An hour bank is a workday flexibility mechanism that allows for the accumulation of additional work hours performed by an employee “Personal Account” to compensate them later With free time or reduced working hours in periods of less activity, rather than being paid immediately as overtime.
What Labor Reform Proposes About a “Watch Bank”
suggestion The repair work will include the watch bank number To give greater flexibility to work organization, especially in sectors with seasonal or fluctuating activity.
will be established by Collective agreements at various levels or even individual agreements That would allow negotiation of the day’s distribution.
During times of high demand or peak production, a worker can extend his day (for example, work 10 hours instead of 8 for 4 days), and those extra hours will accumulate in the bank.
In periods of low demand, the worker can use the accumulated time to… Obtaining compensatory leave or reducing working hours, Without this meaning a decrease in your salary.
According to information about the project, the watch bank will be a An alternative to traditional overtime, but will not completely replace it. Article 201 of the Labor Contract Law (LCT) regulating 50% and 100% surcharges for overtime will remain in effect, but the agreement could give priority to the hour bank. If there is no agreement, working hours will continue to be paid at an additional cost.
The goal is to adapt the distribution of hours according to the company’s production peaks and Allow workers to take vacation Hence, achieving a balance between productivity and comfort.
What is the Greek model?
The “Greek Model” has been cited as an inspiration for the Argentine Reformation, although it presents specific characteristics that have generated controversy:
Extended day: The worker is allowed to extend the daily working day from 8 to 13 hours voluntarily, albeit for a limited number of days per week: up to 3 times per week and an annual limit of up to 37 days per year.
compensation: Hours worked above the statutory workday are accumulated and compensated for with subsequent rest periods, but with additional compensation less than traditional overtime pay. The surcharge is 40% instead of the higher surcharge in other countries or the current Argentine system.
Intentionally: It is well established that extending the working day must be voluntary and employers cannot fire those who refuse to extend their working hours.
Minimal comfort: At least twelve hours of rest must be respected between days.
What does a “watch bank” look like in the world?
andThe watch bank is a tool for business flexibility that is used in different countries, although there are differences in its organization:
Spain
This mechanism is known as hour pooling or overtime compensation. The law allows collective agreements (sectoral or corporate agreements) to specify how this is done Overtime can be compensated for by rest time equivalent instead of receiving a salary bonus.
Rest should be enjoyed compulsorily Within a maximum period of 4 months Since watches have been made. This gives companies the ability to manage peak periods of work knowing that an employee’s primary compensation is vacation.
Brazil
The watch bank was widely used. Consolidation of Labor Laws (CLT) Overtime compensation is allowed for rest, either through an individual compensation agreement over a period of up to six months, or through a collective agreement or agreement that can extend that period Up to one year.
This system is essential for industries with fluctuating activity, because it allows the average legal working day to be maintained Without constantly incurring overtime costs.
France
It is a more advanced system called Compte Épargne-Temps – CET. This mechanism It goes beyond just overtime compensation. Allows employees to accumulate time (overtime, unused rest days, vacation days) in an individual account.
This accumulated time can be used later Paid time off (for example, to fund a vacation or sabbatical), or, in some cases, converted into direct compensation or used to fund retirement.
CET is a tool Time management and long-term savingThese are agreed upon through company or sector agreements.
Germany
Working time calculations (Arbeitszeitkonto) are used. These accounts allow workers Accumulation of surpluses or deficits in hours Within reference periods (which may be short or long), they are agreed upon collectively.
The goal is Balancing working hours with rest time All year round or longer. If an employee works more during a quarter, those hours are “saved” in their account to use in a less active period, maintaining a consistent salary.
chili
With the recent reform that limited the working day to 40 hours, the possibilities for agreeing on distribution and compensation systems for working hours through agreements have expanded.. These systems allow for compensating excess working hours with additional rest days within the framework of reduced hours, in an effort to achieve greater reconciliation for the worker.
Mexico
Federal labor law allows work hours to be adjusted and compensated through agreements between employers and workers, especially in flexible work plans.
Canada and Australia
They use schemes such as time-off-in-lieu (TOIL) banking, where overtime hours are converted into free time, regulated by collective agreements or internal policies.
Denmark, Norway and Sweden
The Nordic countries implement working time calculation systems that allow hours to be accumulated and used according to personal or family needs.
The “hour bank” seeks to adapt the day to fluctuations in productive demand, allowing the distribution of 48 weekly hours to be managed over a reference period, prioritizing compensatory rest over overtime pay.
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