Hi,
I am new to this forum.
Just have a query about overtime-is it compulsory to give overtime to employees.
Our company is an architectural firm with about 40 employees, we had an overtime policy where one has to complete 8 hrs per day and the extra hours worked were counted as overtime without the prior permission of the seniors.
Now , we have changed this policy and an employee has to the take prior permission to work overtime and also overtime will be counted for a complete 1 hr. For eg-office ends at 6.30Pm and employee works till 7PM-no overtime will be there ,only if he works till 7.30Pm, overtime will be counted.
Now the employees are not happy with this, they want overtime for ten-fifteen minutes also.
Can anyone tell me are there any loopholes in this policy and how can we change the attitude of employees towards overtime.
Regards,
Anju
From India, New Delhi
2I am new to this forum.
Just have a query about overtime-is it compulsory to give overtime to employees.
Our company is an architectural firm with about 40 employees, we had an overtime policy where one has to complete 8 hrs per day and the extra hours worked were counted as overtime without the prior permission of the seniors.
Now , we have changed this policy and an employee has to the take prior permission to work overtime and also overtime will be counted for a complete 1 hr. For eg-office ends at 6.30Pm and employee works till 7PM-no overtime will be there ,only if he works till 7.30Pm, overtime will be counted.
Now the employees are not happy with this, they want overtime for ten-fifteen minutes also.
Can anyone tell me are there any loopholes in this policy and how can we change the attitude of employees towards overtime.
Regards,
Anju
From India, New Delhi
Taking prior permission for overtime is justified. Explain your employees that many people were taking advantage of the old policy. At times there was no work and still people were in the office doing nothing but on the net surfing the websites of their own choices and entertaing themself. Of course they enjoy the canteen facility, AC, Phone facility and a lot more.
Tell those employees that some people were caught and the phone call details and the internet bill plus other expences were checked out and analysed. The management found out that some people were taking advantage of the liberty given to them. The new policy came into picture because of them only. Also tell them that this won't affect to all those who really work and the management needs them to work genuinely because of the deadlines of timeframe.
And for your information.... no body pays the overtime for 15- 20 minutes. Yes at some places those minutes are accumulated and converted into an hour but this is also not right. Cauz some people while leaving their work call their home ....pack their bags...or wait for other employees to pack off or do various things, they should not be paid for it. But if a person is staying till 7:30 that means he worked for some time ..... you have to manipulate your statements and convince them. Take a tough stand and be firm. Whenever there is a change ..... resistance is always there but little later people will get used to the new system. Encourage them the with the positive things and benifits ....
Take care .....
Anand.
Tell those employees that some people were caught and the phone call details and the internet bill plus other expences were checked out and analysed. The management found out that some people were taking advantage of the liberty given to them. The new policy came into picture because of them only. Also tell them that this won't affect to all those who really work and the management needs them to work genuinely because of the deadlines of timeframe.
And for your information.... no body pays the overtime for 15- 20 minutes. Yes at some places those minutes are accumulated and converted into an hour but this is also not right. Cauz some people while leaving their work call their home ....pack their bags...or wait for other employees to pack off or do various things, they should not be paid for it. But if a person is staying till 7:30 that means he worked for some time ..... you have to manipulate your statements and convince them. Take a tough stand and be firm. Whenever there is a change ..... resistance is always there but little later people will get used to the new system. Encourage them the with the positive things and benifits ....
Take care .....
Anand.
Hi,
Also we have faced this problem in our concern. But we have eliminated problems raised due to overtime. You can do the following things :-
01. A written notice should be issued that no employee will be paid for overtime without prior permission.
02. In the necessity of overtime particular employee should be asked to work on overtime by immediate supervisor or boss.
03. Put a overtime sheet for each employee.
04. Next day OT sheet must be signed and approved by immediate supervisor or boss.
Following the above steps you can minimise the OT hours in your firm. I think that 10 to 15 minutes should not be considered for overtime hours.
Regards.
Rajesh
From India, Bhopal
Also we have faced this problem in our concern. But we have eliminated problems raised due to overtime. You can do the following things :-
01. A written notice should be issued that no employee will be paid for overtime without prior permission.
02. In the necessity of overtime particular employee should be asked to work on overtime by immediate supervisor or boss.
03. Put a overtime sheet for each employee.
04. Next day OT sheet must be signed and approved by immediate supervisor or boss.
Following the above steps you can minimise the OT hours in your firm. I think that 10 to 15 minutes should not be considered for overtime hours.
Regards.
Rajesh
From India, Bhopal
Dear Anju,
I am sorry that I have to reply to your query without having referred to the replies by other friends due to the paucity of time.
Firstly, determine under which Statute is your company / organization covered or falling in purview. (Example: Factories Act or Shops & Establishments Act, etc). Next, also carefully notice, if there are any exemptions for a particular industry, process carried out, etc within the Acts / Statutes under which your organization / company falls. Also check whether, the workmen fall within the definition of worker / workmen under that particular applicable Act. (As per Industrial Disputes Act all are workmen, but all other acts define workmen differently and technically this has to be noted.)
