Overtime work

Overtime Work in Labor Law: Rights, Obligations, and Recent Amendments

Overtime work is one of the key issues in labor law, directly linked to the rights of employees and the obligations of employers. In Georgia, this matter is regulated by Article 27 of the Labor Code, which underwent significant amendments in 2020.

📌 What Is Overtime Work?

According to the Georgian Labor Code, overtime work refers to any work that exceeds the number of working hours established by law or defined in the employment contract. Typically, this means working more than 40 hours per week or more than 8 hours per day, except in cases of officially agreed part-time schedules.

⚖️ What Changed After the 2020 Amendments?

Following the 2020 amendments to the Labor Code:

• Limits on Overtime for Minors were established: The duration of overtime work for minors may not exceed 2 hours per day and 4 hours per week.

• Timing of Overtime Compensation was regulated: Overtime must be compensated together with the employee’s monthly wage after the overtime work is performed. If compensating with additional rest time, such rest must be granted within 4 weeks.

• Redefinition of Overtime Work: Overtime is now defined as any time worked beyond the employee’s normal working hours, allowing for overtime to be recognized even on a daily basis, not only weekly.

📄 Employee Consent and Agreement

It is important to note that overtime work must be based on the employee’s consent, meaning it is an agreed-upon extension of working time. Such consent must be verifiable — ideally in written or electronic form — in order to be valid in the event of a dispute.

💰 Compensation for Overtime Work

The law stipulates that overtime work must be compensated using a coefficient based on the employee’s hourly wage rate. If the compensation is provided in the form of time off, the rest time must be proportional to the overtime worked.

Although the law does not set a specific increased coefficient, the compensation must not be symbolic. In practice, an overtime pay rate of 125% of the employee’s regular hourly wage is considered a reasonable standard.

🛡️ Employee Rights and Protection Mechanisms

Employees have the right to:

• Refuse to work overtime unless it is caused by force majeure circumstances (e.g., natural disaster or industrial emergency);

• Request appropriate compensation or compensatory rest time;

• Contact the Labor Inspection Office if overtime work is imposed unlawfully.