Rosters, overtime and leave policies are where labour law meets daily operations. The exact numbers depend on where your people work, but the questions a policy has to answer are the same everywhere. This guide walks through them for HR and operations teams.
Working hours
- Daily and weekly limits. Most countries set a normal maximum per day and per week. The ILO's first convention (No. 1) set 8 hours a day and 48 a week for industry; many countries now set a lower weekly figure.
- Breaks. Laws commonly require a break after a number of consecutive hours, and say whether breaks count as working time.
- Special periods and groups. Some countries shorten hours in particular periods, such as religious observances, or for night workers, young workers or hazardous work.
- Exempt roles. Senior and managerial roles are often outside the limits, but the definition is narrow; check it rather than assuming.
Overtime
- A ceiling. Many laws cap total hours per day, week or year including overtime.
- A premium. Overtime is usually paid at a higher rate; Convention No. 1 set at least one and a quarter times the regular rate, and many countries set more for nights, rest days and public holidays.
- Time off instead of pay. Some countries and agreements allow compensatory time off; record it as carefully as paid overtime.
- Approval. Decide who can authorise overtime and make sure it is approved before it reaches payroll.
Rest days and public holidays
Almost every country guarantees a weekly rest period, often at least 24 consecutive hours, and a list of paid public holidays. Policies need to say what happens when someone works on one: a replacement day, a higher rate, or both. Holiday calendars differ by country and sometimes by region, so a multi-site employer needs more than one calendar.
Annual leave
- Entitlement. The ILO's Holidays with Pay Convention (No. 132) sets at least three working weeks for a year of service. National minimums vary, and many rise with length of service.
- Accrual. Leave can be granted up front each year or earned month by month; part years are usually counted in proportion.
- Carry-over and expiry. Decide how much unused leave can roll into the next year and when it expires, within what the law allows.
- Payment on leaving. Many laws require unused leave to be paid out when employment ends.
Sick leave
Paid sick leave rules range from employer-paid days to social-insurance benefits after a waiting period, often with full pay for an initial period and reduced pay after that. Note what evidence your policy asks for and when, and keep medical details private.
Putting it into practice
- Write each rule as a setting per country or site, not as a habit of whoever builds the roster.
- Check daily and weekly ceilings in attendance as time is recorded, not in a spreadsheet afterwards.
- Build special periods as their own shift patterns rather than editing every roster by hand.
- Set leave entitlements by length of service so increases happen automatically.
- Pay unused leave in the final settlement, not as an afterthought.
How Mawro handles it
In Mawro, working-hour limits, overtime rates, holiday calendars and leave rules are configured per country, site or group of employees. The attendance engine checks the configured ceilings when it measures overtime, and rosters, rotations and calendars decide what a normal day looks like for each person. Leave types support service-based entitlements, accrual, carry-forward limits and expiry, and unused leave flows into the end-of-service settlement.
Not legal advice. This guide explains common practice for HR teams. Labour law differs by country, and sometimes by region, sector or collective agreement, and it changes. Check the current law where your people work and take legal advice for specific cases.