Can Employees Work Back-to-Back Shifts? Navigating Shift Rules in a Pharma Company

Dear Seniors,

Greetings. Firstly, I would like to provide a little background about my company's shift timings. We have three shifts in my organization: the 1st shift from 7 am to 3 pm, the 2nd shift from 2 pm to 10 pm, the 3rd shift from 10 pm to 7 am, and one General Shift from 9 am to 5:30 pm. We work only five days a week. We have only white-collar employees in this unit. My company is registered under the Factory's Act. My questions here are:

1) Can an employee work for two continuous shifts in a week? That is, suppose on a particular day an employee works from 7 am till 10 pm. This scenario arises only in emergencies.

2) Comp Offs - If a company like mine has five days of working mentioned in the Appointment Letter, then are Saturday and Sunday both considered as Comp-offs or only Sunday?

PS - Let me know if any more details are required. Since I am not from an IR background, I might not have framed the questions properly.

Thanks,
Komal

Guidelines on Work Hours and Weekly Offs

Please note that the total number of hours in a quarter should not exceed 50 hours. Based on operational needs, you may occasionally require an employee to continue into the next shift; however, this should be infrequent, and it is essential to ensure that the total hours in a quarter do not exceed 50, as mandated by the Factories Act.

Once the organization is designated as operating for five days a week, the work schedules are likely fixed. Consequently, both Saturday and Sunday are considered weekly offs, and any employee working on a weekly off day is eligible for compensatory time off.

I hope this clarifies the guidelines.

Regards,
Kamesh

My answers to your questions are as follows:

Shift Timings and Overlapping

Shift timings are okay except there is overlapping in the 1st and 2nd shifts. There is a prohibition on overlapping the shifts according to Section 58. You need to convince the authority that in this overlapping, there is no work of the same kind by both the shift workers.

Working Two Continuous Shifts

Two continuous shifts at any time are not permitted except in cases mentioned in Section 64 read with rules 100 to 102. The reason for having Badli or Casual Worker is this only. You cannot keep a worker on overtime for a full shift.

Comp Offs

Saturday and Sunday are your weekly off days. Compensatory holiday/off means if any worker works on your weekly off day, he should be permitted to have off (compensatory) against his working on the weekly off day within two months' time (Section 53). Please note that the amendments in 2014 in FA are in effect.

Hope you will be satisfied with my answers.