Overtime helps companies manage seasonal peaks or urgent staffing needs. Employees must accept overtime when legal conditions are met. French labor law defines clear limits on the maximum overtime hours per day, week, month, and year to protect employees’ health and safety. Due to the complexity of scheduling and regulations, many companies use overtime management software to ensure accurate planning and compliance.
In France, the legal workweek is 35 hours. Any hours worked beyond this threshold are classified as overtime. Employers needing employees to work more during peak periods must follow strict overtime regulations. These rules set daily, weekly, monthly, and annual caps to avoid overloading employees.
An employee cannot work more than 10 hours per day, including overtime.
Some exceptions apply, but only under strict conditions and with approval from the labor inspectorate.
The total weekly working time, including overtime, cannot exceed 48 hours.
If this limit is exceeded, the employer must justify the need, consult employee representatives, and inform the labor inspectorate.
Over a rolling 4-week period, an employee cannot exceed 220 hours of work, including regular and overtime hours.
The annual overtime limit is set at 1,607 hours.
This annual limit covers all extra hours worked throughout the year, on top of the standard working hours.
These legal limits exist to protect employees' physical and mental health and to ensure work-life balance.
Employers can ask employees to work overtime to manage temporary needs, as long as they respect these limits. Ignoring these rules exposes companies to fines and other penalties, including potential imprisonment for severe violations.
Employees are required to accept overtime, unless they have a legitimate reason to refuse or if the employer fails to follow legal procedures.
This framework helps balance operational flexibility for companies with employee rights protection, ensuring sustainable working conditions.
