Double limit of the working hours

In the Dominican Republic, there is a double limit on the working hours. The working hours is the time the employee cannot dispose of because it is available only to the employer. But if the parties agree on a shorter working period, then this is the one that will apply. This working period must appear in one of the official forms registered from time to time in the Department of Labor of the Ministry of Labor.

The labor laws, and more precisely, article 147 of the Labor Code, establish a double limit according to which the regular working hours may not exceed eight hours a day or 44 hours a week.

Even though the labor legislation refers to the eight hours a day and 44 hours a week as a starting point for the payment of overtime, the employer and the employee can agree on a shorter daily and weekly working time; for instance, six hours a day and 36 hours a week. In this case, overtime would begin to be paid at the end of those six hours per day or 36 hours per week.

It is also important to clarify that the double limit provided by labor laws works independently. If an employee works beyond the standard eight-hour, overtime must be paid, whether 44 hours a week were reached at the end of the week.