As per the Factories Act (not referring to the exceptions), no worker shall be allowed to work more than 8 hours per day and 48 hours per week (^ working days) without being paid an OT (at twice the rate of normal wages) for the extra hours of work. The total number of hours including OT is again limited by statute. Also examine certain nuances. For example a workman may work for more than 8 hour per day and need not be paid overtime for hours beyond 8 on a particular day if he is not working more than 48 hours per week!!! How's that possible? Say a worker has actually worked more than 8 hours per day for only 3 days and he was ascent on the rest of the days of the week. in this case though he has worked more than 8 hours per day for three days, yet the other condition of exceeding 48 per week is not met. Hence these extra hours pay will be normal pay and there is no legal requirement to pay OT for those extra hours per day beyond 8 hours. If implementable, it can save a company lots of money in the long run. Much depends on the tradition that has been followed and it is near impossible to reverse it if OT beyond 8 hours per day for workmen has already been a precedence or practice. In actuality, a lot of organizations are still not paying OT even though it is not legally right.
Any comments and views on that????
regards,
M.A.Ganju
From United Arab Emirates, Sharjah
I am sorry that I have to reply to your query without having referred to the replies by other friends due to the paucity of time.
Firstly, determine under which Statute is your company / organization covered or falling in purview. (Example: Factories Act or Shops & Establishments Act, etc). Next, also carefully notice, if there are any exemptions for a particular industry, process carried out, etc within the Acts / Statutes under which your organization / company falls. Also check whether, the workmen fall within the definition of worker / workmen under that particular applicable Act. (As per Industrial Disputes Act all are workmen, but all other acts define workmen differently and technically this has to be noted.)
As per the Factories Act (not referring to the exceptions), no worker shall be allowed to work more than 8 hours per day and 48 hours per week (^ working days) without being paid an OT (at twice the rate of normal wages) for the extra hours of work. The total number of hours including OT is again limited by statute. Also examine certain nuances. For example a workman may work for more than 8 hour per day and need not be paid overtime for hours beyond 8 on a particular day if he is not working more than 48 hours per week!!! How's that possible? Say a worker has actually worked more than 8 hours per day for only 3 days and he was ascent on the rest of the days of the week. in this case though he has worked more than 8 hours per day for three days, yet the other condition of exceeding 48 per week is not met. Hence these extra hours pay will be normal pay and there is no legal requirement to pay OT for those extra hours per day beyond 8 hours. If implementable, it can save a company lots of money in the long run. Much depends on the tradition that has been followed and it is near impossible to reverse it if OT beyond 8 hours per day for workmen has already been a precedence or practice. In actuality, a lot of organizations are still not paying OT even though it is not legally right.
Any comments and views on that????
regards,
M.A.Ganju
From United Arab Emirates, Sharjah
we also work for just 44 hous in a week and not 48 hours, then also we have this overtime policy so now eith ur inputs I will try to improve things thanx so much
From India, New Delhi
From India, New Delhi
Dear Anju,
Kindly note that what is given in the applicable statutes is mandatory minimum to be followed and complied with. However, any organization may have its own policies, practices (consistently applied) that in toto are not less advantageous to the employees or workmen than the provisions stated under any particular applicable statute. So if your company has followed the practice of awarding over time beyond the 44 hours of work put in one week (6 working days) and since it is more advantageous than the minimum prescribed by the statute (say Factories Act), the the company policy / practice will prevail even if there were no legal obligation to do so.
Moreover, what happens or follows in actual practice is that once a precedent is set and followed for some time it is almost very difficult to reverse the same even in the eyes of the law. Law has no issues with your company practices if in toto (holistically and not in fragments or parts) they are superior to any statute in their benefit to any statute.
I hope I have clarified your statement.
Many regards,
M.A.Ganju
From United Arab Emirates, Sharjah
Kindly note that what is given in the applicable statutes is mandatory minimum to be followed and complied with. However, any organization may have its own policies, practices (consistently applied) that in toto are not less advantageous to the employees or workmen than the provisions stated under any particular applicable statute. So if your company has followed the practice of awarding over time beyond the 44 hours of work put in one week (6 working days) and since it is more advantageous than the minimum prescribed by the statute (say Factories Act), the the company policy / practice will prevail even if there were no legal obligation to do so.
Moreover, what happens or follows in actual practice is that once a precedent is set and followed for some time it is almost very difficult to reverse the same even in the eyes of the law. Law has no issues with your company practices if in toto (holistically and not in fragments or parts) they are superior to any statute in their benefit to any statute.
I hope I have clarified your statement.
Many regards,
M.A.Ganju
From United Arab Emirates, Sharjah
Would the OT law be different depending on the type of the organization i.e
Properitory Firm
Partnership Firm
Public Ltd
Pvt Ltd
Or does the OT Law or any employee law depend on the whether it comes under Factory or Shops & Establishment act.
