Contract Labor Hours: Do Factory Laws Include Lunch Breaks and More?

What are the contract labor working hours as per factory law and as per contract labor law? Do the working hours of contract labor include lunch breaks, etc?

Thank you.

The Factory Act or Contract Labour Act does not differentiate between regular and contract workers. Therefore, the working hours applicable to regular employees should be kept the same for contract employees as well.

Also include the relevant gazette notifications with respect to contract labor working hours.

Dear Dinesh Divekar,

Thank you, sir. Please guide me if I am wrong.

"The contract labour working hours are 8 hours per day inclusive of lunch and tea break. It should not exceed 48 hours per week. Beyond 48 hours per week, overtime is to be paid at double rates."

Dear Friend,

Working hours are 8 hours per day, inclusive of a lunch break, for all workers, whether in the role of a factory employee or under a contractor. Any work beyond 8 hours will attract double the rate and be treated as overtime.

Dear colleague,

The working hours are 8 hours, excluding lunch/tea breaks, and not including the breaks, totaling 48 hours in a week for both regular and contract workers.

Regards,
Vinayak Nagarkar
HR Consultant

Dear NSuresh,

Please go through the Factories Act and relevant Factories Rules of your State, The Contract Labour (R&A) Act, and applicable rules. Working hours are mentioned in the relevant acts.

Section 51 of the Factories Act, 1948 prescribes that no adult worker shall be required or allowed to work in a factory for more than forty-eight hours in any week.

Section 56 of the Act stipulates that the period of work of an adult worker in a factory shall be so arranged that, inclusive of his intervals for rest under Section 55, it shall not spread over more than ten and a half hours on any day.

Whether permanent or contract workers, these working hours are to be observed in factories.

Hours of work are 8 hours, which amounts to 48 hours in a week. Excluding break times, it should be 48 hours, and there should not be any break time in between spans beyond 10 hours in total. Thanks to Nathrao sir for explaining it in detail.

Dear colleagues,

What are the working hours for Apprentice Trainee Employees?

This is in addition to the answers given by other members to the original query. If we analyze the scheme of the Contract Labor (Regulation & Abolition) Act, 1970, we'll find that there are no provisions relating to working hours; the same applies to the Rules framed under the Act. Contract labor, per se, is a distinct class of labor engaged through a contractor by any establishment for its incidental or other non-perennial works. Therefore, whatever provisions relating to the regular workers of the establishment in terms of working hours, rest intervals, weekly holidays, leave, etc., as specified in the establishment-specific labor law, automatically become applicable to the contract labor as long as they are employed therein.

If such contract labor is engaged in any activity-specific works like building and other construction works, then their working hours are regulated by special enactments such as the BOCW Act, 1996, or the MW Act, 1948 in other cases.