No. 47 - Forty-Hour Week, 1935

Provisions

• Ratifying countries must declare their approval:
  • of the principle of a 40 hour week implemented in such a manner that the standard of living is not reduced in consequence; and
  • of the measures considered appropriate to achieve the 40 hour week.
• They must undertake to apply this principle to classes of employment as prescribed in other Conventions that they may ratify.

Administered by

Department of Labour

• Employment Relations Act 2000
• Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992
• Health and Safety in Employment Regulations 1995
• Minimum Wage Act 1983

How New Zealand implements it

• The Minimum Wage Act provides that employment agreements shall fix the working week at not more than 40 hours, excluding overtime, to be worked on not more than five days of the week, unless the parties to the agreement agree. Overtime rates are set by negotiation.
• Employers must keep wage and time records and make them available to employees.
• The Health and Safety in Employment Act requires employers to prevent harm occurring to employees in the workplace. While hours of work and weekly rest periods are not explicitly regulated, the Health and Safety in Employment Amendment Act 2003 amends the definition of harm to explicitly include physical or mental harm caused by work-related stress. The definition of hazard has also been amended to include hazardous behaviour resulting from physical or mental fatigue.
• In the transport sector, there are specific controls on the working hours of certain occupations or roles. These are contained in the respective legislative regimes for air, sea, road and rail transport.
• In all other sectors, the Department of Labour's guidance encourages employers and others responsible for organising the work of others to address issues of fatigue systemically, as they would other hazards. Guidance is framed around the recognition of fatigue and its causes in the workplace, and then developing appropriate strategies, policies and procedures for a particular setting. All employers are required by law to take 'all practicable steps' to do this.
• Penalty actions and compliance orders for breach of agreement can be pursued by the employee, or their union, through mediation, or failing agreement, in the Employment Relations Authority.
• The Department of Labour's Work/Life Balance programme promotes flexible working arrangements, such as part-time work, working from home or term-time working.
• The Employment Relations (Flexible Working Arrangements) Amendment Act 2007 provides certain employees with the right to request a variation to their hours of work, days of work, or place of work. To be eligible for the 'right to request' an employee must have the care of a person and have been employed by their employer for six months prior to making the request. The Act provides a process for how requests are to be made and responded to, and a process for resolving any disagreements relating to a request for flexible working arrangements.
• A review of the Employment Relations (Flexible Working Arrangements) Amendment Act will be completed in 2010 and will consider whether the statutory right to request flexible work should be extended to all employees.

This Convention is not applicable to Tokelau.

Ratified - 29 March 1938

Total ratifications - 14

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