Is Our Work Schedule and Salary Deduction Policy Legal Under Labor Laws? Seeking Guidance

In my company, we have an official working time from 10 am to 8 pm, with break time from 1:30 pm to 2:15 pm and another break from 6 pm to 6:15 pm. Is this schedule in compliance with labor law regulations? We operate under the shop establishment act as an IT networking product dealer and distributor specializing solely in the international market.

Salary Calculation Policy

Regarding salary calculation, we recently implemented a new policy of considering 26 working days for the calculation. Previously, we used a pro-rata system for deductions based on late arrivals. If an employee arrived late beyond 10 am, we allowed a grace period of 3 days, with 15 minutes each day, or a total of 45 minutes, whichever came first. The salary deduction was then calculated based on the additional time and deducted proportionately. However, the current practice involves deducting half a day's salary for three late marks, in addition to the pro-rata deductions.

I am seeking guidance on the legality and authenticity of this new practice. Are there specific rules governing such practices? Please guide me.

Your first part of the query is clear. Since the total spread (including intervals of rest) is 10 hours, there is no illegality. You can have 10 hours and 30 minutes. The only thing is that the hours each employee works (physically works) should not exceed 9 hours a day or 48 hours a week. If you work for 5 days, then it will come to 45 hours only, and that is okay. However, if you have 6 days with each day contributing 9 hours, then it will be against the law.

The second part of your query is not clear, and I regret I am not in a position to answer it.

Thank you for your reply, sir! However, there is a violation of the law related to women workers. According to this law, a woman should not work beyond 7 pm. If a woman is required to work beyond this time, appropriate arrangements must be made to ensure she can be safely transported home from the office.

If any female employee stays back after 7 pm, it naturally becomes a non-compliance issue, which can be escalated to management.