Is a 5-Day Workweek with 9.5-Hour Days Possible in a Factory Setting?

Dear friends,

Greetings. Can a factory have a 5-day week with 9 1/2 hours of work each day? Extra hours worked are not considered overtime.

Rule 54 states that the maximum working hours per day should be 9 hours. Saturday and Sunday are proposed as holidays.

Regards,
Anbumalar

You can plan 9.5 hours per day with a 5-day workweek without paying any overtime. If you are a factory or shop establishment, please inform the relevant authorities in advance of your intention to switch to a 5-day workweek.

Though permitted weekly hours under the act are 48, a maximum of 9 daily working hours are allowed as per section 54 of the Act.

Ingawale, please note and do not provide opinions that are not based on the facts of the act.

Dear friend,

In my view, a 5-day workweek for any production unit or factory is not feasible. How do you manage the furnaces running round the clock without constant manning or the numerous unavoidable processes that require 24/7 attention in a factory, especially after a holiday break? While it may sound appealing in theory, it is not a practical idea.

Please let me know if you need any further assistance.

Thank you.

Dear Anbumalar,

The cap fixed on the total number of working hours for a worker in a week under section 51 of the Factories Act, 1948 limits the number of working hours per day automatically. It implies that the average working hours per day cannot be 9 hours but only 8 hours. Therefore, the 9 hours a day fixed under section 54 is the maximum limit constituting a day's normal working hours.

Your proposal of switching over to a "work of a 5-day week" may be more beneficial to the workmen in terms of weekly off or weekly holidays, but such a benefit cannot run counter to the explicit provisions of sections 51 and 54 by fixing the normal working hours at 9.5 hours a day.