Working hours in an employment relationship
Job advertisements also often state whether the work is full-time, part-time or only available when necessary to the person being invited to work.
Full-time work
Full-time work means that you work the full working day, usually on five days a week. The working hours are, at most, 8 hours a day and 40 hours a week. For example, working hours for full-time work are usually 7.5 hours a day and 37.5 hours a week.
Part-time work
Part-time work means that you only work part of the working day or part of the working week. Employees work less hours in part-time employment than in full-time employment.
If you are a part-time employee, you are entitled to additional work. This means that if your employer needs more employees, your employer must first give you more hours before they can hire additional employees.
If you want to do more hours than agreed on in your contract, talk to your employer.
Zero-hour agreement
A zero-hour contract, a zero-work contractor a contract on variable working hours means thatthe employer does not have to provide you with any working hours. If your employment contract states that you work 0-20 hours a week, it is a zero-hour contract. If you have 0 working hours, you will not receive any salary. Note that if your employer no longer offers you any work, you can request the employer to give a written statement on the reasons why there is less work on offer.
If the employer offers you a zero-hour agreement, always try to agree on a minimum number of hours. You must then be paid a salary at least for those hours, even if you do not have any work.
Employers are not allowed to offer zero-hour employment contracts if the need for the work covered by the contract is fixed.
Employers must review the number of hours worked by employees with zero-hour contracts at least every 12 months. If the number of hours worked during the reviewed period and the employer’s need for labour show that the employee’s minimum working hours can be raised, the employer must suggest raising the minimum amount.