PCP
Two different thresholds
SECO distinguishes overtime beyond contractual hours from work exceeding the statutory maximum under the Employment Act. The categories do not automatically coincide. A single account labelled “overtime” may therefore contain hours governed by different rules.
The distinction matters for compensation and prevention. A cleared balance does not establish that rest periods were observed. A quieter week does not undo every consequence of several long days. An assessment needs dates and the timing of work, rather than an annual total alone.
Work surrounding the main task
Preparing a workstation, closing a till, handing over a case or writing an assignment report takes time. The issue is which activities are required and how they enter the service schedule. Treating these moments as personal availability without examining them removes necessary work from the calculation.
The same applies to working from home. The time an email is sent does not measure a working day; a full calendar is not a complete record either. People need a way to report work performed without permanent monitoring of their screens or movements. Recording time and continuously observing a person are different choices.
Part-time hours still require protection
Extra hours can disrupt another paid job or caring commitments. Whether a part-time employee can perform them cannot be inferred from their contractual percentage. SECO’s explanation of reasonable requirements refers to the circumstances, including other obligations.
A wage comparison must therefore connect the amount paid, the agreed workload and actual time. Equal contractual salaries do not produce equal hourly income when one person regularly works unrecognised hours. An occasional bonus with an unexplained calculation does not settle the difference.
When an exception becomes the operating model
An unforeseen event may call for a temporary response. Repeated and predictable excess hours raise another question: are the tasks compatible with staffing and deadlines? That requires discussion of posts, schedules and service requirements. Advice about personal time management does not explain a workload permanently exceeding the resources available.
The PCP supports straightforward access to individual records, a reasoned correction process and collective examination of recurring excess hours. Necessary work belongs inside paid staffing plans, while rest must exist in practice. The test is fewer invisible hours and less exhaustion carried from one week into the next.