Is It Legal for My Company to Make Us Work 6.5 Days a Week Without a Break?

I work in a Financial KPO in Hyderabad. I work in shifts. My work time is for 9 hours, including 1 hour for breakfast/lunch.

We have a weekly off on Saturday and Sunday. But now my company is forcing me (and all employees of the department) to come and work overtime every Saturday for a full day and half a day on Sunday. It means they want us to work for 6.5 days out of 7 days every week.

I want to know, is this fair and legal? Don't we have any law/act which could state that an employee should have a minimum number of holidays per week to maintain their health?

Overtime Considerations

For some time, doing overtime is fine to fulfill pending tasks. Lack of staff, such as a large group of employees leaving without serving the notice period, or the company having urgent projects with tight deadlines, may necessitate overtime. If you are unsure why the company is asking for this, you can simply ask them how long this overtime situation will continue.

I think you are presently working in Nagpur (as per remarks in the above column), and perhaps your establishment may be covered as Shops & Commercial Establishment. In shops and commercial establishment laws, there are mostly restrictions laid down regarding the working hours of the employees. I suggest you study the provisions of the Shops and Commercial Establishments Act as applicable in your area and decide accordingly.

Apart from the above explanation, I would like to inform you that the total working hours in a week should not exceed 48 hours. Please verify this and then discuss it with the HR department.

Legal Obligations for Weekly Offs in India

All offices, shops, and commercial establishments in India must adhere to local regulations. The Shops and Establishments Act in Hyderabad mandates a weekly off, which is compulsory. Therefore, it is illegal to require employees to work on their weekly off day. In your case, this day is Sunday.

Regards,

Legal Working Hours and Weekly Offs

The law is very clear on this point: the maximum working hours in a week is 48 hours.