Working hours

Full working hours in Slovenia are recorded on a weekly basis, i.e. 40 hours per week. Full working hours can be shorter, but not less than 36 hours per week.

Full working hours for workplaces that are subject to increased risk of injury or health-related problems can be reduced to less than 36 hours per week. Full working hours cannot be distributed across fewer than four days per week.

An employer must inform employees of any overtime work in written form in advance, and employees must be appropriately paid for overtime work. Overtime work is limited to a maximum 8 working hours per week, 20 working hours per month or 170 working hours per year. Exceptionally, upon the employee's consent, this limit can be extended to 230 working hours per year for certain occupations such as healthcare; however, this should be agreed in the collective agreement that applies to the occupation or in the occupational collective agreement. An employer must organise the implementation of work in accordance with weekly and monthly restrictions, and also enable weekly rest (along with daily rest) of at least 24 hours once per week. The law also stipulates mandatory rest between two working days, i.e. 12 hours in a 24-hour period.

In Slovenia, an employee is also entitled to special benefit for overtime work or work during unsocial hours (night work, work on holidays). Benefits apply only to the non-standard hours. The amount of benefit is determined by the collective agreement for the particular branch of activity.

An employer is not permitted to order overtime work by certain protected employee categories (pregnant women, elderly workers, workers who work in dangerous workplaces etc.).

In cases of an unequal distribution or temporary distribution of full working time, the latter may not be more than 56 hours per week, and this distribution cannot exceed a period of 6 months. Night work is work from 23:00 to 6:00 of the following day. If a night shift is determined by work time distribution, night work is eight continuous hours between 22:00 and 7:00 of the following day. A night worker's working time over a period of four months cannot exceed more than eight hours per day. The night work of women in the food processing industry is subject to special regulations; the night work of under-aged workers, pregnant women and breast-feeding mothers is also prohibited.

Any action of the employer that is contrary to the provisions mentioned above is a criminal offence, and the offence is assessed by the competent union or Labour Inspectorate. Source: EURES