Is there any penalty for the act of not allowing workers to rest?

I am a worker in a brick factory. Our working day consists of 8 hours. I would like to ask the lawyer if there is any regulation on the minimum rest period during working hours. If the factory owner does not allow us to rest, will he be punished? Thank you.

FDVN’s Opinion:

Thank you for concerning FDVN’s legal services. Regarding your consulting requests, after studying the relevant legal documents, FDVN Law Firm would like to give you the following advice:

1. Regulations on working hours, and rest periods

Working hours are stipulated in Article 105 of Labor Code 2019. Accordingly:

-  Normal working hours shall not exceed 08 hours per day or 48 hours per week.

- An employer has the right to determine the daily or weekly working hours and inform the employees accordingly. The daily working hours shall not exceed 10 hours per day and not exceed 48 hours per week where a weekly basis is applied. The State encourages employers to apply 40-hour workweeks.

-  Employers shall limit the time of exposure to harmful elements in accordance with relevant National Technical Regulations and laws.

 Besides, to ensure the health of the workers, Article 109 of Labor Code regulates that an employee who works for at least 06 hours per day shall be given a rest break of at least 30 consecutive minutes. In case of night work, the rest break shall be at least 45 consecutive minutes. If a shift lasts at least 06 consecutive hours, the rest break will be included in the working hour. In addition, the employer shall determine other short breaks and specify that in the internal labor regulations.

An employee who performs shift work is entitled to a break of at least 12 hours before beginning another shift (Article 110 of Labor Code).

2. The employer may be fined if he does not allow the workers to rest

To ensure the employees’ rights, Article 17 of Decree No. 28/2020/NĐ-CP on violations against regulations on work and rest time

1. Imposing fines ranging from VND 2,000,000 to VND 5,000,000 on employers that commit one of the following violations:

a) Failing to provide necessary conditions to allow workers to rest at intervals between working sessions, between working shifts, or take personal leave, or take unpaid leave as prescribed in existing regulations;

….”

According to the provisions cited above, the employer must ensure reasonable working hours and rest periods for the employees. In the case where the employers violate, depending on the level of violation, they will be fined according to the provisions of law.

Ngô Thị Mỹ Trâm – FDVN Law Firm

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