Working Time Directive
New rules for registering working hours are coming to SDU
The new EU Working Time Directive requires all public and private employers in Denmark to register employees’ working hours. Its purpose is to safeguard employees’ rights, health and well-being in the workplace. The law comes into force on 1 July this year, and universities are currently working to find the most pragmatic and user-friendly solutions.
Tracking of working hours
The Danish Parliament, taking its cue from the EU Working Time Directive, has passed a law requiring all public and private employers in Denmark to register their employees’ working hours. Its purpose is to safeguard employees’ rights, health and well-being in the workplace.
The law comes into force on 1 July this year.
Together with the other universities and the Central Administration, SDU is therefore currently preparing for the implementation of the new legal requirements.
How does it affect you?
If you are already covered by a flexitime agreement, you will – as it stands – be able to continue to register your working hours in the same way as you already do. In the long term, there will be a common procedure and system support that covers all SDU employees.
If you do not already register your working hours or only register part of your working hours (e.g. on projects), you will – as it stands – have to register your working hours in the future and work with your management to ensure that your working hours are within the current legal requirements for working hours.
For the current legal requirements for working hours, see the box below.
The process at SDU
The Executive Board and SDU HR are currently working in dialogue with the Central Liaison Committee to find the most pragmatic and user-friendly solutions to comply with the new legislation.
Important guiding principles are respect for the academic values and culture of the University, the freedom to organise one’s own work and the extensive flexibility that characterises SDU and the other universities.
We are trying to make the administrative task that the new legislation entails as simple and easy as possible.
Further information will be provided as questions about the new legislation are clarified and decisions are made on how we implement the registration of working hours at SDU.
We expect to hold online meetings in June with information for managers and employees, and there will be a dialogue with both the Central Liaison Committee and the liaison committees of the faculties and Central Administration along the way to find the best possible solutions.
The next steps:
- On 16 May, the Central Liaison Committee will discuss the draft principles and approach to time tracking at SDU
- From 16 May to 1 June, the liaison committees of the faculties will have the opportunity to provide input for the implementation at SDU.
- In mid-June, the Executive Board will hold an extraordinary meeting to decide on the principles for the implementation of the Working Time Directive at SDU.
- On 24 June, the Central Liaison Committee will discuss the solutions it finds best.
- At the end of June, the organisation will be informed about the implementation of the forthcoming legislation and how it will be put into practice at SDU.
- On 1 July, the implementation of time tracking for the affected target groups will begin.
- The solution will be implemented during autumn 2024.
Fact box
From 1 July, all public and private employers in Denmark must track employees’ working hours. Its purpose is to safeguard employees’ rights, health and well-being in the workplace.
Employers must be able to document the extent of employees’ actual working hours five years back in time.
The existing working time legislation in the EU states that weekly working hours must not exceed 48 hours on average over a four-month period and that employees are entitled to a rest period of 11 hours between working days and a total of 35 hours of weekly rest.
The law does not change the 37-hour working week, which is laid down in the Danish collective agreements.
In practice, the law means that employees and managers must register working hours from 1 July 2024. Registration is about measuring total daily working hours – not what working hours are spent on during the day.
Some people (self-organisers) can be exempted from the time-tracking requirements, but it is currently uncertain which people can be defined as self-organisers at Danish universities, and work is therefore being done across the universities to clarify this matter.
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