Kazakhstan to introduce 4-day working week

Kazakhstan will introduce a four-day working week from July 2023.

From July 1, such changes are made to the Labor Code by the adopted Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan “On the Introduction of Amendments and Additions to Certain Legislative Acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Social Security Issues”, Tengrinews.kz reports.

In accordance with the Labour Code, a five-day or six-day working week is provided, as well as a part-time working week (the duration is determined by the agreement of the parties).

At the same time, in individual industries, it becomes necessary to establish a five-day and four-day working week simultaneously on different weeks:

“By agreement of the parties, the employment contract allows the establishment of a four-day working week with the right to alternate with a five-day or six-day working week,” the report says.

As reported, the total duration of overtime work should not exceed twelve hours per month - with a four-day, five-day, and six-day working week, and one hundred and twenty hours a year - when establishing the summarized accounting of working time.

Accordingly, article 84 establishes days off within a four-day work schedule.

Within a five-day, six-day, or four-day working week, the general day off is Sunday. The second or third day off with a five-day and (or) four-day working week is established by a collective agreement or labor regulations.

According to the developers, it will be possible to apply such a mode of operation as one week of work with a five-day work schedule, and the second week with a four-day work week. This practice is already applied to office workers and is in line with international labor standards.