Since last Sunday, May 12, all companies are obliged to keep an hourly control of the working day of their employees,both at the entrance and at the exit of their jobs. This is undoubtedly one of the most outstanding novelties of the latest amendment of the Workers’ Statute by the Government of Spain.
Among many others, the main objective of the time control of the mandatory working day,is none other than to guarantee that each worker will comply with the real duration of his working day, thus avoiding the realization of unpaid overtime by the company.
Those companies that from May 12 do not count the day of their employees, may be punished with a fine of between 626 and 6,250 euros. Therefore, below we are going to tell you how your company should act to implement a system of time control of the working day.
What is the time control of workers’ working hours?
Last Sunday, May 12, the deadline given by the Government for companies to adapt to this new regulation, which modifies article 34 of the Workers’ Statute, and obliges companies to carry out a mandatory hourly control of the working hours of their employees, ended.
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The main objectives of compulsory monitoring of working time are, in addition to putting an end to the fraud of unpaid overtime, to prevent abuses in part-time employment with hidden full-time work. In short, to put a solution to job insecurity.
Accounting for overtime
The latest labour force survey showed that in Spain, 5.7 million overtime hours are done weekly, of which 2.6 million are not paid by companies, and therefore, they do not contribute for them to social security.
Unpaid overtime involves exploitation of workers by companies,which also severely affects social security, being a practice that is part of the black economy.
Therefore, as established in article 35.5 of the Workers’ Statute, and although at first it may generate rejection among workers, the most effective way to put an end to this situation is to implement a system of time control over employees.
Article
35.5 of the Workers’ Statute:
“For the purposes of calculating overtime worked, the working day of each employee shall be recorded daily, totalling in the period fixed for the corresponding payment of remuneration, delivering a summary copy to each worker”.
Time control of part-time workers
Although time control for part-time contracts was already mandatory since 2013, article 12.4 of the Workers’ Statute indicates that the working day of workers hired part-time will have to be recorded daily.
The worker must be given a monthly copy, accompanied by a wage receipt with a summary of all hours worked after one month, including additional hours if they had been performed.
Additional hours will have to be paid in the same way as ordinary hours,because employees hired part-time are not in a position to work overtime.
How to carry out the mandatory time control of the working day in your company?
All companies have had two months to take the necessary measures,and implement a system that allows them to carry out the mandatory control of the working hours of their employees. Otherwise, as established by the Law on Infractions in the Social Order, they could be punished with a fine of between 626 and 6,250 euros.
The way in which the hourly control of the working day will be carried out will be the decision of each company,adapting to the needs of each of its employees. Keep in mind that in the same company, it is possible that not all employees signed the same.
In any case, companies will be obliged to keep all the hourly records of their employees for a minimum period of four years,being at the disposal of workers, as well as a possible Labour Inspection or Social Security.
Also, if the worker performs overtime, he will have to receive a summary of the ordinary and overtime hours performed monthly, along with a copy of the receipt of his salary.
Requirements to control workers’ working hours and comply with the law
There are different options to keep track of the working hours of workers, being absolutely necessary to comply with the requirements established in the General Data Protection Regulation (RGPD) and the Law on Protection of Personal Data and Guarantee of Digital Rights (LOPD-GDD):
- Obligation to inform workers about the purpose of processing their data.
- Include the treatment of the Register of the Working Day within the Register of Treatment Activities that the company must carry out.
- Sign a confidentiality agreement between all parties who may have access to the data.
- Perform an analysis of the associated risks.
- Write and implement the security measures on this treatment to guarantee the security of the data.
- Establish an internal procedure for reporting security incidents.
conclusion
With the aim of guaranteeing the remuneration of overtime worked by workers and avoiding covert full-time work; the Government has made it compulsory for companies to keep an hourly check on the working hours of their employees.
All those companies that do not comply with the regulations and do not take the necessary measures, may be sanctioned by the Labour Inspectorate.
To avoid any incident about this time control of the day, we invite you to contact our labor counseling department, and we will help you resolve any questions.
