Working time rules under Swedish law and the EU Directive

Working time is regulated both in Working Hours Act (ATL, SFS 1982:673) and in EU Working Time Directive (2003/88/EC). Swedish law is largely dispositive, which means that many rules can be negotiated away through collective agreements. However, there are minimum protections in the EU directive that always apply and cannot be negotiated away.

Ordinary working hours

• According to ATL, regular working hours may amount to maximum 40 hours per week on average (§ 5).
• The EU directive does not set a specific limit for regular working time, but states that it total working time including overtime must not exceed 48 hours per week on average for a period of four months (Article 6).

Overtime

• ATL allows at most 200 hours of general overtime per year, and an additional 150 hours of extra overtime for special needs (§§ 8-10).
• Under the Directive, there is no specific overtime rule, but all overtime counts towards the 48-hour weekly limit.

Daily rest

• A worker is entitled to at least 11 hours of uninterrupted leave in each 24-hour period (13 § ATL).
• The EU Directive provides the same minimum protection: 11 hours of daily rest (Article 3).

Veckovila

• According to ATL, workers are entitled to at least 36 hours of uninterrupted weekly rest during each seven-day period (Section 14).
• The EU directive requires at least 24 hours of weekly rest, in addition to the daily rest period (Article 5).

Grids and breaks

• ATL states that workers may not work more than five consecutive hours without a break (Section 15) The employer decides on the length and timing of the break, but it must provide an opportunity to leave the workplace.
• According to the Directive, workers should have the right to breaks when working hours exceed six hours (Article 4).

Night work

• ATL states that the average working time for night workers may not exceed eight hours per 24-hour period during a reference period of no more than four months (Section 13a).
• The EU directive sets the same rule: no more than eight hours on average, especially for hazardous work (Article 8).

Interplay between law, collective agreements and EU directives

• The Working Time Act is dispositive: employers and employees' organizations may agree on solutions other than those provided for in the law by collective agreement.
• The EU Working Time Directive is mandatory: Member States may not allow rules that fall below the minimum protection of the Directive.

Example - four-day week with 10-hour shifts

If an employer wants to allow staff to work 10 hours per day Monday-Thursday (40 hours per week) complies with both Swedish law and the EU Directive, provided that:

• Workers get at least 11 hours of daily rest between shifts.
• The minimum weekly rest period is 36 hours (in this case Friday-Sunday).
• Breaks are scheduled in accordance with the law.

This approach may therefore be perfectly permissible - but in practice often requires collective agreement to regulate the organization of working time.

Conclusion:

As an employer, you must always distinguish:

• What is Swedish law (ATL).
• What can negotiated in collective agreements.
• What is EU minimum protection and therefore can never be undercut.