized immediately. And then I realized that it was time to stop.

    People are forced to sacrifice sleep

    The most obvious effect of overwork is sleep deprivation. People sacrifice their vacation for the sake of mythical profits or improving their own status in the company. However, this situation further reinforces the vicious circle. Freelancing platforms have come under fire lately for promoting an unhealthy work model in which people are forced to work overtime to meet deadlines and maintain their reputation.

    One survey of freelancers in Southeast Asia revealed a disturbing trend. More than half of the respondents said they were forced to work at very high speeds, 60% of them faced deadlines, and another 22% of respondents experienced physical pain from their work.

    Where to go

    If an employee is forced to go to work on a rest day, but he does not want or cannot do this, he must follow the following algorithm:

    1. come to the regional labor inspectorate or call ( application is free );
    2. voice the essence of the problem clearly and clearly ( the name of the organization where he works, the reason for the refusal and other details that may be relevant );
    3. collect the necessary package of documents proving the fact of violation of labor rights ( from the list above );
    4. bring these documents to the labor inspectorate or send them by mail ( courier );
    5. Wait for your application to be reviewed ( may take up to 1 month ).

    After the complaint has been considered, the inspector will draw up an act and send a letter to the manager indicating violations of the employee’s rights and asking them to eliminate these violations within a specific time frame. Upon correction of violations, the manager must send written notification to the inspector.

    IMPORTANT! An employee can be sure of the anonymity of his application to the labor inspectorate. In order to remain anonymous, it is necessary to warn the inspector about this before presenting the problem.

    What about the “owls”?

    For many people, working nights is not an option, but what about those who really enjoy it? Most often we are talking about “night owls” - people who hate getting up early, but are active in the evening and at night. “Owls” are not lazy at all: studies show that it is actually more difficult for them to wake up in the morning than “larks” and “pigeons,” that is, representatives of the morning and intermediate chronotypes. The biological clock of "owls" is delayed compared to other "birds" - for example, the production of certain hormones in the body of an "owl" reaches daily peaks several hours later.

    Many researchers agree that trying to retrain “owls” is pointless.

    Trying to adapt to generally accepted norms and get up early, owners of the evening chronotype risk encountering “social jetlag” - an imbalance between the internal clock and the standard schedule.

    One of its manifestations is the sharp differences between the weekend schedule, when the “night owl” goes to bed and gets up late, and the weekday schedule, when she has to force herself to get up early. Such “swings” are a great stress for the body, causing the dangerous consequences that Russell Foster spoke about.

    For some night owls, working in the evening or at night may actually be more convenient than a standard schedule. At the same time, it is important to follow general recommendations: get enough sleep, set a schedule and try to wake up at the same time, and in the morning avoid sunlight as much as possible in order to fully rest.

    When to complain

    Many people don’t know what to do if their boss forces them to work on a day off, and simply agree to another after-hours day. But if the employee carefully reads his own rights, he will understand that he has every right to refuse.

    But writing a complaint does not always make sense. Often, after a complaint, the relationship between a boss and a subordinate deteriorates sharply, sometimes the matter ends in dismissal. But there are a number of cases when it is simply necessary to write a complaint:

    • When an employee does not plan to quit, but he is not satisfied with the work organization . In this case, it is better to make an anonymous appeal, then the labor inspectorate will check the personal files of all employees, which will exclude the possibility of identifying the author of the appeal.
    • If a person wants to quit due to unsatisfactory working conditions, he should write a complaint. Moreover, in this case it is not necessary to remain anonymous, since there will be no need to be afraid of losing your job.
    • When an employee was fired without due payments, he should immediately contact the labor inspectorate and resolve this issue.
    • If an employee worked on a day off, but was only paid half (as for a regular working day), he can write a complaint to the labor inspectorate.

    Possible difficulties

    It is quite difficult to achieve a positive result in resolving issues related to an employer’s violation of labor laws. This is explained by the fact that most bosses know the procedure for involving subordinates in work on non-working days and try to do this according to the law.

    Then it turns out that the employee has no grounds to prove a violation on the part of the manager. That is why it is important for an employee to know all his rights, as well as the algorithm of actions in case of their violation.

    The gig economy and its realities

    The higher a specialist’s rating on these platforms, the greater the likelihood of official employment. To get good reviews, employees must fulfill all customer requirements and ensure they negotiate with the best terms. They must always be available, otherwise they will remain on the sidelines of hiring. If an employee is not on the top list, the pressure on him only increases. Some of them are trying to attract more clients by reducing prices for their services. This forces them to work 12 or more hours for very modest pay.

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    In addition, most freelancers do a significant amount of unpaid work: they work as admins, create profiles for other people, and learn skills that will allow them to improve their own profile. It all boils down to a long and grueling routine.

    Similar patterns are repeated across all areas of the gig economy. For example, some taxi drivers are forced to drive for 20 hours at a time to take advantage of the increased fare.

    Extreme schedule

    Ulyana Pavlova recalls that she first started working seven days a week when, at the age of 22, she was appointed head of the advertising department, and her subordinate quit. “I worked until nine in the evening every day, after a month the kind management transferred all calls from the IP phone to our cell phone if we didn’t answer the phone. So retail staff calling at 7 a.m. on a Sunday also became the norm,” she recalls. Only six months later she realized that she was not only underpaid for overtime, but also had her bonus reduced if something was not done, but this did not upset her too much. “When you are 22 years old, when you don’t have a mortgage, loans, and the man of your dreams is often on business trips, then why not work?” - she reasons. True, she soon resigned from this company and switched to a more relaxed schedule.

    Four years ago, she had to repeat this experience when she launched her agency. “I slept in an embrace with Skype and a diary, I dreamed of answers to the customer, and with my eyes closed I already knew all the passwords and codes for the programs. I didn’t know what day of the week, and I got up from the table only to go to the kindergarten to pick up the child,” she recalls. According to Ulyana, the only thing that helped her survive this period was the understanding that this was temporary.

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