Regards,
Asha
Properitory Firm
Partnership Firm
Public Ltd
Pvt Ltd
Or does the OT Law or any employee law depend on the whether it comes under Factory or Shops & Establishment act.
Regards,
Asha
Dear Anju,a proper format is to be designed where the employee mentions the purpose of doing overtime, his name, employee id, time starts and ends etc.priyanka
From India, Bhopal
From India, Bhopal
Thank you Mr.Ganju your reply is very good except following error.
Please note that as per Factories Act overtime provision states if workment works morethan 9 hours day and 48 hours a week may be corrected.
Regards
Sawant
From Saudi Arabia
Please note that as per Factories Act overtime provision states if workment works morethan 9 hours day and 48 hours a week may be corrected.
Regards
Sawant
From Saudi Arabia
OVERTIME
I. GENERAL
As a general policy, overtime work is to be avoided. Not only is it costly in terms of added salary expense, but it may seriously affect employee morale. Experience has shown excessive overtime to be a substantial cause of resignations. Therefore, it is a major responsibility of supervisors throughout the Company to eliminate overtime to the extent possible or when it becomes necessary in the interests of our business, to hold it to a minimum.
The supervisor who discusses overtime policy and procedures with the new employee before an overtime situation arises will have solved in advance most problems overtime work can entail. Care should be taken, however, to include no promise of overtime work as a means of providing added compensation on a regular basis, even though some employees may volunteer to handle any and all overtime work that may arise.
The Company operates on a normal workweek of five days, 40 hours (an eight-hour normal workday). Company is paid for overtime work on the following basis:
- Overtime is paid to non-exempt employees at time and one-half the weekly rate divided by 40 for work beyond their regular workday.
- The Company does not, however, begin accruing overtime until an employee has worked one-half hour beyond the regular workday.
- Once non-exempt employees have worked one-half hour beyond the regular workday, they receive pay at time and one-half computed on actual minutes, for all time over and above the regular workday.
- In all such computations, meal periods are excluded.
- Overtime work is authorized by the supervising officer's signature in the designated box located in the lower right-hand corner of The Payroll Time Batch Control Form.
- Payment for overtime is computed on the same basis, whether the hours worked are in the department to which the employee is regularly assigned or in another department.
The foregoing provisions apply to part-time employees in the same manner as full-time non-exempt employees; for example, such employees receive pay at 1 1/2 times their regular hourly rate for work beyond 8 hours per day. This is not, however, accrued until an employee has worked 8 1/2 hours in one day.
Supervisors and exempt employees do not receive payment for overtime on days included in their regular workweek.
II. COMPENSATORY TIME
At the discretion of their supervisors, some employees who work on a 5-day workweek and work at least 5 hours on a non-regular workday may be granted the option of a day off with pay in lieu of overtime pay. The day must be taken during the pay period in which overtime occurs. Full-time employees on a 4-day workweek must work 6 3/4 hours on a non-regular workday to be eligible for compensatory time. This option also applies to holiday work; that is, eligible employees may receive regular compensation for the holiday and an additional day off in the same pay period in lieu of overtime pay.
III. SHIFT DIFFERENTIAL
Employees, who are assigned to the evening or night shifts, other than on a temporary assignment of less than one month, receive a differential payment of 15% of their base salary. An employee subsequently transferred to the day shift loses the differential.
Employees starting work between 2:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. are employees of the evening shift. Those starting after 10:00 p.m. but before 4:00 a.m. are night shift employees.
The shift differential for part-time evening employees is not included in base pay but is granted when the major portion of working hours falls after 6:00 p.m.
IV. SUPPER ALLOWANCE
A supper allowance of $ is paid to exempt employees who work two hours or more beyond their normal workday during their regular workweek. However, a supper allowance is not paid for those employees who are scheduled working at evening as normal working hours.
Non-exempt employees receive overtime pay and are not eligible for supper allowances.
The supper allowance is reported on the Time Data Entry System or on the Time Record Card (returned to the Payroll Unit by Wednesday of each week). Supper allowances to eligible employees for work performed in departments other than their own are also reported on the Time Data Entry System or Time Record Card in the loan-out category.
V. LEGAL HOLIDAYS AND NON-REGULAR WORKDAYS
In addition to regular pay for holidays, non-exempt employees are compensated at time and one-half, with a minimum of three hours' pay, when they work on a legal holiday regularly observed by the Company, or on any day which is not part of their regular workweek. Employees who are exempt from overtime receive straight time with a minimum of three hours' pay for work on the above-mentioned days. Supervisors below the rank of Manager receive $ per hour with a minimum of $ . Approval of the supervising officer must be obtained in the case of exempt employees, and the area supervisor in the case of officers. Neither group is entitled to supper money.
Officers at the level of Manager and above are ineligible for compensation other than reimbursement for travel expenses and supper money.
John Chiang, Shanghai, China
From China, Shanghai
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Canteen Policy.doc