Time for time hours

Questioner

Hi I work in a supermarket. I worked a lot more hours last year. Now the boss wants everything to be worked off before February which means I would be free for almost the entire month of January. But I don't want that because I just pay for the after-school care and then actually pay for nothing because my children don't have to go. Can he force me to do that?

Lawyer

Your employment contract or collective labor agreement usually states how many hours you work per week. If you work more hours than stated in your contract, your employer can indeed compensate for this by having you work less on other days. This is also called time-for-time. However, your employer has a duty of care and must take into account the private life of his employees. So if this has such major personal consequences for you, it may be reasonable to discuss this arrangement. It is advisable to share this with your employer and look for a suitable solution together. In addition, as of January 1, 2019, it is only permitted to compensate overtime with time-for-time if this has been agreed in the collective labor agreement. And even then, your employer must pay you at least the minimum wage per hour worked. If you do not have a collective labor agreement in which this has been agreed, then time-for-time is not permitted and your employer has the legal obligation to pay overtime. So for a precise assessment of your situation, it is wise to check your employment contract and your collective labor agreement to see what agreements have been made about overtime and compensation for this. It may also be wise to approach a lawyer or attorney for this specific problem who can help you protect your rights in this situation.' ---------------- Stichting Rechtswinkel.nl is a national organization with students and volunteers. The above advice is based on limited information and may be incomplete or even incorrect for your situation. Always consult a lawyer or attorney for your further steps. Read disclaimer: https://rechtswinkel.nl/disclaimer I would like to invite you to rate the above answer so that we can learn from your response.