Getting working hours and overtime right is what makes the salary figure correct at month end. These are the rules an HR officer needs most, with their article numbers in the Labour Law.
Normal working hours (Article 98)
- A worker may not actually work more than eight hours a day where the daily standard is used, or more than forty-eight hours a week where the weekly standard is used.
- During Ramadan, working hours for Muslims are reduced to six hours a day or thirty-six hours a week.
Rest breaks (Article 101)
Working hours are arranged so that no worker works more than five consecutive hours without a break for rest, prayer and meals of at least half an hour each time. These breaks are not counted as actual working hours.
Weekly rest day (Article 104)
Friday is the weekly rest day. The employer may replace it with another day for some workers after notifying the competent labour office. The rest day is on full pay.
Overtime (Article 107)
- The employer pays for overtime hours a wage equal to the hourly wage plus 50% of the basic wage.
- All hours worked on holidays and Eids are overtime hours.
- Amendments to the law allow the parties to agree to compensate overtime with paid time off instead of pay. Check the text of the amendment before applying it.
Example: the overtime hour
An employee earns SAR 6,000 a month, of which SAR 4,800 is basic wage, working 8 hours a day over 30 days:
- Hourly wage: 6,000 ÷ 30 ÷ 8 = SAR 25
- 50% of the basic hourly wage: 4,800 ÷ 30 ÷ 8 × 0.5 = SAR 10
- Overtime hour: SAR 35
Companies differ in how they divide the monthly wage into hours, so adopt one written method and apply it to everyone.
Where the mistakes usually are
- The wrong shift. If a day is evaluated against a shift the employee did not work, attendance becomes lateness or overtime becomes normal time.
- Night shifts. A shift that crosses midnight belongs to the day it started; many manual sheets split it across two days.
- Unapproved overtime. Staying after hours is not payable overtime unless it was requested and approved.
- Public holidays. Work on them is overtime in full, not only what exceeds eight hours.
How a system helps
When punches arrive directly from the devices, are evaluated against each employee’s shift, and overtime goes through approval, the figure reaches payroll with no manual sums. See the time attendance feature and the payroll feature.
This article is general information, not legal advice. Laws and regulations change; refer to the official text in force or to a legal adviser before making a decision.